How I got 200k+ views on Threads in 14 days

The relatively new social media platform has a vibrant indie author community

Two weeks ago, I started using Threads properly.

In those two weeks, I gained over 200,000 views.

This is how I did it.

It was a frosty morning. I was out on an early morning walk to try and clear my head.

Before I set off for home, I opened my phone and accidentally opened my Threads app.

It’s not something I’ve ever looked at in detail but on this occasion, I thought I’d post something and see how it went.

Two weeks later, and I’ve reached 200k views. Here’s what I learnt:

Decide on your audience

I have two Threads accounts. One is for my book coaching role and this newsletter. The other is for The Indie Book Store that I run. I try to keep the two separate but as the topics and themes are very similar, there is a certain amount of crossover.

The Threads account I started working on was my personal brand account, which you can find here.

Ideally, someone in my target audience would be someone who wants to write a book but for some reason, has not yet done so. That’s who I now want to reach with this account.

Whatever audience you want to reach, decide on it. The algorithm on Threads is very good and the more you post about your chosen topic, the more it will find your people.

Optimise your profile

Your profile is your shop front. The profile on Threads is pretty simple with things like cover photos stripped out. A headshot usually works best on social media as people like that human connection. Include in your profile what you can do to help your target audience. If you’re not out to build a business or a brand, feel free to sum up what you do instead.

Post regularly

I use a mix of scheduled content and ad-hoc posts. Regularity is the key as you’re aiming to keep yourself in the minds of your followers. Helpful content works well and also helps build your authority in your chosen area. If you are wanting to become known for a particular niche, your content should reflect that.

Engage respectfully and positively

While social media can often be a toxic hotbed of ugliness, the more you engage with your kind of people, the more Threads will feed you the people you want to engage with. Maintain a professional demeanour and aim to reply to others’ posts on a regular basis. Set aside 15/30 minutes each day and devote it to engaging with others. If you have a business or a product, don’t go trying to sell it in your comments. You’re simply looking to build long-term trust, which will help you immensely further on down the line.

Ask questions

This is a little trick that I picked up on Twitter when I was getting 5 million+ views. People love to talk about themselves and offer their opinions. Your questions can be niche-based but often, it’s the questions that seem pretty mundane eg. ‘how many sugars do you take in your coffee?’ that spark the debate. The more replies you get, the more your view count goes up.

The stats have been pretty impressive but it has involved engaging at least an hour a day

Follow those who interact

Maintaining an element of respect will build long-term trust. It’s a long game built on respect so following a load of accounts in the hope that they’ll follow you back is short-sighted and could even lead to a sanction.

Instead, follow only those who have interacted with you. This makes you look less desperate and shows a level of respect that people will connect with.

How you can use Threads to market your indie books

If you’re looking to market your indie books on Threads, this is a perfect opportunity to meet like-minded people and showcase your books.

Don’t make your account all about you. In fact, aim for around 75% of your content and engagement to be about others. The more you support others, the more they’ll support you. Don’t go overegging your books. They will sell themselves if you can build a strong author brand.

Possible downfalls

There are always risks when using social media accounts. They can be restricted, suspended, or even banned for no reason. What you need to remember is that on social media, you’re renting an audience from the platform’s owners. I’ve been using Threads for the last two weeks and am sure I’ll get some sanction soon for something. I’m expecting it.

I always therefore recommend getting people OFF social media and onto an email list, where at least your audience is guaranteed.

I used Beehiiv, which offers a website and email list all in one. This is the platform I’m using to publish this. Find out more here.

What have we learnt?

In the first two weeks of using Threads, the numbers are very encouraging.

I’ll keep you posted on developments to help you build your brand and sell more books.

Perhaps the main thing that I’ve learnt is that engagement is key. It’s all very well broadcasting the same message but people appreciate genuine interaction and it all feeds into your view count.

If you’re on Threads, let me know how it goes.