Meta’s New Platform Flounders To Elon Musk’s X

I will never understand why corporations attempt to create imitation products—it rarely ends well.

Twitter, now known as X, is the only successful platform of its kind; similarly, Instagram is the only successful platform of its kind.

No one is going to create an Instagram lookalike that pulls users away from Instagram and no one is going to create an X lookalike that pulls users away from X.

Still, this has not stopped Meta and Mark Zuckerberg from creating their own X copycat.

Threads is a platform meant to mimic X, yet it’s nowhere near the quality, functionality, and popularity of the X social media platform.

The latest data indicates an 80% drop-off in terms of daily active users.

David F. Carr of Similar Web provided these charts comparing daily active users on X, formerly known as Twitter and Meta’s Threads.

According to NBC News:

Some celebrities who joined the platform before it was available to the public, such as Jennifer Lopez and Tom Brady, haven’t posted at all since launch week.

MrBeast, the YouTube star who was the first user to reach 1 million followers on Threads, stopped posting about a month ago.

The Verge reports: “You’ll finally be able to browse your feeds in Meta’s Threads app on the web.” However, it is unlikely that a web-based platform will shore up user counts.

You’ll finally be able to browse your feeds in Meta’s Threads app on the web. https://t.co/JQG4MG2gqe

— The Verge (@verge) August 26, 2023

The Washington Times reports that more new features are coming to the app: “After adding a web version last week, Meta’s “Twitter Killer” Threads announced this week that a new search function will be added to the app soon.”

After adding a web version last week, Meta's "Twitter Killer" Threads announced this week that a new search function will be added to the app soon. https://t.co/jTeG5ah5A7

— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) August 31, 2023

AdWeek had more:

Since its launch, Threads saw a spike of 100 million user sign-ups in its first week, according to the platform.

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Brands, including Converse, Wendy’s, Rare Beauty, American Eagle and Anthropologie were among the first to adopt the app.

However, Threads’ limited features—such as no search function or desktop feature—led some people to quit the app.

And the lack of performance data and discoverability tools has left brands with limited opportunities, leading to fatigue, according to Rachel Karten, social media consultant and author of the newsletter Link in Bio.