Social Marketing on Threads

Similar to Twitter, Threads is the new social media companion to Instagram. People across the country are buzzing about it. While in the past, Twitter has seen competition, Threads presents an even greater competitive advantage.

Not long ago Twitter experienced turbulence in its availability and reliability. Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, took over Twitter to reverse this decline. Since this takeover, Twitter has experienced a massive drop in revenue. Everyone is pointing fingers. Musk says the activists are to fault, while many others speculate Musk has made some poor, untimely decisions.

This is where the new platform comes in and begins to create friction – a new, reliable platform versus a trusted, yet struggling platform. Threads, like Instagram, is developed by Meta. Threads has already begun breathing new life into the world of microblogging – more than 30 million people have signed up since its launch on July 6th.

Fortunately, due to its similarities to the generally simple Twitter platform, the learning curve is not steep. Users can download the app in their phone’s designated app store. From there, Threads integrates with your Instagram account if you allow it – this process only takes a few seconds and then you are able to import usernames for people you’d like to follow. The convenience of downloading and creating a Threads account has been a major advantage in their rapid success.

Not surprisingly, Threads will have an impact on how we approach social marketing. For example, there will likely be a positive relationship between search engine optimization (SEO) and the Threads platform.

For many years, Twitter has been a place for experts to share ideas and advice, and for others to ask questions. Threads will serve an almost identical role, with some differences in platform characteristics. One essential difference is that Threads offers a longer character limit than Twitter ever has – this will only aid in SEO strategies.

While the platform is still in its infancy, it seems there may not be much in the way of traditional social marketing yet. However, many companies and influencers are gaining traction by simply having fun with Threads. Memes are being posted, funny tidbits are being shared. Brands are asking light conversational questions that spark creativity and engagement.

Essentially, this is a beautiful time to just have fun on a brand new platform. In doing so, you could be opening the door to prospective clients!

Here are some things to consider:

• Threads is the first true competition for Twitter – it is probable that it is here to stay
• Go ahead and secure your brand’s username (consistency is important and you don’t want someone else snatching your username!)
• Consider the ways Threads will add to your social marketing strategy
• Consider ways other companies are leveraging Threads to build their audience – for example, some brands are running competitions: by following a few, brief steps a user is automatically entered into a drawing to win some kind of prize. Others are letting their social media teams develop fun, humorous content to connect with their audience on a personal level.

The Future?

In the future, social marketing on Threads shows potential. Organic social content is already accessible to any brand willing to put in the effort; paid social content is on the way. Some sources suggest that the Meta team is working towards making ads available to marketers on the platform. So, while there isn’t a current option for advertisements, it is something that can be expected and hopefully soon.

Content marketing may also be aided by Threads through what is called ActivityPub Protocol. Essentially, content will be able to flow among different platforms and services, like WordPress. Ultimately, this opens the door to greater connection among web platforms.

Overall, Threads has created a frenzy of social posting, media coverage, and critiques. Some wonder if it will overtake Twitter, while others question its future success.

Either way, it is a good idea to get comfortable with the new platform that is very likely to ‘stick’. Start out by having fun increasing engagement and building a loyal following. Consider putting time into coming up with a plan for when these paid marketing strategies go live.