Contemporary issues in Marketing

Twitter Assignment

Submitted by: Submitted to:

Muhammad Ammar Safdar (283565) Dr. Adeel Khalid

Zeeshan Aslam (284735)

Hamza Aslam (293850)

Faeiz Ahmed
Table of Contents
Executive Summary .................................................................................................................................... 2
Introduction: ............................................................................................................................................... 3
Literature Review ....................................................................................................................................... 4
Analysis ........................................................................................................................................................ 5
Discussion ..................................................................................................................................................... 8
Recommendations ..................................................................................................................................... 11
Conclusions ................................................................................................................................................. 12
References ................................................................................................................................................... 13
Appendix .................................................................................................................................................... 14

Executive Summary

This document pertains to Elon Musk’s recent acquisition of the micro-blogging

site Twitter. Using different contemporary marketing frameworks, this writing
 evaluates two main issues that are: making Twitter more user-friendly and
profitable in the near future. For this, the company is considering taking down
the fake accounts on twitter that have made it an echo chamber and charge
monthly subscription fee to twitter users. Further, this writing draws meaningful
inferences from relevant pieces of literature and contemporary data to provide
analytical recommendations on the said issues and the possible results of those
issues. The extensive research on all of the issues and discussions on that leads
us to our recommendations, which include Educating the consumers regarding
fake accounts, verifying profiles through identity, Careful monitoring, Value
creation, reducing subscription charges, and use of Block Chain technology to
keep up to date.

Introduction:
Owing to the recent circumstances and chain of events regarding Twitter, this document gives a
deeper understanding of the challenges faced by the platform and how those issues can be
mitigated. From the lens of a marketing or a business consultant, it is pertinent to understand the
current standing of twitter and the major issues that it faced at hand. Over the years, twitter has
amassed a great following and an audience that is actively engaging. With that, its history goes a
fairly long way. The company was first established back in 2006, laying down its base in San
Francisco. It operates as a micro blogging and social networking service, and previously it had
Jack Dorsey as the CEO, whereas now, Elon Musk has taken over. With this change in leadership
a lot of things changed as fresh ideas floated in- some of the ideas included but were not limited
to making Twitter a diverse platform, making sure that it is a profitable venture by increasing
streams of revenues, regaining its market share, subscription charges for blue tick, and swiping
away all the increasingly high number of fake or invalid accounts that do away the credibility of
the platform. This document shall serve as an evaluation of how Twitter can achieve high profits
and improve its market penetration and standing. All of these key challenges and their proposed
solutions are written in the light of contemporary marketing theories like Building the Right
Relationships with the Right Customers- evaluating potential profitability for the company and
loyalty of customers, various Customer Retention Strategies- targeting the right customers,
fulfilling promises and expectations, improving quality through expertise, risk reduction,
technical, resource support, Market Positioning, Value co-creation and plenty of more.
 Literature Review
Uppada, Manasa, Vidhatari, Harini, and Sivaselvan (2022) articulated that Social networking sites
represents some online communication platforms that are fed by community-based input, content
uploading, collaboration and interaction. Recent statistics shows that there are more than 4.5
million people using social network worldwide, with an average of 6 social media sites monthly.
This population accounts for more than half of the globe populace.

People set up accounts on various social networking sites to exchange social media content. In
order to spread fake news without disclosing their identities, users frequently create accounts with
inaccurate or anonymous information. Additionally, users frequently create accounts in other
people's names (identity theft) or hack into other people's accounts (Uppada et al., 2022). These
false accounts are kept up by bots or automated programmes, which aid in the deeper and faster
spread of false information on the network (ABP News Bureau, 2020).

