THREADS: AND SEW IT BEGINS

It finally launched. Depending on who you speak to, this is either a silver bullet fired into the heart of Twitter, or a waste of time and resource from Meta as it struggles desperately for relevance. The truth will probably land somewhere in the middle. For now, soon after launch, the jury is firmly out on just how impactful Threads will be on the social media landscape, especially for brands.

That doesn’t stop marketers from wanting to know what social media professionals make of the platform, so we thought we’d oblige by asking members of our Social Team for their initial impressions. 

Dylan Patel, Social Media Director:

My follow list on Twitter is vastly different to my follow list on Instagram, and for good reason: I use them differently. Automatic followers were a fantastic way for Zukerberg to keep announcing huge growth in user numbers, but I don’t know if that will translate into a meaningful experience for users, making it harder for brands to cut through.

It’s also currently lacking key features: Search, hashtags, trending topics and messaging. They’ll all come, but Meta needs to work quickly to retain all the curious newbies before they get bored and stop using it. Some would say that now’s a great time to join and build an organic following as a brand, based on quality content. But with no ability to track reach/impressions/engagement rate, no trends, no ads and no data, your only guide to success will be followers and, as every marketer knows, that way madness lies. 

Meredith Ash, Senior Account Director:

Do consumers really need or want another social platform to fill their days with endless scrolling? I initially thought not, but once I downloaded the app I was impressed by the seamless link between Threads and Instagram, which made it easy to get up and running.

The launch was perfectly timed with a question mark over Twitter’s future, and I can see the appeal of a more conversational counterpart to Instagram, especially for brands looking to grow and engage with their community without the baggage that Twitter brings. However, brands will need to think through their strategy to give their audiences reason to not only download Threads but follow and engage with them. 

Chelsie Tang, Senior Content Strategist:

For brands, it presents an interesting new opportunity for conversational text-based content. There’s the added benefit that a lot of eyes are on the channel, especially those that had given up on Twitter.

But, without paid support and any sense of insights, it’s difficult to regard it as anything beyond an experimental channel. Yes, you can test but without the ability to see how your content is performing, you can’t confidently determine value and justify investment in the channel. It could be the only platform to allow true organic growth, but given the wider landscape, I’m doubtful this will last. 

George Martin, Content Creative:

At launch, Mark Zuckerburg said that there should be a “public conversations app with 1 billion+ people on it” which seems a wildly ambitious target when Facebook usership is in decline and Instagram has stalled. It seems even more ambitious considering Twitter never got over 300 million users.

The app ties in seamlessly with Instagram, but this integration could lead to cannibalisation. It’ll be interesting to see how users generate and engage with content, especially those who naturally use Instagram more than Twitter. Will the change of format create a barrier, or will it provide an opportunity to diversify the ways in which consumers can engage with brands?

Zaynab Ahmed, Social Account Executive: 

The fact it mimics Twitter's interface in so many ways will appeal to new users, similar to when Instagram first introduced stories. I was one of the many people who used Snapchat and didn’t see how such a similar concept could thrive; now I use it daily whilst Snapchat goes unused.

Having said that, Twitter for most was an app used for in-the-moment exchanges rather than evergreen content, and that’s not really Instagram’s vibe. They’ll need to work on finding a way to differentiate the use of Instagram to Threads and encourage users to share content differently. It’ll be interesting to see whether they can adapt. If not, they may fail to attract the audiences fleeing Twitter.

Paddy Blatch, Account Assistant:

The clean interface with recognisable Instagram elements is intuitive. Add the fact that Threads is currently ad-free and you’ve got an interesting proposition to both brands and consumers. Brands can clearly convey their messages through rich engaging content, and consumers won’t constantly be scrolling past irrelevant content, leading to a better experience.

Threads also allows brands to go into much deeper detail when threading, by allowing posts to be up to 500 characters long. A question remains around whether or not consumers have the attention span to read content that’s much longer-form, but you can guarantee they’ll use it to air grievances against brands so it’s worth being prepared for that.

We’re keeping our clients up to date on the latest developments on Threads via a weekly email. If you’d like to sign up, email digital@splendidcomms.com