Brittany’s App of the Week: Threads

Summary

Is Threads the new Twitter? This app of the week explores the Instagram Threads and what B2B marketers need to know about the new app.

By Brittany Lieu, Marketing Consultant at Heinz Marketing

With 100 million sign-ups within a week of launch, Threads may be the next biggest social platform. 

So, what does that mean for us B2B marketers?

What is Threads?

Threads, Meta’s new text-based conversation app and seemingly Twitter’s rising competitor, is integrated with Instagram to allow users to create their Thread accounts through their existing Instagram accounts seamlessly. Created to be where “communities converge,” Threads is about fostering groups with shared interests. 

Although similar, there are a few differences between Threads and its established counterpart, Twitter. Here’s what you should know:

• Unlike Twitter’s 280-character limit, Thread posts can be longer and up to 500 characters. 
• Posts can include photos, links and video up to 5 minutes long. 
• With its Instagram integration, Threads will look similar to Instagram’s existing aesthetic and navigation system and will allow users to share posts from Threads directly to their Instagram stories. 
• Threads currently does not serve ads and maintains an ad-free experience for users. However, there are plans to roll out “branded content” tools for advertisers.
• Threads still lacks a few features that Twitter has, including hashtags, direct messaging and a desktop version.
• Users have discovered that if you delete the Threads app you will also be deactivating the attached Instagram account, since the two platforms are interlinked. So deactivate with caution!

 

What does this mean for your marketing strategy?

“Our approach will be the same as all our other products: make the product work well first, then see if we can get it on a clear path to 1 billion people, and only then think about monetization at that point.” Zuckerberg said.

Although Threads developers have yet to introduce monetization plans, marketers may be wondering what is the potential ROI of investing time and resources into exploring yet another new social media platform.

If you find yourself wondering if Threads needs to be a part of your list of social media marketing channels, first asses your current Instagram audience and engagement metrics. Between Instagram Stories, Reels, and the feed, Threads is one more way your account can reach followers. 

If your audience is active and engaged on Instagram, assess what types of visual content perform better and build a strategy for translating that success to text-based posts.

Designed to be a community-driven app, Threads can also be a prime platform for B2B marketers to build or continue to cultivate community conversations, showcase thought leadership, and gain insights on emerging trends. 

Ready to get “Threading”?

Will your team join the wave of early Threads adopters? As Threads matures and its user base expands, how people use and leverage it for marketing purposes will continue to evolve. Although not every social platform is fit for every brand, emerging apps like Threads represents a fresh arena to reach your audience.