Twitter needs to constantly use sentiment analysis to keep track of how the different user segments
are responding to the changes it is making. However, stable Twitter sentiment classification
performance remains elusive due to several issues: heavy class imbalance in a multi-class
problem, representational richness issues for sentiment cues, and the use of diverse colloquial
linguistic patterns (Hassan et al., 2013). Twitter should use an elaborate bootstrapping ensemble
to mitigate class imbalance, sparsity, and representational richness issues, which will make its
predictions more accurate and balanced. In this manner, Twitter would be able to better use data
analytics and perform decision-making based on the intelligent information they receive from the
data. The study found that companies had adopted the use of Twitter for a variety of business
purposes that differed at the industry level. "Corporate Promotion," "Market News," and
"Customer Service Enquiries" were the most popular business purposes for using Twitter (Feng
Xiong, 2015). In addition to "customer service inquiries," companies also disclose "financial
reporting" and "potential financial information" (Feng Xiong, 2015). Twitter can monetize this
segment of the user base, and since companies' aim is to increase profits, they are more likely to
pay if there are enough value-added services. The social media universe can be judiciously divided
into opinion groups. The Twitter business management team can gain significant insight into the
social media behaviors of these groups (in this case, people with blue tick accounts) over the new
monetary policy of Twitter by tracing the sensitivity of these frameworks.
Currently, twitter is heavily reliant on promotional and advertisement services it offers to its
customers for its profitability. Over the past 3 years, this percentage has grown staggeringly.
Similarly, over the past fiscal year twitter’s cost and expenses increased at a rate that is recorded
to be much more in comparison with the revenues and profits it has generated despite the increase
in its number of active daily user by 13% amounting up to 217 million. Hence, it is save to conclude
that twitter has to improve its efficiency and cost effectiveness by using up to sustainable
technologies, and work on mitigating the issues that are faced by the users.

Spammers frequently interact and follow the postings of social influencers. Through an
impersonation policy, even social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, and WhatsApp erase or
block these bogus accounts (Sahoo and Lavanya 2019). The establishment of hoaxes contributes
to the spread of fake news and forgeries in society. As a result, identifying false accounts is crucial
to stopping the spread of fake content on social media (Kondeti et al. 2021).

There are various revenue models for social networking sites but the most famous is the
categorization developed by Laudon & Traver (2007) which divides social networking sites based
on their revenue stream into three categories. 1) Advertising model 2) Subscription model 3)
Transaction model. The revenue model framework invented by Ron Meyer, professor of strategic
leadership at Tilburg University suggests the 5 tools that helps a company in pricing once the
revenue stream is identified, these different tools are in the form of different questions and is
commented on in discussion section

The dotcom bubble of 2001 was caused by the ambiguity that was over the business model and the
revenue model. The revenue model of Internet sites was hypothetical, and subsequently the
forecast of growth was overestimated. Investments exceeded the capacity and this was mainly due
to vaguely defined revenue models of most business models (Dasgupta, 2011). Few years back
Twitter was also facing similar situation, with decreasing revenue due to less options available to
capitalize on. Now the recent acquisition of Twitter by Elon Musk and idea of generating cash
from blue tick is also a tactic to increase its profit revenue.

Analysis
Instead of writing lengthy paragraphs we have presented important analysis such as PESTEL,
SWOT and VRIO, major stakeholders in form of graphics which are attached in appendix, rest of
analysis are discussed under.
7P analysis of Twitter Inc. Twitter marketing strategy helps the brand or company position itself
competitively in the market and achieve its business goals and objectives. There are several
marketing strategies like product innovation, pricing approach, promotion planning, etc. to
understand its product, pricing, advertising, and distribution strategies.

Twitter Product Strategy: Twitter is a cross-cultural platform where people can share their
thoughts, news, ideas, and everything else that a user wants to share. A few features that are
provided by the Twitter platform are hashtags, usernames, tweets, and retweets, which help build
conversation and communities across the platform. Trending topics, a popular feature on the
website, show the most important events that are happening globally or in a region at that moment.

Twitter Pricing Strategy: Twitter makes its revenue via advertisements and promotions, largely
using advertised tweets, trends, and registered unique accounts to generate revenue. For end users,
Twitter is a free platform; they can simply register and start posting their comments via their
accounts. Alternatively, Twitter makes money via data licensing as well.

Twitter Positioning and Distribution Strategy: Twitter has attracted Prime Ministers,
Presidents, governments, institutions, celebrities, and influencers from almost every country, who
frequently communicate with citizens via tweets. Place no barrier; any person sitting in any corner
of the world can tweet about anything that is happening anywhere in the world, and with our great
efforts to reach other planets, one could tweet about other planets as well.

