#007 Is Instagram really dead?
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Most of us have felt frustrated with Instagram as a platform at any given time during the past two years. From losing followers, experiencing sudden drops in engagement, and noticing our content doesn’t have the reach it used to. It’s reasonable to feel like our presence on the platform will continue to decline. This is discouraging and alarming for businesses that owe their success to Instagram and continue making sales through the platform.
But is Instagram really dead? I don’t think so, at least not yet. Let me explain — first, let’s talk about Instagram as a business. On the surface, Instagram is a free social networking application. It started as a fun idea in 2010 without a clear path to profit, thus fully funded by investors. However, in April 2012, Facebook (now Meta) acquired Instagram for about $300 million in cash and 23 million shares of stock. And by 2018, the “free” app was worth an estimated $100 billion.
I don’t think I have to explain much further: Instagram is not free. It profits off our attention and data by selling that attention and data to companies. The more time we spend on the app, the more they can maximize their profits. Since 2018, we’ve become more familiar and bored with the online space, so companies like Instagram have had to shift their direction into what captures our attention. Instagram doesn’t care what users think we want because we are still on the platform daily, giving them precisely what they want (think Facebook). The problem is not that Instagram is changing; the problem is a natural resistance to change. TikTok, for example, has become increasingly popular in the past two years with its video-only approach. The platform was never uncomfortable because it was new — we discovered it as is.
If you were to meet someone today and they told you they didn’t like listening to music, you’d be pretty chill about it. But if your friend of more than ten years suddenly decides they don’t want to listen to music anymore, your reaction would be drastically different. You’ll start thinking about the long drives listening to your favorite albums, all the concerts you went to, and the dance parties in your basement with just the two of you. Suddenly, you start questioning their decision, but ultimately, it was their choice to make. Similarly, we must remind ourselves that Instagram is a for-profit company, so its choices make sense from a business perspective.
Okay, so we’ve covered the fact that Instagram is not dead as a business. What does that mean for its users? Is it over for us?
Well, the strategies put in place 2-3 years ago to grow on the platform are, in fact, dead. Instagram has fully embraced the rise of short-form video, thus reshaping which accounts grow rapidly, slowly, or hit a plateau. This can be frustrating if you’ve spent a lot of resources on the platform or are just starting out but not seeing any results. I share the same sentiment. So much so that a few months ago, I did a poll on my stories asking my followers which platform they preferred to keep up with their favorite creators & businesses. The collective answer was of no surprise to me: Instagram is still one of the most valuable tools in this sense. If you needed to hire a photographer, where would you start looking? Most likely Instagram.
The traditional ways to stay connected with your audience are evolving and we should be adapting with them. The truth is that this is where we find ourselves, so we should leverage the situation and stop expecting Instagram (or anything, for that matter) to be what it once used to be. Don’t let the resistance to change consume you and start defining your own answers. What would make Instagram a valuable tool for you or your audience? Whatever the answer is, do that.
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INTERESTING LINKS
From Inflation to Seasonless Capsule Wardrobes
💸 The Impact Of Inflation On Small Businesses And How To Manage It
📌 Abortion funds for at risk communities
🥲 7 Ways to Find an Actually Affordable Therapist
🥤 The Marketing Management Kit by The Brand Doula
💊 Muse the Label is the family-run brand creating a seasonless capsule wardrobe
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