What the Heck are Twitter Cards?
Twitter Cards. Do you know what they are and what they do? Twitter Cards are core features of Twitter’s platform. They help increase brand awareness, drive traffic to your site, which as we all know can lead to conversion. Twitter Cards are for brand developers, publishers, and businesses that want to enhance the media experience of their tweets and Twitter accounts. Unlike normal tweets, Twitter Cards convey more media and information beyond the restrictive 140 characters. Harnessing the power of Twitter Cards allows brands to produce teasers and trailers that can pique the interest of potential customers, ultimately leading to increased sales.
Twitter started rolling out Twitter Cards three years ago, and as of today there are six different card types: Summary, Photo, Gallery, Player, App, and Product. Although some of the cards’ objective is to enhance user experience, there is no doubt that Twitter Cards are powerful tools developed for the sake of brands and businesses.
Summary Cards
Give you a summary of the content. Blog posts and articles are most often shown as summary cards. Users can choose to expand the summary in their timeline by clicking “view summary.”
Photo Cards
Display images within the tweet. Users can expand these photos by clicking on “view photo.”
Gallery Cards
Let you present more than one image in one tweet. They provide a preview of up to four images that users can see once they click on the URL shared in the tweet.
Play Cards
Let video clips and audio streams play directly in your timeline. Although the regulations for player cards are stricter than others, they can certainly provide a vibrant edge to users’ timelines.
App Cards
Are for Twitter to sell mobile app ads, and are therefore designed to suit the mobile experience than anything else. A preview of the app icon, name, description, price, etc., are displayed in your timeline, from which you can directly click and download the app.
Product Cards
Can provide detailed information about products and services. Users can click on these cards and be directed to the retailer’s site for purchase.