Twitter Promotion and Advertising Strategy: Twitter has created a program body that prevents
people from misusing Twitter and ensures that no obscenity is present in the content that users
post. Also, nobody is allegedly defaming anybody, and other such happenings could be harmful.
Since this is a service marketing brand, here are the other three Ps to make it the 7Ps marketing
mix of Twitter.

People, Process & Physical Evidence: Twitter is measured by the number of tweets sent every
hour, every second, and the more people who are online, the better. In terms of user engagement,
more than 300 million people are active on Twitter. Twitter is driven by people with a vision to
make it a subtler platform to express one's views. It's the programmers, the planners, and the users
that come to our minds. A user can simply download the application, create an account, and start
tweeting. If the content appears to be relevant to other users, they will begin following the person
who tweets. The entire platform is designed by programmers who decode data and understand
people's tweeting habits. For physical evidence, a user has to be online, and because Twitter is not
tangible, a user must experience it to understand what purpose it serves. The number of tweets, the
number of businesses, and the kind of reach that is developed for a regular user through Twitter
are quite evident to any other user.

Competitor Analysis of Twitter Inc.

Who Are Twitter’s Biggest Competitors? Let's examine a few of Twitter's competitors and
alternatives. They're: Facebook || Instagram || Snap Inc. || LinkedIn || Reddit || Quora

Some of these are direct competitors, while others are social networking platforms with completely
distinct economic structures. As a multimedia messaging application, Snapchat is not one-to-one,
yet its user base overlaps. All of these rivals were founded between 2004 and 2010. As a result,
they have a comparable technical social interaction footprint.

What are Twitter's advantages?

Twitter's benefits and power stem from its distinctive selling point. The platform is concise and to
the point, which is regarded by many as a best practice in social media. This distinguishes Twitter
from all other platforms and places it at the top of the market. Some marketers recognize that
length is the enemy of urgency and therefore leverage Twitter's immediacy to encourage action.
In addition, Twitter has a more real-time nature than other social networks, which enables it to
facilitate more efficient connections between its users and the rest of the globe. Twitter has
numerous competitors, and some of them surpass it. There are numerous aspects that affect the
growth and success of a social media platform, and it's reasonable to assume that Twitter is still
expanding and will likely achieve greater success in the near future.

VRIO Analysis of Twitter Inc.: The Twitter VRIO Analysis demonstrates that Twitter's financial
resources are extremely significant, as they enable the company to engage in external possibilities
as they arise. These also assist Twitter in defending against external threats. Twitter's local food
items are a significant resource, as they are extremely differentiated, according to the VRIO
analysis as can be seen in the appendix.
Major Shareholder Analysis of Twitter Inc.: Twitter had thousands of shareholders before its
acquisition by Elon Musk. Vanguard Group was the biggest Twitter shareholder in April, ahead
of Mr. Musk, with a 10.3 percent stake in the company, which is held by a combination of its
investment funds, according to investopedia.com.

Discussion
Before initiating the discussion regarding the issues of the newly acquired Twitter it is essential to
briefly go through the events with the timeline that lead to the controversial acquisition of Twitter.
All those events are strongly linked to the issue of fake accounts on Twitter and the crippling
revenue sources that lead to the tough decision of monetizing the blue tick. Here a point to mention
is that since we are consultants we are not to annoy our client thus this information will be used
by our team internally to base our market-oriented recommendations.

