In July 2023, Mark Zuckerberg launched the highly anticipated Threads competitor from Meta: X. Meta’s vision for this new social platform was to provide “a new and separate space for real-time updates and public conversations” built on the foundation of the Instagram community, its content, and infrastructure.
What is Threads?
To understand the design choices supporting Threads, it is first important to clarify what Threads is and what it is not.
At its core, Threads is an independent app that allows users to share short text-based content up to 500 characters per post. It also offers many features that Twitter users (now known as “X”) may be familiar with, such as liking, quoting, and sharing posts.
Threads is also closely linked to Instagram. While there are options to create custom profiles, Threads simply imports data from users’ existing Instagram accounts. It also offers seamless integration with Instagram, with capabilities such as sharing Threads posts in your Instagram story or in a direct message on Instagram.
You can also follow the same accounts on Threads as you already do on Instagram.
However, integration with other platforms remains limited: although Zuckerberg promised compatibility with the open social networking protocol, it is currently not possible to fully interact with Threads content without first creating an account.
Additionally, Threads is currently not available in the European Union due to “regulatory uncertainty” surrounding Meta’s compliance with the strict privacy and security regulations in the EU.
Why Was Threads Created?
The timing of Threads’ launch was likely quite intentional: Zuckerberg’s announcement regarding this new app came after growing dissatisfaction with Elon Musk’s leadership of Twitter.
Observers have pointed out that this potential competition was a significant factor in Threads’ early success.
However, Threads is not merely a copycat of Twitter. While many of Threads’ core features are clearly inspired by Twitter (the scrolling user interface, content feed, etc.), Zuckerberg’s vision for this new platform is uniquely integrated with the larger Meta system.
Moreover, Meta has made significant improvements and additions in the months following the initial launch of Threads. The company promises to continue rolling out new features and capabilities in response to user feedback.
At a high level, Zuckerberg described his vision for Threads as “an open and friendly public space for conversations.”
How well he can achieve this vision in the long term remains to be seen – but there is no doubt that the Meta team has already built a successful platform that leverages great design principles to create a strong and engaging user experience.
How Threads Benefits from Great Design
There are many user experience elements in Threads that reflect great design. Below, we will explore several of our favorite components of this new platform:
Easy Login
First, Meta developed a login process that makes joining the Threads platform smooth and easy. Instead of needing to create a new account and verify it, you can simply log in using your existing Instagram credentials.
Integration with Instagram
The integration between Threads and Instagram does not stop at the login process. Good design practices tell us that a seamless, integrated user experience is vital to ensure people remain engaged throughout their time on the platform.
This may be why Meta prioritized providing integration with core Instagram functionalities such as direct messages, followers, and posts.
When Threads was first launched, reviewers criticized the lack of support for direct messaging – but just a few months later, Meta released an update allowing Threads users to share posts directly with their friends using the existing direct messaging platform on Instagram.
Options
Feed Customization
Another important design element is Threads’ feed customization options. Threads allows you to switch between a “For You” feed, which includes a mix of recommended content and posts from people you follow.
There is also a “Following” feed, which includes only posts from accounts you follow.
This type of customization is important. Like any other platform, Threads users will have different preferences.
Some may be looking for content related to their interests but from creators outside their immediate network, while others may be interested only in seeing posts from the accounts they have actively chosen to follow.
With this tab-based user experience, it’s easy to switch between these two modes and experience the platform in the way that works best for you.
Translation
In addition to standard accessibility features like screen reader support and AI-generated image descriptions, Threads also offers translation support to enable users to interact with content in multiple languages.
It’s important for this feature to be effective without being intrusive as much as possible. Threads posts can be automatically translated from the language they are written in to the language set by the viewer.
Additionally, if you see a topic in a different language (and your language is available for translation), you can simply click the translation icon in the bottom right of the post to easily and quickly view the content in the language of your choice.
Keyword or Account Blocking
Finally, one of the most important features to make any social media platform safe and useful is the ability to block content you don’t want to see.
On Threads, there are several main ways you can filter out unwanted or irrelevant content from your feed.
First, you can specify words and phrases that you want to hide. This means that any replies to your posts containing those specified words will be filtered out.
Additionally, you can unfollow, block, restrict, or even report an account.
For content you’re not interested in seeing, unfollowing or blocking may be the best option, while reporting a violating account can help ensure the safety of other users.
Furthermore, any accounts you block on Instagram will automatically be blocked on Threads as well. There’s no need to worry about seeing content from accounts you’ve already decided not to engage with.
Weaknesses of Threads
Despite these strengths, Threads also suffers from several major weaknesses.
