What is Threads and Should I Be Utilizing in My Social Media Strategy?

Last month, Threads was launched with a ton of fanfare on Instagram. It’s been about a month, and the dust has settled, and we took a deeper look at the platform. Below are the basics and some thoughts on if you should invest in this platform as part of your overall social strategy. 

Our overall takeaway, we feel the platform falls short, it seems that Meta rushed the platform to market to capitalize on what’s happening at Twitter, aka X.  The app is missing basic functionality such as post search, hashtags, trending search, DM, and being able to edit a post. These seem like basic features to us in this day and age of social media.  

What is it?

Threads is a text-based conversation app offering a similar experience to Twitter. The main goal of this platform is to create conversations. It's simple to get started on Threads, download the app from the Apple app store or Google play store and then use your current Instagram to log in (yes, you do need an Instagram account to use Threads). Follow the prompts to get your profile set up. You will also be allowed to follow everyone you follow on Instagram on Threads. Doing this will help you get your Threads account off the ground. Below are a few guidelines: 

• Posts are limited to 500 characters 

• Videos are limited to 5 minutes 

• It is easy to share your content to your Instagram stories or feed 

• At present, Threads does not feature any ads or monetization opportunities.

• No DMs

• No Trending Stories 

• No post Search

• No post editing other than deleting the content.  

Here's what you can do with the app:

• Create a post from your account, text-based, or using a photo, video, or link. You can decide who can reply to the post. 

• Anyone 

• Profiles your follow 

• Mentioned only 

• You can "Like " or reply directly to a user's content using the heart or the quote bubble icons. 

• Repost other users' content with the repost button, also known as retweeting or sharing. If you'd like to add your thoughts to the repost, you'll use the quote feature. 

• Share your content with others by clicking the paper airplane icon. Here are the available options

• Add to Instagram Story 

• Post to Instagram Feed 

• Copy Link 

• Share 

Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, announced in a hidden gem video they are working on adding the following features to the app: following feed, edit button, multiple accounts support, post search, hashtags, web presence, and translations. 

Should you start using Threads for your Business?

As a business owner, should you jump onto the Threads bandwagon? It's a tricky decision. As small businesses, jumping on every emerging platform is not always feasible, especially those that may not stand the test of time. The answer is maybe. Ask yourself the following questions? 

• Do I have the capacity to take on a new platform? 

• Are my customers on the platform? 

• Do I want to have another social media asset to manage and create content for? 

• Do I have the know-how, or does someone in-house have the know-how? 

• Do I have the budget to hire an agency or a person to manage the platform? 

What can you do while you decide if you want to use Threads in your marketing strategy? Jump on, set up your profile, and then mark the profile as private. That will give you time to check it and see if you want to invest time and energy in this platform. 

As always, please reach out with any questions or if you need help setting up your Threads profile.