DATES EVENTS
31-Jan-2022 Elon Musk first bought shares in Twitter.
14-Mar-2022 Elon Musk’s stakes crossed 5% which is to be disclosed to the general public as per SEC rules.
25-Mar-2022 Elon used Twitter to first time criticize free speech on Twitter.
3-Apr-2022 Elon conveyed his ideas to Twitter CEO and board about the changes he wants to Twitter being the biggest
stakeholder (privatizing Twitter or creating a rival social media platform).
4-Apr-2022 The Securities Exchange Commission disclosed Elon has 9.2% stake in Twitter
5-Apr-2022 Board seat offered by Twitter CEO Parag Agarwal to Elon Musk.
9-Apr-2022 Elon Musk Tweets “Is Twitter dying?”
11-Apr-2022 Elon Musk rejects the offer of a Twitter board seat citing it to be the waste of time.
14-Apr-2022 Elon first offers to acquire Twitter by paying US$ 43 billion.
20-Apr-2022 Elon disclosed the sources from where he will procure money to get this deal done.
25-Apr-2022 The Board of Twitter accepts the offer with the condition of not criticizing Twitter during the process, or
else Elon would be penalized with US$ 1 billion.
13-May-2022 Elon created controversy regarding the information of bots on Twitter claiming it to be misinformation
provided by Twitter to Elon Musk. Analysts claimed it to be buyer’s remorse, that now Elon was
experiencing.
24-June-2022 The securities exchange commission forces Twitter to provide data to Elon which he wants.
2-July-2022 Twitter discloses that it removes 1 million spam accounts each day. Refutes third party scrutiny as it would
be threat to privacy of users.
8-July-2022 Elon revoked the deal citing the misinformation that Twitter provided as a reason.
12-July-2022 Twitter files a court case against Elon that his uncertainty is declining our revenue.
29-July-2022 Elon also file case on Twitter about Twitter reluctance to disclose true information about bots and spam
accounts.
23-Aug-2022 Peter Mudge Zatco former security chief of Twitter alleges that the company misleads regulators about lax
security and reforms
 4-Sept-2022 Elon sends a second deal termination letter after Zatco whistle-blowing.
9-Sept-2022 3RD deal termination letter by Elon Musk.
13-Sept-2022 Senate judicial committee to listen to Zatco allegations
3-Oct-2022 Elon’s legal team convinces Elon Musk that their defense is weak and it is very difficult to retract on the
deal.
4-Oct-2022 Elon Musk takes the U-turn and said the US$ 44 billion deal is still applicable.
20-Oct-2022 The Twitter employee showed their reservation that Elon might fire 75% of the Twitter staff.
27-Oct-2022 Elon Musk finally bought Twitter by paying 54.2 $ to each shareholder.
28-Oct-2022 Twitter was delisted from New York Stock Exchange.
5-Nov-2022 Elon Musk propagates his idea to make Twitter a more diverse platform by introducing calls, chats, video
games, and online payment just like the Chinese app We Chat and also plans to charge a subscription fee
of 8$ for blue tick.

Now that we have come across the timeline along with events, we are well-equipped with the facts,
well-acquainted with the scenarios, and know the significance of removing fake accounts and
monetizing the blue tick. All the controversy that spans over a year between Twitter and Elon
Musk was primarily over the menace of fake accounts and suppression of freedom of speech. It is
a strong notion that Elon who is known for his smart and cunning business tactics, eventually fell
prey to his tactics, and now since he was bound by courts to conclude the deal he felt buyer’s
remorse. Elon Musk is gravely considering all the sources that could pay back him the investment
he made and one of them is the subscription charges for the blue tick. Now I would be discussing
these two issues faced by Elon Musk with the help of some relevant frameworks.

Firstly, discussing these issues in the context of value creation. For both issues, there is the creation
of both positive and negative values. Some of the positive values that are associated with the blue
tick are status, self-esteem, relational benefits, and societal benefits, while the negative value that
now Twitter users would confront is price. Cracking down on fake accounts has positive value
creation in the form of control, privacy, and impartiality while negative value types are effort,
financial, and security risks to some genuine account holders who would be victimized by the
loopholes of AI and advanced algorithms of Twitter. The blue tick of Twitter was previously
granted to only influential people after an intense verification procedure free of cost, and it started
to emerge as a symbol of elitism, it provided its influential user with symbolic/expressive value
and rest of the world started associating psychological meaning to it. People use to crave for it to
join the bandwagon of influential and renowned but even money could not get you that small blue
tick. Although the symbolic value of the blue tick inundates all the other values still it is important
to mention that this tick also provides social-relational value and functional/instrumental value
where the notables were protected from security risk, their content and profile were promoted to
the target populace free of cost and their reputation was secured by the malicious agendas of
imposters, impersonators, and imitators. Now since this feature of Twitter has a strong influence
and impact on people’s minds it is obvious that government officials, actors, sports celebrities and
influencers, and even the general public would be strongly urged to pay to retain or to acquire this
status symbol provided that there is no strong competitor at par with the functionality and
performance of Twitter.

