Twitter Begins Testing ‘Embedded Tweets’ Feature

Once again Twitter is in the headlines for testing a new feature that came as a bit of a surprise yesterday. This year, Twitter has been focusing a great deal on improving ad targeting and increasing the amount of shopping and purchases generated through tweets and Twitter Cards. They signed some big advertising deals as well. So the news from yesterday that Twitter began testing a new ‘Embedded Tweets’ feature caught a lot of attention.

‘Embedded on These Websites’ Feature Being Tested

News about a new embedded feature for tweets broke yesterday afternoon. As Jennifer Van Grove writes on CNET, “Twitter is trying out a tweet-enhancing feature that connects …[tweets] to longer form stories … to add context to real-time bursts of information.” Basically, Twitter is making it easier to see how tweets are connected on the web to news outlets.

This is a smart move by Twitter as it improves the speed and reach of tweets, especially related to news stories. These are often incredibly viral as people share news that they believe is important. Twitter is likely the most effective at spreading news in the first place, and this new feature (if it becomes fully implemented) will keep Twitter in that spot for years.

Cutting Out the Noise

If there’s one criticism that people make about Twitter at times, it is that there can be a lot of information coming at you in a short period of time. This is hard for anyone to take in, especially if it’s their only news source. The latest testing by Twitter of this new feature is also an effort to avoid this problem.

Matt Brian reports on The Verge that the move is being tested to “help users cut through the noise of Twitter during events without losing the real-time feel of the conversation.” I think Twitter users will find this feature useful, and I hope they do. If this feature becomes standard on Twitter it will only help to increase exposure of businesses, agencies, and people who are involved in news and use social media to reach fans, new customers, or followers.

A Tool for Business?

I can see this feature becoming useful for businesses and agencies as well. Following important events or news and tweeting from a business or corporate account (as every good business with an online presence should be doing) becomes more effective if Twitter adopts this feature.

As social media platforms like Twitter continue to improve, as a business or agency, it’s important to remain consistent and engaged in those platforms. You never know how a new feature could help expand your business or your reach with customers. I have no doubt this new feature from Twitter is going to bring more traffic to certain sites all over the web.

Would you like to see this new Twitter feature released in full on the service?