20 Aug The Social Media Race: X vs. Threads
It all started with the huge $44 billion sale of Twitter to Elon Musk, a big overhaul with the iconic platform now dubbed ‘X’, and a not-so-tiny gap in the social media market which Meta kingpin, Mark Zuckerburg, took quick advantage of with the creation of Threads…
Fast-forward a few months since Threads began its running in the social media race, and we’re all asking the same question; which short-form platform has actually come out on top? The short answer is that it’s much too soon to tell, but we can certainly make some predictions based on the platform’s performances so far.
THE HISTORY OF TWITTER
Let’s start at the beginning when Twitter first graced our phone screens back in 2006. What began as an easy way for work colleagues at a podcast company to communicate, soon took off as a social phenomenon, seeing over 20,000 tweets a day within its first few public months.
By 2010, the platform grew exponentially with 50 million tweets per day. It very much pioneered the popularity of hashtags, and is responsible for a lot of social vocabulary that we still use on the daily (e.g. mentions and retweets).
THE CHARM OF SHORT-FORM SOCIAL MEDIA
With its character limit and ‘thread’ style interface, Twitter very quickly became stand-out from other social platforms. It gave users the chance to express themselves in just a few words, honed in on the storytelling aspect of social media and allowed trends to soar with the use of popular hashtags.
Businesses jumped on the bandwagon, utilising the power of rising trends and popularity to promote products and services, whilst consumers enjoyed how easy it was to navigate and learn new information.
The platform revolutionised short-form content and made consuming information easy, much like Vine did with its snappy 6-second videos when it followed suit in 2013. Of course, Meta’s Instagram and Facebook grew in popularity too, offering a slightly different experience with longer-form captions and photo focuses, but the charm of quick reads and easy viewing always remained true with over 328 million users returning to Twitter every day.
Today, one of the internet’s most widely used platform, TikTok, proves the fact that users tend to prefer snappier content. So, naturally, when Elon Musk purchased Twitter and rebranded it as ‘X’ in 2022, Mark Zuckerburg had no choice but to introduce a short-form platform of his own; Threads.
IS THREADS ALREADY LOSING TRACTION?
Threads grew its initial user base very quickly, gaining over 1 million users within a matter of hours. Much like Twitter, it offered individuals a space to share short-form content, videos and photos, with the overarching idea to create ‘threads’ of inter-connected posts.
With Musk making fast (and often not well-received) changes to Twitter’s functionality, Threads was introduced at the perfect time. Those who no longer felt aligned with Twitter’s values needed a new space to build communities and Threads provided just that. However, the app has since seen users diminish by half as its limited functionality offers nothing different from other leading platforms.
Many describe Threads as ‘an extension of Instagram’ but with no functionality that really sets it apart. It’s essentially a copy of Twitter with private messaging and groups thrown into the mix, something which better established platforms like WhatsApp and Snapchat already have the monopoly over.
There’s no denying that the platform has lost a lot of its initial traction but, as with any app or website, Meta may have some plans up their sleeves to refine and revitalise Threads’ position in the social race.
THE FUTURE
Apps come and go, trends only last a matter of days and new users rise to the top every day. Social media is incredibly fast moving and the future of Threads, Twitter/X and all other platforms mentioned above isn’t something that anyone can 100% predict.
Who knows what the future of social media really holds? All we know is the power of keeping up with trends, being authentic and making social media work for your brand and business.
Need a hand understanding the ins and outs of social platforms? We’re not fortune tellers but we certainly know our way around creating impactful campaigns.
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