As Threads continues to gain momentum, with the platform now up to 130 million active users, more brands are also testing the waters, and seeing what sort of engagement they can drive in the new app.
Which, honestly, is probably not a lot for most businesses as yet. The Threads community still feels pretty sparse, while the algorithms driving discovery in the app seem inconsistent, with some posts gaining a heap traction, while others are essentially D.O.A., and there’s no obvious logic as to why one post goes big and another flops.
Though there is a logic to it, with Meta recently sharing an overview of its Threads algorithm, and how the system decides what posts get seen in the app, and how that drives expanded reach.
And while, as you might expect, there are some generic, vague descriptions here, which don’t offer a heap of insight, there are also some handy notes.
Like this summary of the key factors that determine what each user sees in the app:
So the most influential factors are as you would expect, based on Likes, replies, follows, etc.
Though there are some interesting points, like these factors:
- How many posts you’ve seen in your feed
- How long it’s been since you were active on Threads
- How many times the author’s profile has been clicked
The how many posts element relates to both the amount of posts you’ve seen from a single profile, and seemingly, how many posts you’ve seen overall, and it’s interesting to consider how that plays into your content display.
Factoring in how active you are likely relates to what you’ve already seen, though it could also weight things differently for more active users, while profile views also sway the algorithm as to each individual users’ relevance, and thus, reach.
There are also some Instagram-specific considerations, which I don’t think are overly beneficial on Threads, as the way that people use each app is likely very different, as are the profiles that they follow on each.
As such, I doubt that this:
- How many times you’ve viewed the author’s profile on Instagram
Is really helping to drive a better Threads experience, but then again, it is another information source, and as Threads tries to recommend more posts that you might be interested in, it could be helpful in some applications.
There’s also a handy overview of how you can influence your Threads experience, through various means:
Most of those are fairly obvious, though it is worth noting that when you Hide a post in the Threads stream, that also signals to the algorithm that you’re not interested in that user and/or topic, which can help to further customize your experience.
The Threads algorithm is still evolving, and these factors will change over time, at least in terms of how they’re weighted, and it’ll be interesting to see how the Threads crew looks to facilitate a more “friendly” user experience in the app, and which elements it focuses on as a result.
But if you’re looking to understand what drives Threads engagement, these are the key points.
You can read Meta’s full Threads algorithm summary here.
