Threads user engagement drops after a massive initial surge

Every so often, pundits laud one innovation as being the “killer” of another. First, it was Blackberry, the Apple iPhone killer. Then it was Polestar, the Tesla killer. And now it’s Instagram’s Threads, the Twitter killer.

Granted, Threads saw massive growth after release, reaching 100 million users just five days after launch. As such, it became the fastest-growing social media network in history, with commentators believing it would drive the final nail into Twitter’s coffin.

However, that hasn’t happened. The initial furore over Threads seems to have worn off, and the platform is seeing a massive drop in user engagement just a couple of weeks after its highly-publicised debut.

The data don’t lie. According to a SimilarWeb report, active user numbers are down 25 per cent, with minutes spent on the app falling from 20 to just 8. Sensor Tower reporting via CNBC also suggests a prodigious plunge in engagement. It estimates daily users dropped by 20 per cent between Saturday, July 9 and Monday/Tuesday, July 11 and 12, with time spent on the app falling 50%.

As such, many analysts are having to eat their hats. The Guardian newspaper, for instance, reported that the “kindness-focused” app had achieved astonishing success in a relatively short time at the start of July. And Vox said on July 5 that the time was ripe for Mark Zuckerberg to take advantage of Twitter’s degeneration under Elon Musk’s leadership.

However, glee is now turning to dismay. Despite integration into the Instragram platform, Threads is not performing as hoped.

One problem is the lack of direct messages (DMs) or live chat integration website and social media users want. Twitter has had a person-to-person messaging app for many years, but Threads doesn’t permit this, at least not yet. And that’s a problem. DMs are essential for new content creators trying to grow and for personal brands connecting with their followers. Failing to provide instant messages for businesses demonstrates a misunderstanding of Twitter’s core value.

Threads’s algorithm is also rudimentary. While TikTok and Twitter show users a mix of people they follow and suggested content, Threads does not. Users can only see those they follow, posting in chronological order.

Even a functional search tool isn’t available yet, meaning users can’t search for content based on their preferences. Discovering new threads based on specific keywords is outside the app’s scope.

At the same time, Twitter continues to set new records. Despite losing half its advertising revenues since Musk’s takeover, the platform is growing under the tech mogul’s leadership. The CEO recently said in a tweet that cumulative user seconds per day of phone screen time was rising, and he thought the platform would soon reach an all-time peak. 

In summary, Threads is still less than a month old, so it is hard to judge its long-term success. However, it doesn’t appear to be having the immediate impact on Twitter many imagined.