Join us Dec. 1-3 in Nashville for the Digiday Programmatic Marketing Summit
Don’t be alarmed by the new envelope button on Twitter.
Today, Twitter is rolling out a new Message option on its mobile app to make it easier to share tweets privately through Direct Message. Instead of holding down a tweet to prompt the “Send via Direct Message” tab to appear, the envelope button sits next to the heart button in every tweet.
Quickly take any tweet to the DM! Tap the ✉️ (next to the ❤️) pic.twitter.com/5jGh5aU7sj
— Jack (@jack) April 5, 2016
It’s a minor move, compared to when Twitter swapped out the star for the heart, but it’s important. Twitter says that the number of people sending private messages on the app has increased 60 percent last year. It should also declutter your feed from @-tagging friends to see a tweet, similar to how Instagram added an arrow to images to share privately.
Twitter has been tinkering its messaging tool for a while now. Recently, the social network dropped the 140-character limit and made it easier for brands to initiate a private conversation with a new button. The move comes as Facebook is beefing up Messenger to add Uber and shopping options and Snapchat is overhauling its messaging tools.
More in Media
Creators see promise in Instagram’s long-form push, but question whether exposure is enough
Instagram wants to pull long-form creators away from YouTube, but is it offering enough? Experts weigh in on the platform’s pivot.
By the numbers: Ad tech’s widening divide, as AppLovin surges and rivals struggle in Q3
Ad tech’s winners and losers emerge as CTV growth masks open-web struggles.
Media Briefing: Publishers’ revenue growth defies traffic declines, but tougher comparisons loom
The New York Times, People Inc., News Corp and Reuters report revenue growth despite AI disruption, but face tougher comparisons ahead.