How to Advertise On X: Step By Step Set Up

How does advertising on X (formerly Twitter) work? Here’s a complete step-by-step guide for businesses: ad formats, pricing, targeting, optimization, and campaign setup.

Introduction

X is a powerful marketing platform for driving traffic and generating leads. With 63% of users following small businesses, it provides an attractive space for brands of all sizes. Thanks to its advanced targeting options and newly introduced ad formats, a well-optimized campaign can significantly boost your return on investment (ROI) and accelerate business growth.

Is X Good for Promoting Business?

The platform allows businesses to connect with users in real time. That means most users visit X to stay informed with up-to-date and relevant content. Here are some key benefits of advertising on X:

Advantages of Using X for Business

1. In-depth Audience Insights

With advanced targeting and analytics tools, X gives businesses deep insights into their audience’s interests, behavior, and preferences. Advertisers can react to current trends and tailor campaigns to what truly resonates.

2. Increased Brand Visibility and Reach

With over 586 million monthly active users (as of 2025), X offers massive advertising potential. Paid campaigns can achieve high levels of impressions and engagement—both from existing followers and new potential customers.

3. Instant Interaction and Real-Time Feedback

Ads on X can be optimized for immediate responses—whether it’s clicks, replies, or comments. This gives businesses fast feedback they can use to improve campaign performance on the go.

4. Trust Building Through Interaction

Even paid communication on X can feel authentic when properly targeted and formatted. The ability to interact directly with users helps brands appear more open, trustworthy, and human.

How Much Does It Cost to Advertise on X?

One of the key factors to consider when planning a campaign on X is, of course, the advertising cost. Thanks to a variety of ad formats and flexible budgeting options, the platform is accessible to both small businesses and large brands. Ad pricing depends on several variables and operates on a bidding and performance optimization model.

Factors Influencing Costs

1. Bidding Strategies

• Automatic Bidding: X automatically optimizes your campaign to achieve the best results within your set budget.

• Maximum Bidding: You set the maximum amount you’re willing to pay for a given action (click, view, or conversion).

• Target Bidding: You define a target average spend per action, and X adjusts delivery accordingly to stay close to that amount.

2. Ad Auction & Quality Score

Ads on X are displayed based on an auction system. Your ad’s placement depends on:

• Your bid amount

• The ad’s quality score (relevance, engagement rate, timeliness)

• Overall user impact (engagement, click-through rate)

3. Campaign Objectives

• Awareness: Pay per 1,000 impressions (CPM)

• Consideration: Pay for clicks, interactions, video views, or app installs

• Conversion: Pay for specific actions—purchases, sign-ups, etc.

4. Other Cost Factors

• Target audience (e.g., B2B vs. B2C)

• Ad placement (within or outside the feed)

• Creative quality and message relevance

• Seasonality and competition in your market segment

Average Costs in 2025

• Cost per Click (CPC): Typically ranges between CZK 6–12

• Cost per 1,000 Impressions (CPM): Around CZK 144–288

• Cost per Engagement (likes, replies, retweets): Approximately CZK 1–7

Comparison with Other Social Media Platforms

To understand the cost-effectiveness of advertising on X, it’s helpful to compare it with other popular social media platforms.

X Ads Options

Advertising on X offers a wide variety of formats tailored to different marketing goals — whether you're aiming to build brand awareness, increase engagement, or drive performance-driven conversion campaigns.

Core Ad Types on X

• Promoted Tweets
  These are paid tweets that appear not only to your followers but also to a wider target audience. Ideal for increasing reach, driving engagement, or directing traffic to a website.
• Promoted Accounts
  Designed to grow your follower base. X recommends your profile to users who might be interested, showcasing it in the “Who to follow” section, on the homepage, and in search.
• Promoted Trends (Trend Takeover)
  Your hashtag campaign is displayed in the top trending topics section. Perfect for major campaigns, product launches, or high-impact events.
• Takeover Ads (Timeline Takeover & Spotlight Takeover)
  Premium formats that guarantee top visibility — your ad appears first when users log in. Frequently used for large-scale brand campaigns.

Other Ad Formats on X

• Image Ads
  A simple visual format with a single image and caption. Great for highlighting products or promotions quickly.
• Video Ads
  Short or long-form videos shown in-feed or as pre-roll before other videos. Excellent for emotional storytelling and brand recall.
• Vertical Video Ads (New)
  A TikTok- and Reels-inspired full-screen vertical video format. Optimized for mobile experience and higher engagement.
• Carousel Ads
  Multiple images or videos in a swipeable format, with each card linking to a different destination. Ideal for showcasing multiple products or features.
• Text Ads
  No visuals — just clean, text-based messaging. Best for announcements, CTAs, or campaigns relying on strong copy.
• Amplify Ads (Pre-roll Video)
  Your video ad plays before the content the user selected. Powerful for brand visibility with guaranteed reach and high attention.
• Dynamic Product Ads (DPA)
  AI-powered ads that automatically pull products from your catalog and personalize delivery based on user behavior. Highly effective for e-commerce.
• Collection Ads (New)
  Combines a main hero image or video with a product gallery underneath. Lets users explore more items within the ad itself. Perfect for storytelling and direct selling.
• AI-Optimized Ads
  Campaigns powered by AI that automatically adjust messaging, targeting, and visuals in real-time based on performance and user engagement.

Choosing the Right Format: Recommendations

Your ad format should reflect the core goal of your campaign:

• Want to boost brand awareness? → Use video ads, Takeover formats, or vertical video.

• Looking to drive product sales? → Go for DPAs, Collection Ads, or Carousels.

• Need more traffic or specific actions? → Try Promoted Tweets or Text Ads.

