What is really required to make or break a social media platform? The answer might not be as straightforward as most of us had imagined.
Today, the most successful apps out there are those where users keep on sharing and consuming content. And it’s experts from Gen Z who are now having their say on what they believe is necessary for an app to do if it wishes to dominate in the cutthroat competitive market of today.
We saw tech giant Meta rollout Threads with a bang last month and boy, it was successful. But not all that glitters is gold because the app just failed to hold on to that charm and today, it’s struggling with poor retention and growth.
On the other hand, we saw Musk rebrand Twitter as X, hoping it would stand out and attract the masses. That again failed and has more people expressing doubts than before.
So many people keep on flocking to these platforms and signing up, despite having so many texting apps already available in their repertoire. Threads had millions sign up at the start but after one month, it lost more than 50% of its user base.
Gen Z makes use of YouTube, TikTok, and even Instagram as their top three preferences in the social media domain. This was the results attained through a survey that was conducted recently by Morning Consult. But again, it was before Threads rolled out.
In the list, Twitter stood in sixth position after the likes of Facebook and Snap. it’s so interesting because when we saw Threads launch, it was Gen Z who seemed to be the most enthusiastic. They called it their go-to app where they could express their hearts’ content and vent out their feelings and share what they felt with others.
On that note, media outlet Insider opted to get in touch with some more Gen Z to hear what they had to say about Threads and what it is that they feel is necessary to make a particular platform attractive in today’s time.
One young woman says she’s been active on these platforms since the age of 12 and it’s been ten years since she’s using and loving social media. She usually begins her days with a scroll on social media but for whatever reason, she never felt the urge to make a separate account for Threads.
She added how that app is designed in a manner that’s restricted to inner thoughts. Instagram is for images and hence, there should be no link between those two. Therefore, she refused to pay heed to the viral trend that everyone was jumping on.
The woman named Rose says that X is unveiling your true personality and that’s not easy to do on social media where everything seems to be in disguise. She also feels all good apps need to have a separate button for DMs where all kinds of posts can be shared without giving a second thought.
Another user who is 25 revealed how he began using apps since the days when we heard about MySpace. He’s an avid user of Instagram and life does not progress without him seeing his Stories daily. But he only recently got rid of his account on X, despite using Twitter for a good 10 years. Furthermore, he admits he never was fascinated by the Threads app or trend either.
As far as X is concerned, he called it out as super toxic in behavior and he tried to link Threads to it too. Therefore, it’s a big no from his side.
After using X for so long, he claims a favorite part of that platform was the ability to engage with content that came from people that were similar to his mindset. But today, that’s far from the case.
He never wished to follow those that he had no interest in but as time progressed, he realized X was transforming into a X arena where he could no longer relate.
So, what do these experiences tell us? The answer is simple. Gen Z is not searching for overly complex platforms that try to go overboard in terms of gaining viewers’ attention. Simple and to the point is what people are looking for.
Read next: Social Media Maze: OnlyFans, Twitch, and Snapchat's Rule Riddles
Today, the most successful apps out there are those where users keep on sharing and consuming content. And it’s experts from Gen Z who are now having their say on what they believe is necessary for an app to do if it wishes to dominate in the cutthroat competitive market of today.
We saw tech giant Meta rollout Threads with a bang last month and boy, it was successful. But not all that glitters is gold because the app just failed to hold on to that charm and today, it’s struggling with poor retention and growth.
On the other hand, we saw Musk rebrand Twitter as X, hoping it would stand out and attract the masses. That again failed and has more people expressing doubts than before.
So many people keep on flocking to these platforms and signing up, despite having so many texting apps already available in their repertoire. Threads had millions sign up at the start but after one month, it lost more than 50% of its user base.
Gen Z makes use of YouTube, TikTok, and even Instagram as their top three preferences in the social media domain. This was the results attained through a survey that was conducted recently by Morning Consult. But again, it was before Threads rolled out.
In the list, Twitter stood in sixth position after the likes of Facebook and Snap. it’s so interesting because when we saw Threads launch, it was Gen Z who seemed to be the most enthusiastic. They called it their go-to app where they could express their hearts’ content and vent out their feelings and share what they felt with others.
On that note, media outlet Insider opted to get in touch with some more Gen Z to hear what they had to say about Threads and what it is that they feel is necessary to make a particular platform attractive in today’s time.
One young woman says she’s been active on these platforms since the age of 12 and it’s been ten years since she’s using and loving social media. She usually begins her days with a scroll on social media but for whatever reason, she never felt the urge to make a separate account for Threads.
She added how that app is designed in a manner that’s restricted to inner thoughts. Instagram is for images and hence, there should be no link between those two. Therefore, she refused to pay heed to the viral trend that everyone was jumping on.
The woman named Rose says that X is unveiling your true personality and that’s not easy to do on social media where everything seems to be in disguise. She also feels all good apps need to have a separate button for DMs where all kinds of posts can be shared without giving a second thought.
Another user who is 25 revealed how he began using apps since the days when we heard about MySpace. He’s an avid user of Instagram and life does not progress without him seeing his Stories daily. But he only recently got rid of his account on X, despite using Twitter for a good 10 years. Furthermore, he admits he never was fascinated by the Threads app or trend either.
As far as X is concerned, he called it out as super toxic in behavior and he tried to link Threads to it too. Therefore, it’s a big no from his side.
After using X for so long, he claims a favorite part of that platform was the ability to engage with content that came from people that were similar to his mindset. But today, that’s far from the case.
He never wished to follow those that he had no interest in but as time progressed, he realized X was transforming into a X arena where he could no longer relate.
So, what do these experiences tell us? The answer is simple. Gen Z is not searching for overly complex platforms that try to go overboard in terms of gaining viewers’ attention. Simple and to the point is what people are looking for.
Read next: Social Media Maze: OnlyFans, Twitch, and Snapchat's Rule Riddles
