X has emerged as a vanguard of innovation and user engagement in the swiftly evolving social media landscape. With its latest announcement, X is set to redefine advertising by prioritizing brand safety and leveraging the surging popularity of vertical videos.

The Rise of Vertical Video: A Statistic-Driven Transformation

X has witnessed a significant rise in user engagement, primarily driven by the increasing consumption of video content. Statistics reveal a compelling narrative: over 80% of user sessions on X now involve video content, and the platform has experienced a staggering 30% year-over-year increase in video views. This shift towards a video-first approach underscores the evolving user preferences and the growing dominance of video in digital communication.

Connecting Advertisers with a Captivated Audience

The platform’s pivot to video has created a fertile ground for advertisers. With more than 100 million daily viewers of vertical videos on X, advertisers have a unique opportunity to connect with a vast and engaged audience. X’s latest advancements in brand safety protocols ensure that this connection is not only impactful but also aligns with the advertisers’ brand values and safety concerns.

Innovative Partnership for Enhanced Brand Safety

Effective from February 1, 2024, X is expanding its successful vetted inventory pilot, in collaboration with Integral Ad Science (IAS), to all U.S. advertisers. This partnership allows IAS to classify all Vertical Video Ad adjacencies, ensuring they align with the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) framework. This move offers advertisers unparalleled control over the placement of their ads, exclusively in the vertical video feed of X, thus enhancing brand safety and suitability.

Commitment to Brand Safety: Expanding the Team

X’s dedication to brand safety is further evidenced by its investment in expanding its brand safety team. This includes strategic hires such as a new partner manager and an operations manager, with plans to continue growing the team in the first quarter. Such investments reflect X’s commitment to maintaining a secure and suitable environment for both users and advertisers.

Innovations in Advertiser Control and Metrics

X has been at the forefront of introducing innovative features to provide advertisers with greater control over their ad placements. These include customizable keyword- and author-based Adjacency Controls for X’s home timeline, which allow advertisers to prevent their ads from appearing alongside specific terms or accounts. Moreover, the introduction of simple, high-level Sensitivity Settings has been met with growing interest from advertisers.

Advertisers leveraging these products have consistently observed strong safety and suitability metrics, as validated by third-party integrations. This reassures advertisers of the efficacy and reliability of X’s advertising ecosystem.

Embracing the Future of Advertising on X

Advertisers eager to harness the potential of X’s vertical video platform and its enhanced brand safety features can initiate the process by contacting their partner manager or reaching out to X directly.

X’s latest move marks a significant milestone in the digital advertising space, balancing user engagement with advertiser needs. It paves the way for a future where advertising is not only effective but also conscientiously aligned with brand values and user experience, a model that other platforms and small businesses might well emulate.

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This article, “X’s Vertical Video Revolution: A New Era of Brand Safety and User Engagement” was first published on Small Business Trends