Brand is Just a perception, and The framework of positioning is also of vital importance here.
perception will match reality Although some sources claim the positioning statement of
over time. --- Elon Musk
Twitter is that it is a social networking site that empowers
everyone to create and share ideas and information instantly without barriers. But, this positioning
statement is not necessarily where users position Twitter. The Positioning of Twitter in the mind
of users can be extracted through a positioning map (refer to Exhibit 4 in the appendix). The recent
reforms of eliminating bots and monetizing blue tick is an endeavor by the new owner to improve
the positioning of this micro-blogging site. The removal of impersonators and spammers would
ensure the flow of information and also entails credibility and authenticity while extending the
facility of the blue tick to every user against some fee gives the perception of inclusion of all in
propagating h/er views and end of biasness that Twitter was displaying for a long time, especially
after the account ban of Donald Trump. So, now it is on Elon Musk to smartly create value through
proper positioning, then create value through proper pricing, and finally sustain value primarily by
retaining its existing and angry customer base.

There are lot of technical frameworks some of which are mentioned in the literature review that
could be deployed to curb the menace of fake accounts, but that is beyond our scope our main
focus would be on the hurdles in the way, the value that Twitter would achieve overtime and
rapport building in long-term as a result of the actions taken. The trust and commitment that
previously was fading away is most vital to be considered in implementing the two initiatives at
hand and retaining the skeptical user base. Trust and commitment could be derived from the actions
like risk reduction, technical support, resource support, and expertise. User satisfaction through
exhilarating fake accounts and extending the availability of blue tick to everyone would bring in
both behavioral and attitudinal loyalty among users that would eventually improve business
performance in the form of customer tenure, revenue growth, and market share.

The revenue model framework is an important framework to employ when innovating prices for
new products, services, or features. It is a five-part tool designed to assist the company get
acquainted with all the aspects of pricing in a market. This framework asks five questions:

1) Who pays? The answer to this influential user who wants to get noticed and maintain their
following.
2) What is paid? In the case of Twitter, it is going to be US$ 8 for the USA, in every other
country it would be according to purchasing power parity.
3) What is paid for? For the blue tick and its symbolic value.
4) How are you paid? Monthly subscription through an online payment.
5) How much is paid? The payment is according to purchasing power parity, varying from
country to country.

Recommendations
Based on the analysis and discussion here are some of the recommendations and impact of these
on the business operations of Twitter:

1) Consumer Education: It is important to educate customers about the common characteristics

of fake accounts and privacy threats associated with interacting with suspicious users. This
would shift much of the workload from Twitter employees to users.
2) Verification of profiles: Although strict verification procedures are already ensured on
Twitter they are only for premium users. Twitter could solve the issue of fake accounts by
asking for credible government backed documents such as CNIC, Passport and driving license
to register users on platform.
3) Monitoring: Twitter should use advanced, state of the art Artificial intelligence and algorithms
on its platform to monitor and block spammers.
4) Value creation: It is obvious once the blue tick would be monetized, there would be a strong
incentive for rival platforms to capture market share from Twitter, also former executives of
Twitter believe that we have also thought of monetizing the blue tick but this option was not
viable and bears no future, this is a step towards Twitter destruction so Twitter should introduce
 some more value-adding features along with the blue tick that could be subscribed along with
blue tick subscription so that people would feel valued for the money they pay.
5) Subscription charges: The amount of 8$ is much higher as compared to the utility that blue
tick would provide, so it is recommended that this fee should be reduced to the minimum
possible level, acquire a new user base and convince existing user base to accept this change,
once this change is embraced and user start relying on it then Twitter can increase fees in
future.
6) Blockchain technology: Blockchain technology is not only associated with cryptocurrency, it
has now spread into many other technologies and domains such as Decentralized autonomous
organizations (DAO). Blockchain technologies also have the potential to trace and block
vicious accounts and news. Twitter can use this to reduce fake accounts. \
7) Facial Recognition: One way to reduce fake accounts and bots could be the utilization of
facial recognition system whenever someone signs up. This would considerably reduce fake
accounts.
8) Purchasing Power Parity (PPP): The blue tick subscription fee should according purchasing
power parity (PPP), as for countries like Pakistan $8 a month is too much.
9) Easy payment methods: The payment method for fees should be easy that are most popular
and easily available to everyone instead of credit cards.
10) Monopolize Micro-blogging domain: Time is lucrative for the competitor to confront Twitter
and annoyed users of Twitter are ready to market and join new platforms for free, so any such
platform should be carefully monitored by Twitter.

