Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has embarked on a strategy to boost growth for Threads, aiming to enhance user engagement in competition with Twitter. The social network is promoting its latest Threads app by featuring Threads posts in Facebook users’ feeds, the company confirmed today.
This move is a familiar one for Meta, which regularly uses Facebook’s feed to promote new features, including those in its other apps. The company has long incorporated Instagram Reels into Facebook feeds and allows WhatsApp businesses to purchase ads appearing in Facebook feeds.
However, unlike these efforts, promoting Threads on Facebook seems not to be optional, according to engadget’s report.
Meta responded to one Threads user’s query about keeping their posts off Facebook, stating, “We’ve launched an update to make it easier for people to see the latest Threads content directly on Facebook and Instagram.” They emphasized their commitment to listening to user feedback as they continue to build on this feature.
Meta began testing the promotion of Threads posts on Instagram back in August, but placing these posts on Facebook without providing an opt-out feature has stirred controversy. Some users use messaging threads quite differently from Facebook and may not wish to display their thread posts to their Facebook friends.
We reached out to Meta for more information on how Threads posts are recommended and whether they plan to allow users to opt out of this kind of sharing. However, the company has hinted previously that it may leverage its larger apps to try and boost Threads. When Threads reached 100 million subscribers shortly after its launch, Mark Zuckerberg noted that most of the growth had occurred “organically” and that the company “hadn’t even turned on many promotional channels yet.”
Nevertheless, the initial massive growth of Threads proved short-lived, with significant declines in engagement in the weeks that followed. The service has seen a resurgence in recent weeks, with downloads rising again, according to a recent report from Insider.
However, a report by web traffic analytics firm SimilarWeb, tracking web traffic trends, suggests that the company still has a lot to make up for. David Carr, Chief Insights Officer, wrote: “In the United States, where Threads has garnered the most interest, Threads usage on Android dropped by 40% in September compared to July.” Given these trends and Meta’s consistent addition of new features such as post editing and keyword search, it’s not surprising that the company is now trying to boost Threads’ growth, even if its tactics aren’t universally popular.
