While a variety of companies are using Twitter‘s Promoted Products, auto brands in particular are having a lot of success with the advertising suite.

Promoted Products, which include Promoted Tweets, Promoted Trends, and Promoted Accounts, aim to help brands and businesses promote timely and engaging content in an organic way.

In January, Porsche launched a Promoted Trend and Tweet campaign for its 2012 Porsche 911. Understanding the importance of storytelling, the Promoted Tweets featured photos and videos that highlighted the history of the car.

Eight out of 10 people who saw the Promoted Trend engaged with the corresponding hashtag. The company also saw an 87 percent engagement rate for the associated Promoted Tweet. On the day of the Promoted Trend, Porsche’s Twitter account gained more than 1,700 new followers and saw an increase in positive brand sentiment.

Kia, which first used Twitter’s Promoted Products for its “A Dream Car for Real Life” campaign during the Super Bowl, saw enough success that it has continued using Twitter’s ad products throughout the year.

“Twitter’s ad products have proven to be a good platform for Kia, especially when attempting to maximize the ‘in the now’ moments,” stated George Haynes, social and digital media manager at Kia. “It provides real-time opportunities to engage with people as conversations and events are happening.”

Nissan, which uses Promoted Products to defend key search terms and host Twitter chats, also had a lot of success during last year’s Super Bowl. “Promoted Tweets are also a great way to join the online conversation about a major event or TV show, without having an official relationship or spending a ton on commercials,” explained Erich Marx, social media chief at Nissan.

There are a lot of benefits to using Twitter’s Promoted Products, but only if you can afford the buy-in. The minimum cost for an ad product is between $10,000 and $15,000 — a price tag many small businesses aren’t comfortable with. It’s definitely something to keep in mind the next time you review your advertising budget.

[Via: AllTwitter, Image credit: FotoSleuth]