What is Threads? A Breakdown of the Latest Social Media App

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The internet began to buzz on July 8, 2023, as a new social media platform hit the market. The platform called “Threads” was launched by Facebook and Instagram’s parent company, Meta, and appears to be a rival to Twitter.

In less than a day, Threads became the most rapidly downloaded app ever, with over 30 million downloads.

While it’s still very new, here’s what we know about Threads and how it may be helpful for businesses.

What is Threads

Threads is a text-based social media app focusing on real-time posting and conversation. It is closely tied to Meta’s popular photo-sharing app, Instagram.

How Does Threads Work?

Threads works very similarly to the longstanding social media platform Twitter. Users can post text posts of 500 characters or less, as well as gifs, images, and videos that are less than five minutes long. Users can also follow other users’ accounts as well as like, reply, and repost posts. However, unlike other social media channels, Threads does not use hashtags and there are no direct messages to other users.

Potential Benefits for Businesses

Discovery & Visibility

Unlike Facebook and Instagram, Threads defaults users to an explore page, where they can see both accounts they follow and ones they don’t. This means what is posted on the app can organically be discovered by a broader audience interested in their expertise.

Trust

While there has been a lot of security concern around emerging social media apps like Tik Tok, Threads was created and run by the same parent brand, Meta, which manages Facebook and Instagram. These platforms are regularly used by B2B brands. As a result, Threads is already viewed as more trustworthy and valuable than other social media apps, such as Snapchat or Tik Tok for B2B businesses.

Relevant Audience

While Tik Tok and Snapchat consist mainly of a younger audience, Threads has already seen many Facebook and Instagram users active on the app. These users are older and more likely to be in the workforce and are, therefore, a more relevant audience for B2B businesses.

Ready Built List of Followers

Building up your audience when using a new platform usually takes time. Threads lets users and business accounts transfer their entire follower/following list directly from Instagram. While private users will still have to accept a follow request, any Instagram followers that create a Threads account will automatically receive a notification from your business if a transfer is selected.

Vice versa, if your followers select a transfer, they will automatically be following you when they login to Threads.

What’s Next?

Though the app is very new, it’s already been widely used by businesses worldwide. We’ll continue to monitor the situation and release more information as it comes. Have questions about whether to add Threads to your business’s social media channels? Contact us to meet with one of our marketing experts.