Over the weekend, I embarked on an exciting journey, immersing myself in the Threads experience, the newest social media platform from Meta. As a content marketer in Melbourne, I was intrigued to see what this new platform had to offer, and overall…the verdict is mixed.
It’s super easy to use. It’s a pretty chill place – as far as modern social media goes – but you do get served a lot of content from people you’re not following, and it’s a nightmare to use if you’re managing multiple accounts.
Here are my top takeaways and insights from my thrilling encounter with Threads.
1. User-Friendliness: A Double-Edged Sword
Threads is relatively user-friendly, especially if you’re using it for your personal platform or for a couple of different clients or brands. However, for those managing several different platforms or clients, switching between accounts can be quite tedious.
The lack of a ‘following’ feed, where you only see posts from the accounts you follow, is another downside. On the bright side, the absence of advertising is a refreshing change from other social media platforms.
2. Limited Feature Set, But Potential for Growth
At this point, Threads has a relatively limited feature set. It doesn’t offer anything in terms of advertising, and it doesn’t really even offer hashtagging, meaning you can’t search for posts based on a hashtag. However, if your business already has a strong following on Instagram, you will definitely benefit from the fact that your Threads account is directly linked to your Instagram account, and you can instruct it to follow all of your existing Instagram followers.
3. Seamless Integration with Instagram
The integration of Threads with Instagram makes it super easy to convert your following from Instagram onto the new Threads platform. It’s also super easy to share any post that you make on Threads across to Instagram in your story.
4. The Potential of 500 Characters
The 500-character limit for posts on Threads doesn’t have a huge influence on the way that I’m seeing people craft their messages and content. However, the fact that it’s super easy to thread your thoughts together really means you can post as long-form content as you like.
5. A Promising Start for Engagement and Interaction
Threads has had a promising start in terms of fostering engagement and interaction. It’s super easy to join in a conversation that you see on the platform. It’s easy to see everyone’s replies and jump in at any point of a conversation that you see fit.
6. The Power of Authenticity
I think the big potential for businesses to grow their audience and reach on Threads is simply by being authentic. The off-brand content or more organic content is going to be the content that does really well on Threads.
7. The Need for Improved Searchability
The lack of searchability on Threads can make it a little bit harder to find the people that you’re looking for. However, the absence of direct messaging is not a major issue, as anyone that has a Threads account will have an Instagram account, so there’s always that option of simply messaging them on Instagram.
8. The Challenge of Managing Multiple Accounts
The biggest challenge for me personally, as someone who manages a range of accounts, has been the lack of API, meaning you have to make all your posts directly in the app on your phone. So there’s no desktop support yet, and beyond that, it’s actually quite difficult to swap accounts.
9. The Future of Threads
It’s early days for Threads, and I don’t think there’s any denying that there are going to be some significant changes. However, I think the opportunity and the implications of this platform for brands, whether they be personal or business, would be to try and strip back that corporate layer and just be a bit more relatable and conversational with your target audiences.
10. The Value of Early Adoption
Perhaps I’m biased, but I think if there is a new social media that can piggyback off the billions of users that currently use Instagram, as a business, whether you’re a personal brand or a business brand, you’d be silly not to be on this platform.
It’s also worth noting that these platforms really do reward their early adopters with more reach, meaning you’re more likely to be seen by more than just the people that follow you earlier on if you’re able to create content that catches the eye and that tells the algorithm people are interested in what you have to say.
After spending my first weekend on Threads, I can say that it was an incredible learning experience! The platform may have its limitations, but it also has so much potential waiting to be unlocked.
As a content marketer, I am thrilled to witness how Threads evolves and how it can be used to connect with audiences in innovative and genuine ways. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for this amazing platform!
Need to learn more about how your personal or business brand can benefit from being on Threads? Contact Content Hype today.
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