What advisors need to know about Threads, Mark Zuckerberg's so called 'Twitter Killer'

July 6, 2023 6:46 PM

After a wild weekend on Twitter, one of social media's forefathers is looking to capitalize on the confusion by rolling out a bird app alternative that offers a lot of similar functionality with no post limits in sight.

Originally expected to hit app stores Thursday, the Threads app from Meta skipped its own countdown and went live late Wednesday. And if you have an Instagram account, you're technically already prepared to play in Mark Zuckerberg's newest social media playground.

But what will you find once you log in? A lot of Twitter flavor with a few toppings missing.

You'll get a feed showing you the moment-to-moment thoughts of those you follow, and just as many musings from influencers you may have never checked for in the past. But features like hashtags, direct messages and ads are nowhere to be found. Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri posted on Threads that those things may be coming soon.

Missing functionality aside, the first day of Threads generated enough hype to get at least 30 million of Instagram's more than 2 billion users to sign up for the new app by Tuesday morning, according to a Threads post from Zuckerberg himself.

A strong start for sure. But what should advisors be doing now that the latest "Twitter killer" is on the scene? Scroll down for a breakdown of everything you need to know about Threads, along with some insight from social media pros about the best way to approach it during the early stages.

What the heck is Threads anyway?

Formally listed on app stores as "Threads, an Instagram app," the app is an extension of the popular photo and video platform with conversations the primary focus.

Threads users can post text and links. They can also reply to or repost messages from others. The app also takes advantage of the long-established Instagram ecosystem by letting users import their existing follower lists and account names with just a few swipes and button presses.

Meta is seeking to take advantage of tumult at Twitter since the social media service was taken over last year by Elon Musk. Issues that have angered users include Twitter's revised content moderation policies and requiring a monthly subscription fee to be labeled as an authentic account.

Twitter's other rivals like Mastodon and Bluesky are still too small to be actual challengers to the throne. Instagram, meanwhile, has a user base that dwarfs Twitter's, and has spent months using celebrities and influencers to generate a buzz for Threads.

Why should advisors care?

More than just another battlefield for a pair of billionaires to bicker over, Threads represents another platform that may provide a conduit between wealth managers and clients.

It's also coming from a platform that is killing it in terms of engagement as Twitter's own engagement wanes. According to Hearsay Systems' 2023 Financial Services Social Selling Content Study, Instagram had the highest engagement rates across financial services industries, while Twitter had the lowest.

Leslie Leach, the chief marketing and strategy officer for Hearsay Systems, said that wasn't surprising as the nature of Twitter is more broadcast-oriented. It remains to be seen if Instagram's high engagement will trickle over to Threads.

Reese Harper, CEO of Utah-based financial monitoring platform Elements and founder of Dentist Advisors, believes Threads has an opportunity to capture the attention of displaced Twitter users.

He said Instagram has always been more fun from a consumer standpoint, while Twitter catered to the intellectually inclined.

"The potential middle ground fascinates me as an observer. For Meta to succeed, I believe they need to blend the seriousness of Twitter with the fun of Instagram, targeting communicators who value text as a preferred medium," Harper said in an email to Financial Planning. "Threading this needle will indeed be interesting."

Beyond that, Harper said he was taken aback by his own declining Twitter usage in recent months.

"Despite the persistent negativity and chaos post-Elon, the platform simply lost its usefulness for me. I attribute this largely to deteriorating user experience, which eroded my trust. The introduction of "Blue" was peculiar; paying for authority on a social network felt wrong," he said. "The process was clunky, approval was tedious and I can't even recall what I paid for. Now, being "Blue" raises uncomfortable questions about belonging and judgment. This, coupled with less engaging content and the seeming absence of intellectual conversations, made the platform less appealing.

"While this is purely my experience, I'm certain others share my sentiment. Could it be possible that Twitter's quality dipped under the stewardship of one of the smartest minds?"

Is Zuckerberg really coming after Twitter?

Absolutely. And he isn't exactly being shy about it.

After Threads dropped, Zuckerberg posted his first tweet in 11 years, and he took aim directly at Musk with the beloved Spider-Man Pointing at Spider-Man meme. Clearly a playful poke that comments on the similarities between the platforms, Musk responded with the following in a Tweet of his own:

"It is infinitely preferable to be attacked by strangers on Twitter, than indulge in the false happiness of hide-the-pain Instagram."

Also notable is that Musk challenged the Meta founder to a cage fight about two weeks ago. No update on that showdown as of press time.

Outside of memes, Zuckerberg took to his new platform to make his motivations crystal clear.

"There should be a public conversations app with 1 billion-plus people on it," Zuckerberg said in a post on Threads. "Twitter has had the opportunity to do this but hasn't nailed it. Hopefully we will."

Is Elon Musk happy about this?