Accessibility
First and foremost, while Meta encourages ensuring accessibility across its social media platforms, critics have pointed out that several design choices in Threads leave much to be desired in terms of accessibility.
Indeed, accessibility expert Paul Speiler conducted an audit of Threads shortly after its launch, and several weaknesses were identified concerning about half of the accessibility standards he considered in his review.
For example, Speiler’s analysis found that Meta’s automatic image description generator struggles to capture the intent behind many images, meaning that visual content is inaccessible to users who rely on screen readers.
Moreover, the blue check marks indicating verified accounts do not represent any alternative text, limiting accessibility for visually impaired users.
In addition to issues concerning compliance with screen readers, Threads’ design has also been criticized for failing to adhere to best design practices, such as using high-contrast colors and providing written text for audio content.
Given these challenges, Threads could benefit from undergoing a comprehensive audit and ensuring that the user experience takes into account factors like screen reader compatibility, audio descriptions, and other best accessibility practices.
Notifications
The Addendum
When designing any digital platform, it is always challenging to find the right balance between providing useful and engaging notifications and avoiding annoying the user with unnecessary and repetitive alerts.
Unfortunately, some commentators believe that Threads has fallen into this common challenge, with numerous unnecessary notifications being enabled by default.
Specifically, while other profile settings are automatically copied from Instagram, Threads has been criticized for forcing users to manually reset their notification settings. This means that you might receive many alerts that Instagram has already informed you you’re not interested in seeing.
Moreover, Threads sends a notification every time someone in your network joins Threads.
While this might be useful in some cases, at least one observer has termed this design choice as “a classic dark pattern,” where it interrupts users and deliberately pushes them to check the app more frequently than they would otherwise.
Certainly, notifications are an important feature in most social media platforms. However, when it comes to optimizing app design for usability and a positive user experience, it is crucial to avoid overdoing it and drowning the user in excessive and unhelpful notifications.
Data Security
According to Kali Schroeder, Chief Legal Counsel and Global Privacy Advisor at the Center for Information Privacy, Threads collects “a good amount [of data that] is not necessary for the functioning of the app.”
What exactly does Schroeder mean? Threads can collect user data such as sexual orientation, race, ethnicities, biometric information, union membership, pregnancy status, employment, religious beliefs, and more. It can also gather data related to users’ health and fitness, location, and web activity.
As Schroeder explains, “There is no need for health, financial, exact location data, search history, browsing history, etc., for a user to be on the app, and instead, they are used to create a more personalized and targeted experience on the app or to share and sell them to advertisers.”
These data security concerns are a significant part of why Threads is not available in the European Union, where legislation prevents the collection of this type of data for advertising purposes.
But regardless of the restrictions in specific markets, the extensive collection of personal data is a genuine cause for concern for users around the world.
To ensure a user experience that is not only legal but also truly safe and secure, it is essential for tech companies like Meta to make conscious design choices that limit unnecessary or unsafe data collection practices.
View Trending Topics
One of the most popular features in Threads’ competitor X is the hashtag: a clickable keyword that enables users to see similar content.
So far, Threads has been unable to replicate this core functionality. While you can include a hashtag in the text of a post on Threads, there is no way to create a clickable hashtag, and there is no way to display currently trending hashtags.
This lack has been widely criticized, yet there is no indication that Meta intends to add any form of hashtag functionality to Threads. As a result, there is no clear way to view Threads posts by topic or gain insight into currently trending topics or keywords in real-time.
Account Deletion
Finally, one of the more concerning design flaws in Threads is the inability to delete your account without also deleting your Instagram account.
Although Meta seems to be aware of the issue, there is no indication of any solution coming in the near future.
As
The spokesperson for Meta recently clarified, “To clarify, you can deactivate your Threads account, which hides your profile and your content on Threads. You can set your profile to private and you can delete individual Threads posts – all without deleting your linked Instagram account.”
According to Meta, Threads operates based on Instagram, so it’s currently just one account. “We’re exploring a way to delete a Threads account separately,” said the spokesperson.
This means that once you create a Threads account, there’s no way to delete the account completely (and all the data Threads has collected from you) unless you’re also willing to delete your connected Instagram account.
The Future of Threads
The impressive early success of Threads from Meta points to the strong design choices made in competing with Twitter. From the easy sign-up experience to comprehensive integration and customization, along with other key features, Threads demonstrates the importance of great design in ensuring user engagement.
However, Threads has not been without its fair share of flaws and shortcomings. Critics have pointed to accessibility issues, data security concerns, and other critical limitations, all of which hinder the user experience and may reduce the application’s long-term success.
Ultimately, time will tell whether Threads will become just a fleeting visitor in the world of social media or if it will continue to gain real traction.
Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/threads-trends
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