On Sunday 23 July, there was an uproar on Twitter following the news that the app would be saying goodbye to the iconic blue bird. Elon Musk and Linda Yaccarino, CEO of Twitter, announced that the app was rebranding to “X”, which has been in the works since Musk first purchased the app. This was just another step in Musk’s goal of creating an ‘everything app’, but what does this mean for the app’s future?
What is X?
For years, Musk has had a keen interest with the letter X, with his son being named X Æ A-Xii, and his first start-up being named X.com, now known as PayPal. Since then, he has been looking for a way to bring back the X.com platform and decided to do so in his attempt to create an ‘everything app’ – a platform that allows for users to perform a variety of tasks from posting online to completing financial transactions. His goal is to create an American platform that resembles China’s WeChat. Linda Yaccarino tweeted that X is going to be “centred in audio, video, messaging, payments/banking– creating a global marketplace for ideas, goods, services, and opportunities.”
What does this mean for the future of Twitter?
For now, the change is strictly in the app’s name and logo. No other serious changes have been made to the platform besides renaming “tweets” to “Xs”, although this change is yet to appear visible on the platform. The implication of this change, however, is significant. Moving away from the platform’s iconic blue bird has forever altered the platform’s brand identity which has been established for 15 years. Musk will have to start over with the new branding, which causes concern due to the app’s recent financial struggle and the competition with Meta’s Threads.
It is hard to predict the future of the app. With these proposed changes to such an established social media platform, along with the creation of Threads, there is a lot of uncertainty for digital marketers on the future of communication channels with their audiences. If your organisation is looking for guidance get in touch with our marketing team or consider attending one of our free monthly webinars.