It's hard to say for sure considering his account has been quiet in the aftermath of Threads' launch. But if one had to guess, probably not.

The most obvious sign of displeasure is the fact that a lawyer for Musk sent a letter to Zuckerberg accusing Meta of misusing trade secrets and other intellectual property in the creation of Threads after hiring former Twitter employees, Semafor reported on Thursday.

A Meta spokesman confirmed the letter from Musk's attorney and posted on Threads that no one on the new app's engineering team is a former Twitter employee.

Bloomberg reports that Twitter, which has more than 300 million subscribers, is hurting financially. Advertising revenue has declined by 50%, Musk said in March, and he recently hired Linda Yaccarino, a NBCUniversal executive, as chief executive officer to try to improve relationships with brands.

"We're often imitated — but the Twitter community can never be duplicated," Yaccarino said in a tweet without naming Meta's new app. "YOU built the Twitter community. And that's irreplaceable. This is your public square."

Adding to the trouble is the fact that as Threads went live, Twitter was still limiting how many tweets per day users can view. It was a measure Musk called "temporary" to combat data scrapers and bots, but it resulted in a confusing weekend on the app and gave plenty of users motivation to look elsewhere.

READ MORE:

Frequent flyers on Twitter are the most likely to provide bad financial advice

So what's the difference between Threads, Twitter and Instagram?

Quite a bit. Here are some highlights:

Threads has a 500 character limit per post, and Instagram has a 2,200 character limit. On Twitter, character limits are 280 for unpaid users, 25,000 for paid subscribers.
Users who are already verified on Instagram are verified on Threads at no cost. On Twitter, verification is $11 a month, and Instagram verification will set you back $14.99 a month.
All of the platforms allow users to have multiple accounts and the options to keep pages private.
You can't edit posts on Threads, and edits on Twitter are exclusive to paid subscribers. Instagram allows you to edit as much as you like at no additional cost.
Both Instagram and Twitter have hashtags, direct messages, ads and desktop options. Threads doesn't offer any of that at the moment.

Should I delete my Twitter account?

Do you like Twitter? Then keep it. Threads isn't a full replacement just yet, and there is no ability to transfer any following you've spent years generating on Twitter to Threads.

Snappy Kraken CEO Robert Sofia said more importantly, it's just way too early to make that kind of move. Especially for wealth managers who turn to social media for work more than play.

"Nobody needs to react that quickly. Unless they're really worried about being a super early adopter, or if they don't have an Instagram account and they want to claim their business name, that would also be potentially a reason to be reactive here. But really in these situations, I always advise to go back to first principles," Sofia told Financial Planning. "Why would you be on any social media channel? It's because your audience is there. That's No. 1. And you have to think about advisors who aren't already on Instagram. They've got a lot to do to be ready for something like this. But those who are already very active Instagram users who have a lot of followers, especially clients and prospects following them, it would make a lot of sense to adopt this more quickly because their audience is there. Otherwise, you're building an audience from scratch."

Sofia also urges advisors to think about their ability to be actively engaged in a meaningful way. The early days of any platform are largely for experimentation. So take your time and see what you like before going all in.

"So my second piece of advice is don't judge it too quickly. Be prepared to commit, and be patient," he said. "It's way too early to know if this is going to be an effective lead gen channel. However, the value of Facebook advertising and Instagram advertising is already well-proven. Facebook is still the No. 1 performing advertising channel for advisors. So that being the case, it is very likely that this will become an effective advertising channel. So being there early, building up your content and building up your follower base may set you up for advertising success in the future.

"For any advisor is considering using a new platform, they should certainly check with compliance before they do. That's one more consideration."

Any other advice while I try this thing out and press some buttons?

Sofia adds that personal preference will always win at the end of the day. It should also be kept in mind that despite difficulties, there are still millions of people enjoying their time on Twitter and using it to drive business.

He also said the social media landscape is littered with the inactive domains of plenty of would-be world beaters that are no longer around.

When was the last time you checked out MySpace, Vine or Clubhouse?

"I would say this is a good reminder that building a business around one platform — and only having one channel and relying on it — is always a little risky. It's not owned media. And if you're trying to build a brand, your best bet is to be on multiple channels," he said. "I can say personally, my engagement is extremely high on Twitter. And I prefer it over other channels. Advisors need to decide what they prefer.

"You're using a service. So the bottom line is, if you're having success there and you enjoy engaging there and people are engaging with you there, don't sweat it. But do go out and try to diversify channels."

Will Threads sink or swim? We'll see. But industry insiders are absolutely paying attention.

"Meta Threads gives users an additional way to share information and news," said Tim Rickards, senior director of social and content strategy for Hearsay Systems. "Given its recent launch, we'll be on the lookout to monitor its uptake and adoption by our financial services customers."