Sreeram Reddy Vanga, chief executive of Nazara Technologies-backed adtech influencer platform Kofluence, said X (formerly Twitter) has plenty of “untapped potential” when it comes to influencer marketing.
“The strength of X lies in real-time conversations and trending topics, which can be powerful for brands when used correctly,” he said. “Current estimates indicate that creators might earn around $2 to $3 per month from this programme, which is modest but highlights a clear area for improvement, which X has acknowledged.”
The push for influencer-driven monetisation of X’s user base comes in the backdrop of many advertisers staying away from the platform.
A Kantar survey report in September pointed out a declining trend of brand spending on X. It stated that 26% of marketers are planning to spend fewer of their ad dollars on X in 2025 – the biggest recorded pullback from any major global ad platform.
According to Hootsuite, as of 2024, X had about 250 million daily visitors spending an average of 30.9 minutes on the platform and the major chunk of audience are in the 25-34 age group.
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Last year, the platform unveiled a revenue sharing programme, introducing a $5 million payout for eligible creators. This initiative represented a major step in expanding monetisation opportunities on the platform.In October this year, X amended its creator payments policy to make it less dependent on ads, and instead pays creators based on engagement with their content that comes from X’s premium users.
Twitter Communications India, now part of X Corp, recorded a sharp drop in net profit and revenue in fiscal 2024, largely due to the collapse in its advertising revenues after it disbanded the company’s global ad sales team under the new management led by Musk.
Social media influencers in India earn an average monthly income ranging from Rs 20,000 to Rs 2 lakh, as per industry estimates.
While mega content creators with more than a million subscribers can earn anywhere from Rs 3 lakh and above on YouTube, a micro content creator with subscribers between 10,000 and 100,000 can potentially make as much as Rs 2 lakhs per content, the Kofluence report suggested.
The competitors
Brands saw a $2.70 return for every dollar spent on ad campaigns on X. This is nearly 40% higher ROI compared to other media investments, showcasing the platform’s potential as a strong driver for sales and revenue.
But Alphabet Inc’s YouTube and Instagram are faring better in terms of engagement and revenue.
In India, the number of YouTube channels making an annual income of Rs 100,000 or more have increased over 10% on year, YouTube said, adding that avenues like membership fee, merchandise sales and fan funding have helped creators to monetise beyond ads.
GenZ missing
According to Kofluence, Instagram takes the lead in attracting 47% of brand marketing spends in India, followed by YouTube (26%), X (10%), Facebook (8%) and LinkedIn.
“The main niches on X are mostly finance, real estate, news information channels…whereas Instagram is a place where you get entertained,” said Avi Chanodia, cofounder of talent management and influencer marketing platform Create. “That’s why you’ll see an information or a finance influencer on Instagram creatively convey the information…but on X, it’s in a linear manner.”
As per digital marketing agency White Rivers Media, India has over 30.3 million users on X as of now, and it is yet to fully establish itself in the Indian market, which limits its effectiveness as a platform for advertising and influencer marketing.
Industry experts often describe X as a “noisy platform” more suitable for customer support, saying it is for dissemination of information rather than promotional activities.
“The only thing that has worked for brands and clients on X is the concept called ‘trending’. Many nano influencers hack the algorithm by tweeting to make sure the hashtag for a company or a brand starts trending for visibility,” Kalyan Kumar, cofounder and CEO of creators management platform KlugKlug, told ET.
Digital marketing executives also underscored the absence of GenZ from X as one of the reasons it has lagged its social media rivals such as Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
