Instagram’s New Shopping App Could Be Bad News For Creators
Instagram has been creator friendly so far, but their new project could see a shift in that direction
Welcome to the TFC Newsletter Issue 2 - a weekly roundup of the stories & developments, that are shaping & exploring the emerging landscape for creators & media brands
Instagram is about the only social media platform where I don’t automatically scroll past or attempt to skip through the ads as quickly as possible. More often than the others, the ads actually interest me, whether they are basketball related, wrestling based or most commonly, clothing or accessories that would help me be my best GQ-self.
So when I heard the news the Instagram is working on a new standalone app for shopping, I wasn’t really surprised. The app has long been a place of discovery for many commerce brands, with the likes of Kylie Cosmetics & Fenty Beauty leading the pack of brands that owe large parts of their success and sales to the social platform.
Several influencers have already used Instagram as part of their strategy for building commerce based revenue streams or swinging sponsorship deals with retail brands. However, it is possible that the new app, which is allegedly being called IG Shopping, could do more harm than good for creators. The introduction of a standalone shopping would make attention more difficult to gain in the main app in at least two ways:
More competition in the algorithm - One lesson we are learning with the IGTV experiment is that your audience on the main Instagram app doesn’t necessarily translate to the rest of the Insta ecosystem. Therefore, in order for the shopping app to work, creators and brands will have to start filling feeds and stories with organic and paid content that directs audiences to the shopping experience. If this ends up working as Instagram hopes, you can definitely see an algorithm tweak on the horizon, prioritising shopping centric content, making it even harder for creators to get in front of their earned followers.
Less attention on the main Instagram app - If users are toggling between Instagram & IG Shopping, then that is great news for the company as a whole. But any time spent on the shopping app is less time spent scrolling through the main Instagram feed. This would lead to less opportunity to be seen by audiences for non commerce creators.
Now all of this said, it is not guaranteed that IG Shopping will be a success. IGTV, longform vertical video sibling, is far from a runaway success & a productive social commerce app is an aspirational project that practically every major Western social media brand has tried and failed at thus far.
What should make creators weary though, is the realisation that Instagram is willing to create experiences that ultimately are detrimental to creators. Outside the inability to directly monetise on the platform, the image & video based network has seemingly been influencers and media brands friendly for the most part. But with the Facebook owned property clearly exploring things that may de-prioritise creators, the onus is on those creators to ensure they have relationships with their audience in other ways and on other platforms.
The last half decade has seen Facebook drive down organic reach for brand pages and publishers as it pursued new ways to make money, making their Facebook Likes nearly worthless. Those that did not build relationships with their Facebook audiences on other platforms missed a golden window of opportunity - Instagram creators would be wise not to repeat the mistakes of Facebook creators’ past.
Quick Links
The blogger that went viral for posting a staged picture of her morning routine on Instagram, received death threats from those saying "Instagram is a ridiculous lie factory made to make us all feel inadequate," according to this interview with iNews.
#TheReceiptsPodcast is the group chat that a growing number of millennial women love to eavesdrop on every week. Dazed caught up with the hosts who shared their origin story, their BBC collaboration and how they try to differ from other podcasts.
A trend to look out for - Publishers are turning to audiences for help with ad campaigns, a move that could help creators make sponsored content that is more engaging and authentic to the people they are trying to reach.
The stories of media brands cutting staff / going out of business keep coming. The Outline laid off all of its staff writers last week. It’s funny that as we hit this golden age of content production and abundance, “professional” content creators are among the hardest hit.
Twitter launches audio-only live broadcasting tools, for the times where you want to be heard, but not seen
Got thoughts?
Talk to me on Twitter or email me at bola@thefluidconcept.co.uk
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