Meta’s Threads: A Quick Look at UX/UI Principles

A helpful insight for UX/UI designer and product owners should be learned from Threads’ strategies.

Threads Interface; Credit: The Guardian

Article Outline

1. Overview
2. UX Principles Applied in Threads
3. UI Principles Applied in Threads
4. Conclusion
5. Useful Resources and Recommended Readings

1. Overview

Threads has become a hot topic across various social media platforms, sparking discussions and memes in comparison to Elon Musk’s well-established product, Twitter. Although Threads offers less functionality compared to Twitter, it has a unique advantage: its integration with the Instagram platform.

In this article, the focus is not to compare Threads and Twitter directly. Instead, I aim is to provide a quick overview of the UX/UI strategies employed by Meta in their latest product release. This will be particularly useful for UX/UI designers who are eager to learn new concepts and are curious about the user experience and interface implemented by Meta in Threads.

2. UX Principles Applied in Threads

Threads and Instagram; Credit: Sportskeeda

I would say Meta has done a good job on their new product, even though it looks very similar to Twitter. I wouldn’t give any opinion at this point. But the reason that I said Meta has done a good job is they applied good User Experience based on human-centric. I will list down UX strategies or principles of Threads below:

• Simplicity and minimalism: Threads focuses on user interface and interaction, removing unnecessary elements or steps. It reduces clutter and the amount of information required from the user by importing from the user’s Instagram account. If a user doesn’t have an Instagram account, they need to input required information through Threads or create an Instagram account to import information to the Threads platform. Impressive!
• Seamlessness and integration: Have you ever thought about why Twitter should move to Threads? Hmmm… this UX principle (Seamlessness and integration) might be a good answer for us. Threads will keep your verified check account and followers from your Instagram account to the new Threads account. How easy is that?
• Clear and concise: In Threads’ feed, you can see many posts similar to Twitter. You can also like, reply, repost, repost with quote, and share to various platforms. It is clear and concise, and won’t overwhelm you.
• Accessibility and ease of use: Threads, in the profile tab has the globe icon at the top left side, which allows you to easily access privacy settings faster and easier for adjustments. Otherwise, at the top right side, you can see the hamburger icon where you can click to access profile settings. You can also click on the Instagram icon nearby the hamburger setting to jump to your Instagram account.

All these UX principles are really smart, and this is what we have learned from Threads Meta. Should you apply them to your new product design? Please comment below, stating why you would apply them.

3. UI Principles Applied in Threads

In a competitive market, we cannot avoid others copying or stealing our ideas. However, what truly matters is what sets you or your product apart and makes it special. Even if someone copies your ideas, remember that they are just duplicates and lack originality. The key is to focus on developing yourself, improving your skills, and gaining inspiration from competitors.

Threads Interface; Credit: Melwater

If you have good behavior but dress in an inappropriate suit, people won’t be interested in you right away. The same applies to the Threads platform. Even if it has good user experience (UX), a bad user interface (UI) will still fail to attract many users. However, from what I can observe, Threads’ UI has managed to attract a significant number of users. Now, let’s take a look at the UI strategies and principles that Threads has applied:

• Consistency: Threads has maintained consistency in its design elements, layout, and interactions. For example, it uses familiar icons and labels for navigation and actions across platforms.
• Visibility: Threads allows users to access settings within the app without jumping around or searching deep for features. For instance, in the profile section, the globe icon on the top left side is for privacy settings, the hamburger icon on the top right side is for application settings, and the Instagram icon allows users to jump to their Instagram account.
• Feedback: Threads provides notifications or subtle animations that draw attention to changes made after interactions or inputs from users. For example, it displays low battery warnings directly on top of the screen, accompanied by app status indicators when tapped by the user.
• Minimalism: Threads keeps visual clutter sparse, ensuring that important details emerge readily instead of being buried under piles of text or images.

4. Conclusion

Threads is an exciting new platform by Meta. It has done a tremendous job with this new product by prioritizing user experience and creating a user-friendly interface. In particular, the UX principle of seamlessness and integration has had a significant positive impact on users, allowing them to set up an account with just a few clicks. The UI’s consistency and visibility further enhance the user experience.

Moreover, all these UX/UI principles provide valuable insights for UX/UI and product designers to consider when working on their upcoming products.

5. Useful Resources and Recommended Readings

• Google Material Design Guidelines — This website offers a comprehensive guide covering each aspect of material design philosophy established by Google.
• Introducing Threads: — This is a new introducing Thread by meta.
• Meta’s Thread: First Impression by Meltwater

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