01/10/2024
The End of an Era: Farewell to the Instagram We Knew.
Say hello to bubbles within bubbles!
The platform's early evolution turned Instagram into a realm of carefully planned content, leaving average users fatigued. The once-promised free-flowing social media transformed into a space dominated by influencers and professionals. The cadence of posting changed, and the magic faded.
Enter the rise of private posting and closed groups. Features like Close Friends and group chats provide a refuge for sharing puppy memes and gossip without the pressure of perfection. It's a sublayer of Instagram that's truer to its lunch sharing roots, hidden from the general public's scrutiny.
Users, fatigued by constant sharing and the pressure of curated content, are retreating. Even Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, acknowledges the shift to direct messages, closed communities, and group chats.
The changing landscape isn't limited to Instagram; it's a broader shift in the social media ecosystem. New apps attempting to recapture the essence of early Instagram face challenges. Threads, Instagram's latest venture, aims to fill the void, but with a 79% drop in daily active users, the question arises: Are these new platforms solving anything new?
In an age tired of curated perceptions and the constant consumption of content, users are seeking refuge in closed spaces. Discord, Geneva, Telegram, WhatsApp and similar apps offer niche communities and direct sharing, providing a more authentic experience. Users are no longer interested in being perceived but in forming genuine connections.
As the pendulum swings back to smaller, more intimate communities, social media's promise of bringing us closer seems to have led to an openness many now find unappealing. The Instagram era is over, making way for a new era of "authentic" online sharing, sans the pressure of the mass audience. Where this shift will take us remains uncertain, but one thing's clear—the landscape of social media is evolving, and the days of the perfectly curated feed are numbered. Time to update your planning accordingly...yes you...again.
The era of social media, as we knew it, is dying.
How are you updating your content strategies to pierce those bubbles?
Let us know & feel free to reach out Swell Content