Conclusions
Driven by smart autonomous technologies like machine learning (ML), and AI
algorithms, Twitter is more intuitive than ever. To overhaul its revenue model, Twitter may offer
new suites of (paid) tools, may request more personal information to match users with similar
interests, and may introduce new mobile apps, status, chat, or camera features.
 References
Lakhiwal, A., Kar, A.K. (2016). Insights from Twitter Analytics: Modeling Social Media
Personality Dimensions and Impact of Breakthrough Events. In: , et al. Social Media: The Good,
the Bad, and the Ugly. I3E 2016

Hassan A, Abbasi A, Zeng (2013) Twitter Sentiment Analysis: A Bootstrap Ensemble

Framework, International Conference on Social Computing (2013) 27(6).

Feng Xiong, K. M. (2015). The business use of twitter by Australian Listed Companies. The
journal ofdeveloping areas, 49(6).

Reiff, N. (2022, October 30). How Twitter Makes Money. Retrieved from Investopedia:
https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/120114/how-does-twitter-twtr-make-money.asp

Dasgupta, P. (2011). Implications of Revenue Model for Social Networking Sites and Beyond.
ResearchGate.Retrievedfrom
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353128210_Implications_of_Revenue_Model_f
or_Social_Networking_Sites_and_Beyond

M. BalaAnand, N. K. (2019, July 30). An enhanced graph-based semi-supervised learning

algorithm to detect fake users on Twitter. The Journal of Supercomputing, 6085,6105.
doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s11227-019-02948-w

Meyer, R. (n.d.). Revenue Model Framework : How to Innovate Your Pricing. Retrieved from
https://getlucidity.com/strategy-resources/revenue-model-framework-guide/

Santosh Kumar Uppada, K. M. (2022, May 10). Novel approaches to fake news and fake account
detection in OSNs: user social engagement and visual content centric model. Springer Link.
doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s13278-022-00878-9

Reiff, N. (2022, October 30). How Twitter Makes Money. Retrieved from Investopedia:
https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/120114/how-does-twitter-twtr-make-
money.asp
 Appendix
Exhibit 1
Business Model Canvas of Twitter

Source: https://businessmodelanalyst.com/twitter-business-model/?v=d71bdd22c8bb

Exhibit 2

Source: https://businessmodelanalyst.com/twitter-business-model/?v=d71bdd22c8bb
Exhibit 3

Revenue Model Framework (Proposed by by Ron Meyer, professor of strategic leadership at

Tilburg University)

Source: https://getlucidity.com/strategy-resources/revenue-model-framework-guide/

Exhibit 4

Customer perceptual Mapping of Twitter and its competitors

Source: http://www.matthewpittman.net/blog/
Exhibit 5

Exhibit 6

Source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/451767406340695071/
Exhibit 7

Source: https://180dc.org/marketingandengagement/attachment/14420/
Exhibit 8

Source: https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/TWTR/holders
Exhibit 9

PESTLE Analysis of Twitter, Inc.

Economic Social Technological Environmental Legal

Comparative Anti-trust law in

Recent technological
advantages of host Demographics and Internet Information
developments by
country and Tech skill level of the Weather Providers industry
Twitter, Inc.
sector in the population and overall in the
competitors
particular country. country.

Skill level of Class structure,

workforce in hierarchy and Technology's impact
Climate change Discrimination law
Internet Information power structure in on product offering
Providers industry. the society.

Education level as Impact on cost

Laws regulating Copyright, patents /
Education level in well as education structure in Internet
environment Intellectual property
the economy standard in the Information
pollution law
industry Providers industry

Pollution
Labor costs and Culture (gender Impact on value Consumer
regulations in
productivity in the roles, social chain structure in protection and e-
Internet Providers
economy conventions etc.) Technology sector commerce
industry

Entrepreneurial
Business cycle stage Rate of
spirit and broader
(e.g. prosperity, technological Recycling Employment law
nature of the
recession, recovery) diffusion
society.
Attitudes (health,
Waste
Economic growth environmental Health and safety
management in
rate consciousness, law
Technology sector
etc.)
Discretionary
Attitudes toward
income and Inflation Leisure interests Data Protection
“green” l products
rate
Attitudes toward
Unemployment rate and support for
renewable energy

Exhibit 10
 VRIO Analysis of Twitter Inc.

