Is the picture-perfect Instagram feed obsolete?
If you’re one to live and breathe social media, you may have sensed the noticeable shift in what makes an Instagram account successful. Gone are the days of perfectly curating and meticulously color-coding feeds to attract an audience. Where carefully arranged and flawlessly retouched images used to thrive, authenticity and relatability through video now outshines.
Here are a couple of reasons for this shift and how you can adapt to the ever-changing social media landscape (while still remaining true to yourself or your brand):
The emergence of the ‘real’ Influencer
Whether it be through the effects of a global pandemic or a sudden universal shift in aspirations, more space has been favorably held for effortless, “day-in-the-life” content that exudes relatability and authenticity. There is something powerful about the viewer seeing themselves in someone else that gives them both a sense of security and encouragement to romanticize a normal, mundane lifestyle. In turn, viewers have come to the realization that they favor a reflection of their reality over the idealization of an unattainable lifestyle.
IN: authenticity
OUT: feigned perfectionism
2. The emergence of the ‘reel’
As the public increasingly favored effortless, unfiltered video content through mediums such as YouTube and TikTok, so did the Instagram algorithm. Through this transition, the upkeep and time-consumption of committing to an aesthetically pleasing feed to no avail became unsustainable. Why work twice as hard to maintain a false image when you could be rewarded through authenticity?
IN: practicality
OUT: unattainability
