Back to X: are brands reconsidering their exits?

At risk of sounding trite, the social media landscape changed forever in October 2022 when billionaire Elon Musk completed his acquisition of Twitter and with that, rebranded it as X. 

For $44bn, the world’s most powerful man assumed total control of the microblogging platform, overseeing changes including removing independent ‘blue tick’ verification, making post-liking private, and perhaps of most concern, relaxing moderation rules around ‘hate speech’ and disinformation. This saw some accounts previously banned for extreme views being reactivated.

Anecdotally, subscribers noticed a stark difference in the range of posts they were exposed to and that the platform’s original community spirit had given way to a more divided, controversial and combative space where polarising content dominated.

The once iconic bird was dead.

As these changes embedded, many organisations and individuals made their exits.

The Guardian stopped posting across its editorial accounts, calling X “a toxic media platform” that had been used to “shape political discourse” in the run up to the US presidential election and spoke out against the promotion of “far-right conspiracy theories and racism”.

Similarly, London Marathon cited the platform’s descent into the “gutter”, while North Wales Police said it was “no longer consistent” with its values and Devon County Council quit after its account was subjected to “daily abuse”. 

Elsewhere, brands including the NHS Confederation and Guy’s and St Thomas’ Charity, were more cautious in announcing they would cease engagement while not deleting their accounts. 

The CIPR stopped its posting in November 2024 over “platform's governance, declining engagement, and the proliferation of misinformation” while allowing its members to access historical content.

Other brands simply stopped posting without any public comment – the social media equivalent of “quiet quitting”.

The X alternatives

With Ofcom having reported an 8% decline in active UK users, had a once essential channel been consigned to history?

Many communications professionals certainly responded in that way by investing more in their other platforms and shifting to alternative microblogging sites, such as Threads, BlueSky and Mastodon, hoping they could experience what they had once cherished about Twitter / X and that their audiences would migrate with them.

While these newer entries have gained traction and have their differences, none have matched X’s scale or influence yet.

Although the platform has significantly fewer users than Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and WhatsApp, for all its turbulence X remains one of the most powerful real-time communications channels out there. It has been estimated that if the platform maintains its current pace of growth, it could surpass 700 million monthly average users globally by the end of the year. In the UK, X boasts 22.9 million users, representing a third of the population.

As such, brands that had quit X face a dilemma. Do they stick to their principles and stay away or is it time to re-engage, acknowledging that they could face criticism for going back on their “gesture politics” while recognising that many of their audiences, including the media, never fully left? 

After initially limiting its presence on X to customer support in 2022, BMW UK has gradually reintroduced more promotional content to the platform. Also, the National Trust and the RNIB had nine-month hiatuses. Full Fact returned to X last year with a focus on countering misinformation.

The return to X

Brands that return to X are not doing so because they endorse the decisions made by its owner or support the platform’s more divisive content but because they recognise the need to be where the conversations are happening and are mindful that their competitors could fill spaces they had once occupied. Visibility is currency, and absence can be costly.

Also, brands are returning with different strategies, whether that’s around “mirror publishing” on other microblogging platforms, more social listening and monitoring, or more passive posting rather than investing regularly in bespoke content. Others are leaning into more niche communities and influencers who are still highly active there.

The challenge is how to engage without compromising on values. X needs to be seen as a communications tool rather than a political statement. Just as communications teams already use different channels for different audiences, there is still scope for X to be used for specific purposes without making it the centrepiece of any strategy.

Brands considering a return should:

• Acknowledge the shift: Be honest about why you left and why are you returning – what has changed? Striking the right tone will be key.
   
• Reframe the purpose: Be clear on how you intend to use X, which could now be different, and why it is important, such as for customer service or for public safety alerts. Also, understand where X fits within your multichannel approach to digital engagement – in a fragmented media landscape, this is essential. 
   
• Do your audience research: If your target audiences were never on X or particularly engaged, or if your engagement has rocketed on other more relevant platforms since your departure, a return to X might not be that beneficial. Ask your customers, members, clients or other audiences if they would welcome your return to the platform. 
   
• Understand and prepare for the risks: For example, avoid engaging in polarising debates unless they are core to your mission, use robust monitoring tools and escalation processes to respond to misinformation or abuse, and prepare lines to take for potential criticism.

This should not be about abandoning personal principles or values; instead, any return is likely to recognise that influence often takes place in imperfect spaces. Platforms evolve, public sentiment changes, and engagement strategies must adapt – our role in communications is to navigate these complexities. 

Brands that return to X should do so with a clear strategy, a renewed sense of purpose, and a commitment to engaging responsibly.

Paul Cooney is assistant director of communications at the healthcare membership body, the NHS Confederation -a CIPR Corporate Affiliate - which has offices in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and is executive team member of its communications agency, HealthCommsPlus.

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