Resources Value Rare Imitation Organization Competitive

Advantage
Brand awareness of Yes, the brand Yes, Twitter has one of No Twitter has utilized its Sustainable
Twitter products and awareness of Twitter the leading brand in leading brand Competitive
services products are high the industry position in various Advantage
segments

Product Portfolio and Yes, it is valuable in Most of the Can be imitated by The firm has used it Provide short term
Synergy among the industry given the competitors are trying the competitors to good effect, details competitive advantage
Various Product Lines various to enter the lucrative can be found in case but requires constant
of Twitter segmentations & segments exhibit innovation to sustain
consumer
preferences.
Pricing Strategies of Yes, Twitter has sound No Pricing strategies are Yes, firm has a It can only provide
Twitter pricing strategies regularly imitated in pricing analytics Twitter with a
the industry engine Temporary
Competitive
Advantage
Track Record of Yes Yes Can't be imitated by Yes Providing Strong
Leadership Team at competitors Competitive
Twitter Advantage

Opportunities in the Yes, the e-commerce No, most of the The AI and inhouse It is just the start for In the long run it can
E-Commerce Space space is rapidly competitors are analytics can be the organization provide sustainable
for Twitter - using growing and Twitter investing in IT to enter difficult to imitate competitive advantage
Present IT Capabilities can exploit the the space
emerging
opportunities

Global and Local Yes, as it diversify the Yes Can be imitated by Yes, it is one of the Providing Strong
Presence of Twitter revenue streams and competitors of most diversified Competitive
isolate company's Twitter but at a companies in its Advantage
balance sheet from relatively high cost industry
economic cycles

Distribution and Yes, as it helps Twitter No Can be imitated by Yes Medium to Long Term
Logistics Costs in delivering lower competitors of Competitive
Competitiveness costs Twitter but it is Advantage
difficult

VRIO Analysis continued

 Resources Value Rare Imitation Organization Competitive
Advantage
Access to Cheap Yes, as a leading No Can be imitated by Not been totally Not significant in
Capital for Twitter player in the industry the competitors of exploited creating competitive
and current macro Twitter advantage
economic conditions,
Twitter has access to
cheap capital
Access to Critical Raw Yes Yes, as other Can be imitated by Yes Providing Sustainable
Material for competitors have to competitors Competitive
Successful Execution come to terms with Advantage
Twitter dominant
market position
Opportunities in the Can be valuable as No Can be imitated by All the capabilities of Has potential
Adjacent Industries they will create new competitors the organization are
that Twitter can revenue streams not fully utilized yet
exploit & New
Resources Required
to Enter those
Industries

Successful Yes, without a No, as most of the Can be imitated by One of the leading Digital strategy has
Implementation of comprehensive digital firms are investing competitors player in the industry become critical in the
Digital Strategy at strategy it is extremely into digitalizing industry but it can't
Twitter difficult to compete operations provide sustainable
competitive advantage
to
Opportunities for Yes, new niches are No, as most of the Yes can be imitated Brand extensions will Temporary
Brand Extensions for emerging in the competitors are also by the competitors require higher Competitive
Twitter products market targeting those niches marketing budget Advantage

Customer Community Yes, as customers are Yes, the Twitter has It is very difficult for Going by the data, Providing Strong
of Twitter co-creating products able to build a special Twitter competitors there is still a lot of Competitive
relationship with its to imitate the culture upside in building on Advantage
customers and community Twitter customers
dedication community
ecosystem
Marketing Expertise Yes, firms are No, as most of the Pricing strategies of Yes, Twitter is Temporary
within Twitter competing based on competitors also have Twitter are often leveraging both its Competitive
differentiation in the good marketing matched by inhouse marketing Advantage
industry departments and competitors department and
expertise external expertise
Exhibit 11

Source: Porter’s Five Forces Analysis of Twitter - Porter Analysis