This article was inspired by a Chaotic Good Studios LinkedIn post.
Are you getting pestered with questions about creating a Threads strategy, and being told how critical it is for the brand to know all the things right this moment?
Know that you’re not alone and all Social Media Managers are likely receiving the same questions. Take a deep breath and remember that YOU are the expert and YOU know that now is not the time to create a full brand strategy for this channel.
Threads launched on July 5, so it’s still BRAND NEW!
There’s no rush right now to work on a brand strategy for Threads, especially if your brand has an Instagram strategy that doesn’t utilize all aspects of the channel to grow and build a community. If you’re only using Instagram to post pictures every once in a while, and only focused on “company culture” then you’re not ready to do Threads.
But, you should take this opportunity to research and engage on it personally. Learn how people are talking on the channel and what they’re sharing. Look at what’s getting engagement and what’s not. See how brands across all industries are using and engaging on the platform. The more research you do and the more you engage, the better you can guide conversations about the pace in which you incorporate this channel into your social media strategy, or not.
Since I joined Threads, I’ve noticed some things that brands and social media managers should be paying attention to:
-
- It’s conversation and community based, so not all of your brand content will make sense to share on this channel — driving event registrations, pushing people to download papers and read articles is not really going to drive engagement.
- This is not a self promotion space, so I would refrain from treating this like Facebook and LinkedIn — you will not gain engagement or followers.
- It has a great layout for sharing photos and videos.
- Don’t solely repost your TikTok videos.
- It’s a text-based channel and hashtags aren’t trackable in the platform, so they don’t add value to the post.
- This is not the place to talk to yourself (i.e. promoting brand content only) — this is the place to understand and engage with your audience!
- This could be a great channel to revive the surprise and delight that I miss from brands and focus not only on the influencers/content creators, but on the loyal brand followers, including your employees.
- Share content like tips and tricks, advice, learnings and quotes.
- ENGAGE!!!!
- All posts have a 500-character limit, so you do have a lot to work with.
- You can include up to 10 photos per post.
- You can share up to 5 minutes of video per post.
- The desktop version is now live where you can post, view your feed and interact with Threads.
You asked, they added:
- Users can now edit a thread within 5 minutes of posting. *update as of 10/12
- Users can now share their thoughts using a voice thread and threads will transcribe your note so your followers can read or listen. *update as of 10/12
- You can now send people Thread posts via DMs on Instagram! *update as of 8/9
- You can sort the people that you follow. *update as of 8/9
- You can keep track of the posts you like. *update as of 8/9
- You can add custom alt-text to images and videos. *update as of 8/9
There are capabilities that are not currently supported in the Threads app, so you should keep in mind when “planning” a strategy right now:
- Hashtags — they aren’t trackable or clickable, so incorporating them in messaging shouldn’t be a priority right now.
- Text Search Function
- Direct Messaging — in a recent update, they announced you can now send DMs directly from Threads to Instagram.
- Analytics
- Drafts
- Post Scheduling
- Edit Button
- Simple Account Switching
- Trending Topics
- Paid Ads
While there are restrictions in the app, there are a few ideas you can jump on right now:
- Refresh your Instagram strategy.
- Create a reel and live Instagram strategy so you’re utilizing all parts of the platform to help your brand in the algorithm.
- Join Threads from your personal account to get engaged and start your research.
- Claim your Threads brand account.
- Start creating your social wish list of how you’d like the brand to act, what you want the brand to post, and how you want the brand to engage on the channel.
- Create a separate list of what you know would be 100% approved for how the brand should act, post and engage.
- Start identifying relationships that the brand could/should build with other brands and individuals.
- And lastly, don’t forget about trolls! They exist on all platforms and it’s always a good idea to start planning a strategy when something goes/could go haywire — you can base this off of other brands or individuals to provide examples.
Threads is not something to ignore, but it’s not something to rush into either. There are lots of opportunities, but it may not be the right space for your brand. It’s exciting when something new comes into play, especially with so much unknown in the Twitter (X) world right now, but it’s also overwhelming because it’s yet another channel that we have to think about. It’s really important to remind leadership and managers that this channel CANNOT be treated like the others — a strategy for one platform doesn’t work on another because you have different audiences and people engage in different ways on each channel.
So, for the time being, go have fun on the platform, research and start making your wish lists!
