Is Threads the New Twitter?
Threads, the Twitter-like social media app developed by Meta, the parent company of Facebook, achieved 100 million users in five days. Despite Elon Musk’s protests, this isn’t just a copycat version of Twitter. There are differences between Threads and Twitter to consider.
- Threads is currently available only by way of smartphone.
- You must log into Threads through an Instagram account. This information is used to populate profile details and follow lists.
- Threads doesn’t display posts in real time, like Twitter. Its news feed is more like Facebook and Instagram, in that it is based on a user algorithm.
- Threads, unlike Twitter, doesn’t promote hard news or political content.
- Threads doesn’t run ads or have a way for users to monetize content.
Most users who signed up for Threads saw a flurry of activity on the site, yet there are users who aren’t exactly jumping for joy. One content creator, Catarina Mello, a travel content creator with 547,000 followers on Instagram, posted this message on Threads. “Anyone else half very excited, half exhausted by the thought of managing yet another social media platform?”
Not to mention, there are those for whom this roll-out elicited disdain. Wedbush tech analyst Dan Ives said in an interview with Yahoo Finance that he would “rather eat broccoli for the full day than be on Threads” after he used the app for close to seven hours. Ives also feels that Threads’ user engagement will drop because of, what he calls, “G-Rated” content that will bore people.
If you are thinking that this feels like social media déjà vu, you aren’t alone. Every so often, a new social media platform comes along that looks to overtake Facebook and Twitter. Yet, after some initial buzz, users go back to Facebook and Twitter and the app quietly ceases to operate. Remember Google+?
Where does that leave small business owners? Should you jump to Threads or not? While it is important to be where your customers are, don’t just blindly sign up for Threads. If your customers are overwhelmingly Facebook users, stay on Facebook. If they are Twitter users, stay on Twitter and so on. If you are considering adding Threads to your suite of social media channels, it is best to take a wait and see approach. One reason to wait is how Threads is currently set up. If you feel that it isn’t for you and want to delete your account, you can do so only by deleting the connected Instagram account.
Still itching to sign up for Threads?
All of this should serve as a reminder that technology, like social media, is a tool. Since it is a tool, it is a means to an end. If social media can help you connect with customers, use it. If it doesn’t fit your clientele, don’t use it. It is easy to follow the crowd when there is a lot of chatter about the latest thing. Whether or not Threads over takes Twitter or joins Google+ in the social media graveyard remains to be seen. What’s not going away is the use of social media to connect with customers and prospects. If you use social media in your business, are you using it as a source of information or is it a drain of other people’s time? If your posts consist of information about your industry or company, then your social media is a source that is providing news people can use. If your posts are just “Look at us! We’re so great! Buy from us!” then your social media is a drain on people’s time. So, no matter which social media platform you use, make sure you are providing something of value to your followers. If you don’t, then your followers may start “un-following.”
Sources:
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2023/07/07/threads-instagram-twitter.html
https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-threads-popularity-wont-last-analyst-dan-ives-2023-7