• by Colin Kirkland , July 12, 2023

Meta is working on expanding Instagram’s branded content tools to its new Twitter-rival app Threads, a Meta source told Axios. 

This would allow marketers to run promotional campaigns while CEO Mark Zuckerberg awaits a “critical mass” of 1 billion users before launching advertising on Threads. 

Instagram’s terms of service, including rules for sponsored content, apply to Threads, which means that they would need to use the branded content tools to post sponsored content.

But those don’t exist on Threads yet, and Meta wants to get the tools up and running on as quickly as possible so that brands can engage in paid promotion in the interim, the source said.

Brands on Threads are reportedly being told to clearly disclose any paid partnerships through text or hashtags until Meta officially expands its branded content tools to cover the new app. 

In what is reportedly the first sponsored Thread, streaming service Hulu used this option over the weekend. Content creator Adam Rose posted a Thread promoting the new season of “Futurama,” labeling it with a “Hulu Partnership” hashtag (above). 

Meta, which wants to position Threads as a brand-safe alternative to Twitter, which has scared off many major brands since Elon Musk’s takeover last year, has signaled its intention to try to avoid the controversy that comes with news and political discussion. These are “not at all worth the scrutiny, negativity (let’s be honest), or integrity risks,” Instagram chief Adam Mosseri said.

Most major companies and brands have already joined Threads, eager to incorporate it into their marketing strategy. But until Meta decides it’s time to allow advertising on the fastest-growing app in history, brands must navigate relevant hash tagging, and an algorithmic, not chronological, feed.