A Quick Thread on Threads: What Multifamily Marketers Need to Know

Jessica Fiur, Editor-in-Chief

Another day, another social media network.

Threads, Meta’s new social media platform (and Twitter rival), launched on July 5th. It already has more than 100 million subscribers, and according to Forbes it is the “fastest growing app in history.”

And it’s easy to join! Threads is linked to Instagram, so if you have an Instagram account you can just use that account to log in, and it will pull all your information, bio, etc. and create your Threads account. Plus then you are already following people that you followed on Instagram.

Threads appears to be pretty user friendly as well. The interface is…well…pretty much the same as Twitter. (Which is purportedly driving Elon Musk nuts.)

Image by Delmaine Donson/istockphoto.com

It’s been said that multifamily is slow to adopt to new trends and technology. But should multifamily markets throw caution to the wind and jump on the Threads bandwagon now?

Pros

People are leaving Twitter. Since Elon Musk bought Twitter, it is estimated that more than a million people have left, according to reporting from MIT Technology Review in 2022. So while it may be still useful to post there, you also have to make sure your audience is still there. No audience, no point, right?

It’s easy for marketers to use. If you have a marketing strategy for Twitter, you can probably use a similar, or even the same strategy on Threads. Plus, Instagram’s branded content tools, while not yet available, will hopefully be soon, which would allow for paid promotion opportunities.

Major brands are already joining to Threads. A lot of big companies have already set up Threads accounts, such as Netflix, Spotify and Coca Cola, and they are seeing a lot of engagement. (Plus lots of celebrities are joining, too, which probably has nothing to do with multifamily marketing, but a girl can dream about engaging with Oprah and being gifted a car, right?) Are residents and prospective renters on yet? Who knows, but if the brands are there, they will come eventually—plus see also the little fact that there are more than 100 million people on already.

You’ll “get in on the ground level.” There’s just something about being an early adopter. You can refine your marketing strategies while people are still learning the ropes. And then when there are definitely renters you want to target, you’ll already have a presence.

Cons

It’s another social network to maintain. Right now you need strategies for Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok… It’s a lot.

There’s no guarantee Threads will remain popular. Do you remember MySpace? That was huge. I personally spent hours updating my top eight friends (which, thinking back now, was super rude), picking an obnoxious sparkly background and equally obnoxious music to play when you visited. My profile is probably in some digital graveyard now. What about Vine? And does anyone actually use Clubhouse anymore? When it launched I was dying for an invite. But now I think it’s been off my phone longer than I had it on. Social media comes and goes. Why invest time and resources in something that might not be relevant in six months or a year? (Sorry, Tom.)

Ads aren’t available yet. “At this time, there are no ads or monetization features on Threads,” a Meta spokesperson told Digiday; however, they are talking about adding that feature in a few months.

It’s only on mobile so far. There is currently no desktop version of Threads, so all work has to be done on the phone (so it will look like you’re playing on your phone at work).

It’s hard to delete. If you start a Threads account, but then decide you’re just not that into it and want to delete it, you would also have to delete your Instagram account. Annoying enough for a personal account, but potentially devastating for a business account.

Taylor Swift isn’t on Threads yet. So why even bother?

Are you going to set up a multifamily Threads account? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Send a tweet to @MHNOnline or @jfiur, send a Threads (Threads me? Sew me some love?) to @jfiur, or send me a message on LinkedIn.