Meta (Instagragram/Facebook parent company) just launched Threads as a direct competitor to Twitter. Just in the first few hours after launch it garnered millions of downloads topping the Apple Appstore and Google Play
The Flaw 😢
While a lot of celebrities and influences are flocking to the new social media app and touting it as the new Twitter Killer; I see a major flaw in the app. As of Thursday July 6th, the app does not allow you to switch between mutiple accounts. This feature is CRITICAL for power-users since they manage mutiple accounts and they need to be able to switch back and forth between them. Instagram and Facebook (both products from Meta) allow you to switch between accounts. Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, and other social media apps allow you to switch between mutiple accounts/pages/channels.
Meta's own Business Suite allows you to manage your Facebook and Instagram accounts/pages from a single place; however, you cannot manage Threads in there yet.
Why did Meta launched it?
It's hard to say what went on behind the decision to launch it and the timing; but it's clear that Meta wanted to to take the opportunity to capitalize on some celebrities closing or moving away from Twitter. To me this looks like an MVP launch of a product which make sense to me as a software developer because your product is never complete and a lot of developers/companies suffer from delaying launches until everything is ready.
Companies do this all the time a d that helps them generate a lot of media attention for FREE (take this article for example). It also helps the company gather very important and useful user feedback on what works vs what doesn't, discover defects and vulnerabilities, etc. Companies like Google, Microsoft, and Meta 😉 do it all the time.
Refined Product Launches
Perhaps the one exception to this rule is Apple, they always seem to always be late to the game for new features but when they launch a product or feature it's more refined and generates/brings a lot of attention to the product/feature. Take Apple Pay or Apple Vision Pro as examples.
When Google initially launched Goggle Wallet in 2011 (long before Apple Pay) I was really excited to use it in the few places that supported MasterCard's PayPass at the few places that accepted it. Unfortunately for me the no one knew what I was doing and you couldn't ask for help of something went wrong; on the flip side I looked like a genius or magician when it worked 😀 but when it didn't people would look at me like I was crazy 😂. After Apple launched Apple Pay in 2014 everything changed and now everyone (almost everyone) knows what Apple Pay is.
Meta's Oculus/Quest products have been out for a while and has been a niche produ t for gamers and technologists, but when Apple announced the Apple Vision Pro earlier this year the attention it garnered has made AR/VR more mainstream.
Final Thoughts
Competition is always good, so having a new social media app to compete with Twitter is a good thing. However, considering that Meta already owners Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp it does look like this is a David vs Goliath battle.
I hope that Meta fixes the account switching flaw soon otherwise it's going to be missing out on the power-users.
