What Twitter-Threads Competition Can Teach Us About Personal Brand Management

Threads has already garnered over 70 million sign-ups in just two days since its launch, proving wrong the initial doubts about its success. Backed by Meta, Threads has several advantages that other Twitter challengers like BlueSky and Mastodon do not: a large existing user base that can transfer over, minimizing the difficult network effect threshold, the infrastructure of Instagram and Facebook it can leverage, and deep pool of resources, both capital and talent.

Most importantly, Threads is launching at a very propitious time: Twitter, since Elon Musk’s takeover, has suffered in terms of talent, user experience (ranging from limiting tweets for non-paying users, increasing hate to its algorithm), and declining ad revenues. Had it not been for the last nine months of volatility at Twitter and growing dissatisfaction with the platform, Threads’ launch may not have been as successful. Indeed, sometimes the biggest driver of your success isn’t your skillsets but your competitor’s performance, even if their skillsets outperform yours.

Objectively, Twitter is the superior, more mature product: better searchability, customizable feed based on chronology or accounts you follow, direct messaging, and the ability to delete without deleting your other social media accounts. However, the sentiment on the Threads feed is that the users are willing to give constructive feedback and wait for Meta to improve the product, hoping they can have a blog-style social media platform to replace Twitter. This turnaround in reception is surprising for a company that was the target of user distrust and investor disdain less than a year ago. This turnaround has less to do with Meta’s work improving its image than Twitter’s role in its decline.

How do you make sure your professional brand image remains competitive and attractive? A sole focus on merit, performance, and skillsets may not be enough or what matters. Here are three takeaways from the Twitter-Threads competition on how you can better manage your career success:

People will give your competition time and patience to improve their skill sets if you turn them against you

While Twitter’s “skills” (features) may be protected (to be determined by the outcome of the potential legal action), your skills probably are not, and relying on skills alone to keep you differentiated is not enough to sustain success.

Although high-performing employees significantly impact a company’s success (they can be up to four times more productive than the average worker, and the top 3-20% can generate up to 80% of company profits), toxic high-performing employees can hurt the company net-net. The cost of losing other employees due to their toxic behavior can outweigh any benefits they bring.

Furthermore, many managers and leaders recognize that having toxic employees in a team can have emotional and cultural implications, which may prompt them to delay working with them and wait for another employee to improve their skills. Suppose you rely solely on skills someone else can build and do not focus on building a solid positive reputation. In that case, you may be surprised that others are willing to take a chance on a lesser accomplished but competent and motivated person.

Followership matters more as you rise

While there were fervent supporters of Twitter and Musk’s direction, it did not create enough followership with the broader user base or corporate marketers. Twitter engagement metrics might be up temporarily, but it’s insufficient to translate into actual business impact.

Some high performers make the mistake of appealing only to their manager or a few leaders early in their careers. This can work well in the first few years of one’s career, as promotions are usually based on individual contributors or small team-level output. However, as one rises through the ranks, they must show that they can build followership: influence beyond their department and teams that allow a leader to amplify their power.

Exhibit thoughtfulness in your decision-making

If you become successful by making difficult and unpopular decisions, you may become accustomed to upsetting others. As a leader, it’s essential to avoid trying to please everyone. However, it’s also important not to let controversy become the guiding post of what great decisions look like. We often glamorize surprising and skeptical decisions that turn out well, but just as often, great decisions are predictable, welcomed, and supported by the majority.

To build a trustworthy personal brand, it’s essential to be consistent and avoid being unpredictable. Even if your decisions are controversial, demonstrating thoughtfulness in your decision-making process can help you gain trust. Impulsivity and inability to bring stability to a situation will compel others to take bets on your competitor, even if you have a superior set of skills.