Ever since Elon Musk took over Twitter in October 2022 (now called X), users of the platform have had to deal with a slew of changes from having to pay for a previously free verification feature known as the blue check, being unable to link to other social media sites like Facebook and Instagram, and having limits put on the number of posts they are allowed to read per day. It comes as potentially no surprise that in this climate of change a new contender would emerge to try to siphon off the potentially unhappy user base of Twitter, and that contender came in the form of Meta’s Threads. But with the introduction of Threads, brands and advertisers are already curious to learn what advertising opportunities may exist in the platform now and in the near future.
It’s Still Early Days in Threads
When looking for immediate advertising opportunities, brand and advertisers will be disappointed to hear that there is currently no advertising on the Threads platform. In fact, the platform’s creators Mark Zuckerberg and Adam Mosseri have been very active in letting users know it is still very early stages of the platform and that certain features are still in development.
Advertisers are Ready to Go
Just because advertising opportunities don’t yet exist in Threads does not mean there is not already a line of advertisers waiting for those opportunities to emerge, including the rather large list of notable advertisers who stopped or pulled back advertising in Twitter following the takeover by Musk and subsequent layoffs to brand safety teams. That list includes immense advertisers like Coca-Cola, Unilever, Jeep and Wells Fargo, among others. Assuming the Threads platform can maintain the size of its very new user base, some analysts predict that it could achieve $5 billion in annual ad revenue, equaling what Twitter earned in 2021. Although there are early reports and data to indicate that the huge surge in users to Threads is quickly fading, it’s very likely that many of the 100 million or more users who joined the platform will end up staying, providing plenty of inventory for advertising.
What Will Threads Advertising Look Like?
Given that advertising inventory within the Facebook, Instagram and Messenger platforms are all available within the Facebook Ads Manager, it’s safe to assume that Threads ad placements will also be available to select in Ads Manager. It’s also safe to assume that Threads will likely have the same targeting capabilities as other Meta platforms (Demographic, Interest-Based, etc.) as well as the same general ad offerings, from clickable image ads to watchable video ads.
How Should Brands Get Involved Now?
Although advertising efforts don’t exist in Threads yet, it is advised that brands begin to build their organic presence on the account and begin to treat it as yet another platform to engage with their audiences. Threads accounts are created based off of an existing Instagram account, so brands that are already on Instagram should be able to seamlessly create a Threads profile and begin to reach their same following there. Large brands like Wendy’s and Netflix have already joined the party on Threads, but ultimately brands are still learning how to navigate the new platform’s waters, including how to engage with users, engage with brands, and what type of content resonates. Although there is no ‘how-to guide’ for brands to help them post in Threads, there are a variety of brands that have already begun to do creative things in the platform, like Anthropologie and National Geographic.