• Launching a new product or service? → Trend Takeover or Amplify Ads will grab attention.

Step-by-Step Guide to Setting Up Your First X Ads

Launching a successful campaign on X isn’t complicated — just follow these 7 steps to unlock the full potential of the platform’s advertising tools. Thanks to modern features and AI integration, you can easily optimize your ads for peak performance.

Step 1: Sign in to X Ads Manager

Once you log in to X Ads Manager, the system will prompt you to enter your basic account information.

These details are essential, as they determine your billing currency and local time settings for campaign scheduling.

Note: After confirmation, you won’t be able to change the country or time zone.

By clicking the “Create your first ad” button, you agree to X Ads’ MSA terms. Your campaigns will be billed in EUR, and all pricing will appear in that currency.

Step 2: Create Your Campaign

Click on “Create Campaign”, and choose between two modes:

• Simple Mode – Automated targeting and basic setup for a fast start

• Advanced Mode – Full control over structure, targeting, budget, and bidding

  

Step 3: Choose a Campaign Objective

Select your main marketing goal — this will define how your campaign is optimized:

• Reach – Maximize visibility and awareness

• Video Views / Pre-roll Views – Promote a video or your brand

• Website Traffic – Drive visits to your site

• Engagements – Get likes, replies, or retweets

• Sales (NEW) – Drive actions like purchases or registrations

• App Installs – Promote downloads of your mobile app

• App Re-engagements – Re-activate users who already have your app

• Keywords (BETA) – Target based on interest in specific topics (experimental)

Tip: Choose an objective that aligns with your buyer journey stage — see our article on “Content Marketing by Buyer Stage” for more insights.

Step 4: Define Your Target Audience

In this step, you decide who will see your ads. X Ads offers Auto Targeting powered by AI, which automatically identifies the most relevant audience for your campaign — reducing the need for manual setup.

Step 5: Set Your Budget & Return Goals

Here, you define how much you’re willing to spend and which action counts as a conversion (e.g., purchase, sign-up).

Daily Budget
Enter the amount you want to spend per day, e.g., €86.50. This amount acts as a spending cap that won’t be exceeded.

Pick an Action
Choose the main goal that will be tracked as a conversion. For example: Purchase Tracker – Tracks purchases

(Other options like sign-ups or clicks may be available depending on your account.)

Target Cost Per Action (Optional)
Specify your target CPA — how much you’re willing to pay per conversion. If left blank, X will optimize this automatically.

Tip: Entering a CPA gives you a weekly conversion estimate (Target Bid Estimate), helping you better plan your ROI.

Step 6: Create Your Ad

Now it’s time to build your actual ad content — this is the most important part for engagement and overall success.

Ad Content Setup

• Post Text: Write a clear and concise message. Let users know why they should engage.

• Media Format: Choose from:

  • Single Media – one image or video

  • Carousel – 2–6 swipeable cards (ideal for multiple products)

• Call to Action (CTA): Pick a strong CTA like “Shop Now,” “Learn More,” or “Sign Up”

• Media: Upload your visual — a high-quality image or video is crucial for performance

• Headline: A short, compelling title that appears beneath your media

• Website URL: Set the destination your ad should link to

Ad Preview
On the right side, you’ll see a live preview of your ad in the X feed — perfect for fine-tuning before launch.

Step 7: Add Billing Info & Launch Your Campaign

Once your ad is finalized and campaign settings are complete, the final step is to add your payment details and launch the campaign.

Launching the Campaign
After saving your payment method, click “Launch”. Your ad will enter review mode, where it undergoes approval by X Ads (usually within minutes to a few hours).

Once approved, your ad will begin running based on your defined budget and targeting.

What Happens After Launch?

Use X Ads Analytics to monitor your campaign’s performance. Key metrics include:

• Impressions – How many times your ad was shown

• Clicks – Number of times users clicked your ad

• Conversions – Number of completed actions (e.g., purchase, registration)

• CPA – Cost per acquisition

• ROAS – Return on ad spend

Thanks to real-time AI optimization, your ad performance will improve automatically over time. Still, regular performance evaluation remains essential for long-term success.

Conclusion

Advertising on X is a powerful tool for businesses to build brand awareness, reach their audience, and drive conversions. With a wide variety of ad formats, advanced targeting options, and AI-powered optimization, brands can create campaigns that align with their goals — and deliver real results.

Not sure where to start?

Book a free consultation with our advertising specialists. We'll help you design a custom strategy, optimize your budget and ad formats, and turn X into a true growth channel for your business.
Contact us today — and take your campaigns to the next level.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Is X a good platform for business promotion?

Yes. X allows businesses to reach users in real time. With over 586 million monthly active users, it's a powerful platform for building brand awareness and driving conversions.

2. How much does advertising on X cost?

Costs vary based on targeting, competition, and ad format. In 2025, the average cost per click (CPC) ranges from CZK 6 to 12, and the cost per 1,000 impressions (CPM) is approximately CZK 144 to 288.

3. What types of ads does X offer?

Key ad formats include:

• Promoted Tweets, Accounts, and Trends

• Image and Video Ads

• Carousel and Text Ads

• Vertical Video, Amplify, and Takeover Ads

• AI-optimized campaigns, Dynamic Product Ads, and Collection Ads

4. How does audience targeting work on X?

X offers targeting based on demographics, interests, behavior, keywords, device types, and location. It also supports custom and lookalike audiences powered by AI for enhanced precision.

5. What should I monitor after launching a campaign?

The key performance metrics to track include:

• Impressions (how often your ad is shown)

• Engagement (likes, retweets, clicks)

• Clicks (e.g., to your website or CTA)

• Conversions (purchases, sign-ups)

• ROAS (Return on Ad Spend)