Scepticism looms over advertising potential on Threads

New Delhi: Meta introduced Threads, its text-based platform, on July 5, 2023, racing past 100 million users in just five days. But what started as a sprint stumbled quickly; daily active users plummeted within weeks due to limited features like no desktop access or trending topic engagement. Now, Meta plans to roll out ads on Threads in early 2025. 

While Meta’s advertising empire is formidable, the ad world is eyeing this move with a mix of intrigue and scepticism.

Rooshabh Doshi, Co-founder, of Nuance Consultancy, said, “Meta has tried its hand out with targeting through other placements such as its app network and Messenger, but those placements have not really worked for advertisers. 

Threads still don’t have a loyal following and even though they may be bandy about numbers about the number of accounts registered, the majority of them are inactive and had an account created by default through Instagram. Engagement so far is really poor on threads and even though we have tried experiments with brands that have a fair amount of followers, the engagement rate is terrible.”

On the contrary, Ankush Vij, Vice President of Media, Hashtag Orange, believes that while the platform’s slower user growth has raised some questions, its seamless integration within the Meta ecosystem gives advertisers confidence. 

“Marketers are excited about the opportunity to experiment with campaigns on a platform designed for real-time, spontaneous engagement. They see this as an opportunity to capitalise on Threads’ cleaner, less cluttered space to connect with more targeted, niche audiences. With its fresh approach, advertisers are keen to test new ad formats and drive more authentic conversations, hoping to differentiate themselves from the competition on other social platforms and build stronger, more meaningful connections with users,” he said. 

Throwing light on early conversations surrounding brands’ interest in advertising on the platform, Vij said that although Meta has not publicly disclosed specific brand partnerships on Threads, there is clear interest from major global brands, especially those familiar with X’s (formerly Twitter) conversational model. Brands in tech, entertainment, and FMCG, sectors that thrive on real-time engagement, are likely to test the waters. 

Chaaya Baradhwaaj, Founder and Managing Director at BC Web Wise, added, “While there’s curiosity about the platform in the advertising community, most brands are taking a wait-and-watch approach, seeking more clarity on user adoption, engagement levels, and the unique opportunities Threads can provide beyond Instagram and Facebook.”

Threads, launched by Meta's Instagram team in July 2023, is a text-based social app designed to foster real-time conversations in a microblogging format. With a focus on community-driven engagement, it quickly gained momentum, surpassing 175 million monthly users within its first year.

According to Vij, Threads focuses on authentic, dialogue-driven engagement, making it ideal for brands aiming to build trust and spark meaningful conversations. “This approach complements Meta’s other platforms, allowing advertisers to engage users more directly and foster deeper connections, creating a well-rounded advertising ecosystem,” he said. 

While the platform fosters an ecosystem for authentic, real-time conversations, marketers remain uncertain about its potential to drive sustained engagement. Threads faces challenges in keeping its user base engaged, with active users dropping from over 100 million sign-ups to around 25–30 million by late 2024. The engagement has fallen 79% from its peak (reports). Meta’s strategy to reignite interest includes sending Threads notifications via Instagram, and leveraging its ecosystem to remind users of the platform’s features. However, these cross-platform nudges may not suffice to reverse the trend.

Mihir Mehta, Managing Partner at 0101, said, “Threads currently has around 275 million users globally, with an average user engagement on Threads of just 3 minutes, which is still very low as compared to Instagram. So from the current data, it’s very difficult to gauge what the user engagement on ads would be.

To truly re-engage users, Threads may need to introduce features that differentiate them from competitors and address specific audience needs. For instance, better content discovery, trends or niche community-building tools could make the app more appealing. Additionally, integrating real-time events, exclusive content, or gamified elements might drive sustained engagement.”

Doshi fears that the engagement rates could see a decline by more percentage points. “I fear the engagement could become even worse. Some of the Threads users like the platform as advertisers haven’t reached there yet and some of the content consumed is more relevant. 

As a social media platform, it’s important to achieve critical mass first before jumping into advertising. I have a feeling that ads will be introduced for very selective brands in India and will take time to roll out to all advertisers due to a lack of audience,” Doshi resolved.

Given the dominance of Instagram among Gen-Z and the popularity of Facebook among middle-aged adults, asking users to pay attention to a text-based platform that does not offer quick dopamine, Meta will have to innovate to make sure it gets users equally interested in Threads.

Shedding light on the subject, Doshi said, “It will be a massive challenge, but one of the advantages is its massive advertising ecosystem. Meta will offer Threads as just another placement through Ads Manager, which advertisers may pick by default if they pick automatic placements. Threads will also be activated through Advantage + campaigns. I think there will be very few advertisers who will willingly want to advertise on the platform.

If Meta can also somehow prove that there is a specific demographic on Threads who are not on Instagram and Facebook, then that could help. Meta could also pitch advertising based on keyword and hashtag searches—something that to date is not widely used through other platforms. 

A combination of keyword searches and interest/demographic/behaviour targeting could be powerful, but that’s only if there is an active audience on Threads. Meta needs to first solve for that. Monetisation opportunities via ads could attract influencers and content creators, leading to more engaging and diverse content, which in turn could re-engage dormant users.”

As per Baradhwaaj (BC Web Wise), engaging a dormant user base is Meta’s biggest challenge before starting with ads on the platform.

She continued, “The primary challenge for Meta will be reactivating users who signed up for Threads but didn’t find compelling reasons to stay engaged. Without strong, unique content formats or differentiated user experiences, the platform risks being perceived as redundant. Meta will need to invest in exclusive features and creator-driven content to spark user interest and re-engagement.”

Meta also needs to activate its vast Facebook and Instagram audiences, perhaps through deeper integrations, shared content flows, or incentives for using Threads, said Mehta. “Without significant innovation, the platform risks losing momentum in an increasingly competitive social media landscape.”

Amidst the challenges, the question that comes to the forefront is: what strategies will Meta use to ensure a seamless user experience while introducing ads on Threads?

Giving her take on the subject, Baradhwaaj said, “Meta will likely adopt a phased approach, starting with non-intrusive ad formats like promoted posts or conversational ads that align with Threads’ tone. The focus will be on maintaining the platform's simplicity and authenticity. Additionally, Meta’s advanced AI capabilities could ensure ads are hyper-targeted, making them feel like a natural extension of the user experience.”

Viren Vesuwala, Lead - Strategic Partnerships and Alliances at White Rivers Media, concluded that the real opportunity lies in Threads' ability to foster genuine conversations. He said, “Meta's challenge isn't just about reactivating users or introducing ads—it's about demonstrating how the platform enriches digital conversations in ways others cannot. Brands that understand and respect this conversational essence while adding authentic value to discussions will find receptive audiences, creating a natural harmony between user experience and advertising effectiveness.”