It’s been 2 months since Threads launched. Should your brand join in?
Whether you’re a creator or a casual user of social, Threads is meant to be a place of creativity and starting open, public conversations with people around the world. With the speed of Twitter but the visual integrations of Instagram, Threads offers a social platform that is quick, positive, and most of all: entertaining.
With the fall of Twitter, many users are calling Threads the response to the death of our beloved bird app. However, it’s way more than that - we consider it a hybrid of Instagram and Twitter. As an Instagram app, Threads uses the same login as your IG and looks similar to both Twitter and Instagram. Here’s what you need to know, 2 months into Threads:
The basics
Threads works like Twitter where you can create single posts, whether text-only or multimedia, with up to 500 characters per thread.
Where Threads becomes a bit more like Instagram is in its ability to provide more multimedia options like carousels of images, as well as more freedom in video length. This is a prime opportunity for brands that have stunning visuals or videos that are worthy of a watch. See below for some of the main differences between the 3 apps:
Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.
Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.
The features
On Threads, you can do a number of things:
Start a Thread
Creative ideas straight from your brand, open for the entire world to see and engage with
Share a Thread
Particularly, Threads offers an integrated holistic experience because you can add Threads to your IG Story, or even post the Thread directly to your IG feed
Repost a Thread
Leverage existing content from other brands and creators that suit your industry
Reply to a Thread
Start conversations with your followers and beyond!
The roadblocks
Until recently, you could only use the search bar to search for usernames. For example, you couldn’t look up “golden retrievers” or “makeup tutorials”, but you could look up “Fenty Beauty” and see their profile. This has changed since last week, but many users weren't aware of the update.
While this may be difficult to find potential consumers who are seeking your brand and engage in outbound community management, it does allow your brand to become the landing page for that specific content. Whether you’re a skincare brand or a streaming platform, you can provide the education, information and entertainment that your target audience is looking for — and since they can’t just search that content and peruse as they please, they will be more inclined to hit that Follow button.
The general strategy
Use a combination of your best-performing Twitter and Instagram content to start populating your feed. Then, begin integrating new pillars to figure out what works best for your audience. This could look like:
Engagement traps
Joining conversations that already exist
Meme formats
Behind-the-scenes images
Long-form Threads to share education
Reactive trends on other platforms that haven’t quite taken off yet
One of the biggest opportunities for Threads is that its engagement is higher than Twitter. Consistent, engaging content is a great way to connect with your audience and join conversations.
The watch-outs
Everyone has heard that user retention is down. The app launched during the height of Twitter’s downfall so it could optimize a timely release. With new features on the way including better searchability, alt text and stronger user experience, Threads has a prime opportunity to become a heavy-hitting social network. Especially since the app is under the Meta umbrella, Threads won’t be going down without a fight.
Should your brand join Threads?
Threads is a great opportunity to engage on a new platform and connect with your audience in an authentic way. Especially since ads are currently not permitted on the app, your brand has less contenders to compete for branded language.
If your brand...
Lends itself to stunning photo and video
Has the flexibility for reactive humour and relatable moments
Speaks directly B2C
Successfully already reaches your audience on Instagram and Twitter
...test out Threads for 30 days and observe engagement. If you can find your audience with ease and without too much lift from your social media team, implementing a Threads strategy could be beneficial to your overarching marketing mix.
Need help making that strategy happen? Choose a social partner that knows how to market your brand to the internet. Super Duper Studios is an award-winning Toronto agency specializing in digital-first branding experiences across visual identity, social media, marketing campaigns and more.
