Threads, An Instagram App

When Meta announced their new, text-based app, many people jumped at the opportunity to try out the Twitter alternative. An impressive 30 million users signed up within 24 hours, that figure has now surpassed 100 million in its first week. Of course, this many users are going to have opinions on everything from the finer points of the user experience to the inclusion or exclusion of certain features.

Our team is no different, signing up on day one allowed us to monitor the situation as it unfolds. Here are our initial findings:

• Minimal seems to be the overall theme, mimicking Twitter's text-centred design but in a somewhat cleaner way. The only real flair comes from the ‘thread’ indicator beside the posts themselves which sometimes displays a little knot and the refresh animation which in itself is simple but pleasing to the eye.

 

• The sign-up process is quick and simple, using your pre-existing Instagram account to populate your profile, down to your bio and profile picture. Of course, you can set this information up separately if desired, but you will still need to link that original account. The option to follow profiles linked to your Instagram follow list allows you to build up your new account without having to start from scratch, making the whole process a lot shorter.

 

• A lack of hashtags and search capabilities means there is little you can do to reach your audience besides hoping the algorithm works in your favour.

 

• You cannot delete your new account without also deleting your linked Instagram account. The way Meta has gone about linking the platforms means you only have the option to deactivate the new account if you wish to keep your original Instagram account. 

 

• The EU has not approved the app for release, this is due to the way its data collection techniques interlink with Instagram, which is currently not in accordance with the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMU).

 

A few features definitely need to be added and altered before we’re ready to fully accept Threads into our daily social media consumption. Luckily, it appears that the Threads team are already working on a myriad of user requests.

Recent statements from Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, confirm that we can look forward to a few updates in the coming months. One of the most in-demand being a newsfeed dedicated to accounts we follow in addition to the algorithmic feed we were provided with. Alongside this, there have been talks of a desktop interface, the ability to switch between accounts within the app itself, as well as being able to edit your posts and a translation feature.

Missing functionality and features aside, the other thing which is not entirely clear at this early stage is what the 'identity' and purpose of Threads will be within the social media landscape. For example, as a very broad summary,  currently, Facebook is for personal life (albeit more for older age groups now), Linkedin is for professional life, Instagram is for images, TikTok for video (although primarily the younger demographics), and Twitter tends to be the preferred destination for news and discussion of the major topics of the day. 

Whether people will find room in their social media lives for yet another outlet will therefore very much depend on how the platform evolves, and how useful people then find it.

Either way, it's pretty clear that this is a product still very much in development, hastily brought forward because Meta spotted a window of opportunity, thanks to the recent erratic behaviour of Elon Musk.

As the platform is still in its infancy, with plenty of room for improvement and no clear role in the industry as yet, we recommend signing up, experimenting and learning as it develops. If you want to build up your presence it could be worth re-using content from your established platforms and tracking its progress.

We’ll keep you updated as new features are released and we learn more about this new toy.