With Dell revealing that their Twitter profile helped them generate over $1 million in sales volume in 2008, other brands may now be considering how their own social media campaigns can be monetised alongside brand promotion and customer engagement. One application aimed at helping businesses with this is twtQpon. This innovative service allows brands to create coupons for Twitter followers, served via a dedicated landing page, and then linked to from their Twitter profile.

Twitter is expected to roll out a formal business model this year, which may include the option for businesses to create a premium corporate account. Whatever positive or negative impact developments like this may have on the likelihood of other brands stepping up their marketing efforts using micro-blogging platforms such as Twitter, these channels have the advantage of “warming up” their targeted audience prior to engagement, by creating a following of users and potential brand ambassadors. According to recent Hitwise research citing a 133% increase in voucher searches in 2008, the market for discount hunters looks set to grow even further and coupled with the economic downturn could well see more brands take the lead from Dell in their social media marketing efforts.

Dell now have over 80 country specific Outlet-focused Twitter properties including one for the UK .