An advertising tool to allow companies to target tweets at specific users has been announced by Twitter. It tweets users based on their geographic location, or according to whether they access the service via phone or computer. This means brands can identify particular users and send them the ads they can benefit from, avoiding messages going to others. Twitter product manager Kevin Weil blogged that this new feature would allow messages relevant to those in, for example, New York, to reach them specifically, without also being sent further afield. Previously this idea has been impractical to implement.

The feature also allows different launch dates for different countries with global brands. The tool has been tested with major advertisers such as British Airways and Coco cola, and is now open to any advertiser globally, via a newly enhanced tweet box at ads.twitter.com.

Twitter on a smart phone