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Let's get one thing straight: Threads is not the Twitter killer.
Twitter already has its killer, so let's stop talking about it.
But don't worry: if you were like many people that jumped ship and long for a platform that allows for nuanced conversation about complicated subject matter, Threads is here now for all your banter needs.
That was a joke. There is zero nuanced conversation happening on Twitter... especially now since posts are limited.
Ba dum.
Alright, alright, all jokes aside, Threads cannot be ignored. The reality is that we don't know how long it will be popular, but as a Meta product, you can safely assume it is here to stay for a while.
So, if the new social media platform and Twitter competitor Threads has yet to catch your eye, you need to start paying attention.
In the first 24 hours, Zuckerberg announced it hit 10 million user sign-ups in 24 hours. That number is made possible mainly because of its native connection with and account-sharing to Instagram, but, nevertheless, that's a pretty impressive launch.
As of July 7, 2023, just a couple of days after launching, Threads had more than 72 million users. As of July 10, it was more than 102 million. For context, Twitter has been around since 2006 and has 450 million active monthly users.
So, do you need to start Threading? Or Sewing? Stitching? Or whatever it is that we end up calling using the Threads app? Short answer: probably.
Every Platform Needs Its Experts
Here's something we yell at the top of our lungs every time a new platform is launched: social media stardom is often and most easily awarded to the earliest adopters. Can you become Thread-famous a year from now? Probably. But it will be more challenging.
Does that mean you get a free pass to stardom now? Absolutely not. You still need to provide quality content and have an impeccable strategy — but the race to the top is a lot easier with fewer contestants, and the pool of relevant content to the industry is much smaller.
And as more people interested in cosmetic medicine continue to join, they will look for people to follow on that platform. When TikTok launched, a slew of creators joined early in every industry. Cooking, fabricating, woodworking, woodchopping, writing, reading, marketing, makeup, pickle making — the platform needed creators in those industries to prosper.
And as people joined the app and found those creators, they became the de facto TikTok experts in those specific industries. It is a wild time; anything can happen with a new platform. Just look at Kevin Wilson, a pastor-turned-TikTok star who became the CEO of… Chai?
Medical aesthetics is no different. Doctors like Catherine Huang-Begovic, Anthony Youn, Daniel Barrett, and Richard Brown have all amassed huge followings on TikTok, which, until the launch of Threads, was the youngest of the big social media platforms on the market.
The same will be true for Threads. There will be people who seize the opportunity to grow a new audience on the platform and find tremendous success. So, if you want to be that person and have the chance to capitalize on the new app, you should be rushing to join the Threads ecosystem. Because if you haven't yet, you are already late to the game.
Keep in mind though: so much of social media virality is luck. But luck doesn't mean you are not in control of the outcome. In fact, a considerable part of luck is your own preparation.
Should Your Practice Invest In Threads?
I do not like cheesy quotes. You won't find a single "Live, Laugh, Love" sign in my home, and I'd be damned if my status on any social media is some inspirational "fight when the light is dimmest" nonsense. But, as a writer and reader, I acknowledge that quotes have power when they find their audience.
One specific quote I heard from a P.E. teacher in middle school stuck with me for the rest of my life: Luck is when opportunity meets preparation.
He wasn't even talking to me. I just happened to be drinking from the water fountain next to one of the basketball players he was talking to. And while this quote could be found on some wall art at HomeGoods or Target, it — for whatever reason — resonated with me.
I think this lesson is pretty applicable to your "Should I join Threads" question.
Because, here's the thing: you could get lucky and become the next Threads celebrity, just like so many people found TikTok stardom in the start. Or, you won't and will find a natural, steady growth like any other social media platform.
But getting lucky only happens when you set yourself up for success. Then, when the time is right, and if the opportunity arises, you could become the next prominent expert to whom the masses come clamoring with questions (and consultations).
It’s Good for Your SEO
Recently, Twitter’s new changes to Tweet view limits dropped its SEO ranking significantly. Its visibility on Google fell by 32% in a single day. So, coupling this with some general … annoyance … by its users and a general decline in usage gives you a prime opportunity to hop into this new platform and earn a ton of search traffic.
Plus, anytime you can maximize the amount of original content you put on the web, that is a net win for your overall SEO as you start to take up more search result space. With backing from Meta and Instagram, it won’t take long for Threads to become a dominant player in the SEO realm.
How Your Medical Aesthetic Practice Can Use Threads
If you are familiar with Twitter, great. You have a general understanding of how people are using the platform. You write or share content, and the general public and your followers can respond and interact with it — social media 101.
But right now, sites that people rely on for conversation, like Twitter and Reddit, are under fire for a host of different reasons, so you'll find that a lot of different formats are working well on Threads right now.
Here are a few of the ones you can try out:
AMA Threads: This simple internet staple stands for "ask me anything." One of the best ways to create community is to interact directly with patients and give them information when they ask for it. Providing it live during an AMA on Threads could develop relationships with hundreds or thousands of people who will remember how you helped them for years to come. You'll post something like, "For the next hour, I will be answering questions about cosmetic treatments. Ask me anything!" Then, comments will come in from people who will choose to ask you directly instead of going and Googling their questions. That's hugely powerful for both a growing and established brand.
Polls and Questions: A great way to stir up conversation and generate some insight is to ask questions to people on the platform. "What is more important to you in a nonsurgical treatment: a treatment's results lasting a long time or the procedure being as painless as possible?" This question could get people thinking about their preferences and hopefully engage with your brand. When the conversation comes, make sure to capitalize and respond.
Standard Social Posting: You can still use your bread and butter posts on Threads like any other channel. But remember that Threads’ strength is the community's desire for conversation, so always be angling your content to fill that need. Pose a question or thought at the end and actively solicit responses when your content doesn't beg for a reply. Keep the audience informed on new developments and potential impacts and disruptions to the industry that might interest them.
Threads isn't Twitter or Reddit, and it certainly isn't Instagram or Facebook. So, if you want to know what kind of content does well, you'll need to spend some time there yourself. Find similar brands to yours that are doing well. Emulate what you like and change what you don't. Personalize your content with your brand identity, and you'll be ready to take on Threads like any other social platform.
You Can’t Ignore Threads, So You Might As Well Use It
As a Meta product, Zuckerberg will be protecting the new social media app even more than he protects his own face with sunscreen. Just look at Messenger — it receives nearly universal hate and dislike from its users, and he still refuses to sunset it. (Not to mention, it's only a matter of time before Threads gets rolled into the Meta advertisement ecosystem.)
Call it commitment. Call it stubbornness. Call it vision. Take a page from the Apple playbook and call it bravery.
Call it whatever you want, but while you do, buckle down and strap up — Threads it here to stay, and it's in your best interest to start using it.