Marketer Confidence in X Declining, Survey Report Finds

Elon Musk speaks at an AI conference in Beverly Hills, Calif., on May 6, 2024. Apu Gomes/Getty Images

Marketer confidence in X, formerly known as Twitter, has declined significantly in the past year, according to a report by a leading market researcher, driven in part by what are described as safety concerns.

On Sept. 5, market researcher Kantar stated that an increasing number of brands are planning to cut advertising on X next year. 

According to their survey, a net 26 percent of marketers it spoke to planned to cut X ad spend in 2025, and only 4 percent considered X ads brand-safe, calling it “the biggest recorded pullback from any major global ad platform.”

It noted that this was driven by “brand safety concerns and poor perceptions around innovation and trust.”

It noted that this contrasts with TikTok, which it stated was “the most innovative advertising publisher” for the fifth consecutive year, with YouTube being the most trusted.

‘Unpredictable’

Kantar’s global thought leadership director, Gonca Bubani, said that “advertisers have been moving their marketing spend away from X for several years.”

“The stark acceleration of this trend in the past 12 months means a turnaround currently seems unlikely,” she said.

Bubani said that “marketers are brand custodians and need to trust the platforms they use.”

“X has changed so much in recent years and can be unpredictable from one day to the next—it’s difficult to feel confident about your brand safety in that environment. Ironically, decreasing spend by marketers on X will make consumers happier with the platform as they come face to face with fewer ads,” she said.

The study was based on interviews with roughly 18,000 consumers in 27 markets and 1,000 senior marketers globally.

Free Speech Rows

Owner Elon Musk has been embroiled in free speech rows since he bought the platform in 2022. In August, he accused UK Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer of “two-tier policing” in Britain over his handling of the UK riots and said that civil war is “inevitable.”

He also reposted a false claim about the Government setting up detainment camps in the Falkland Islands.

On Sept. 1, Brazil’s Supreme Court voted to uphold a ban X in Brazil that was first enacted by Justice Alexandre de Moraes.

The blockade follows an escalation in a months-long dispute between Musk and de Moraes over free speech and posts that the judge described as misinformation.

In his shutdown order, de Moraes said X will stay suspended until the company complies with his order to appoint a legal representative in the country. The judge has set a daily fine of about $8,900 for individuals or firms who attempt to access the site via a virtual private network (VPN) or another means.

Brazil is one of the biggest markets for X, with tens of millions of users, according to research firm Oosga.

Antitrust Lawsuit

Earlier this year, Elon Musk filed an antitrust lawsuit against Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), a cross-industry organization that includes the likes of Mastercard, Procter & Gamble, and Unilever, accusing the group of a “massive advertiser boycott” against X.

According to the World Federation of Advertisers’ website, GARM, created in 2019, is designed to curb the proliferation of “dangerous, hateful, disruptive and fake content online.”

X CEO Linda Yaccarino said at the time, “This is not a decision we took lightly, but it is a direct consequence of their actions.”

The Epoch Times contacted X for a response.

Jack Philips contributed to this report.