In Defence Of Instagram

For once, I'm not going to moan about the infamous algorithm! Well, let's see how far I can go without mentioning it in this post...



We had yet ANOTHER Instagram outage the other day, also Facebook and WhatsApp thought they could go one better by doing the same thing on the same day. Tut tut *eye roll*. All I can say is that thank you Twitter for not being an absolute pain in the bum by not having outages left right and centre.


In Defence Of Instagram


This latest breakdown of Instagram was quite a long one, mine (as well as everyone else's I'm assuming) went down from 3pm on the Wednesday afternoon but it didn't return until, well for me, the following Thursday morning. This got me thinking as I got into bed that Wednesday night realising I couldn't do my daily Insta bedtime scroll, should we really tone down our irritation for Instagram?



I know the outages seem to be a regular occurrence with Instagram at the moment, like I said, they are frustrating, especially when you've just posted a photo right before the start of the breakdown *cough cough* like mine did. However, I want you to think about it like this.



Remember when were first introduced to the app? We downloaded it with baited anticipation so we could post our first photo. My first was a picture of my cat Charlie (god rest his soul) sleeping in the weirdest position on the settee. That's how I was going to use Instagram, post pictures that put a wry smile on my face and ones that genuinely just made me happy.


In Defence Of Instagram

Then I became a blogger - and somehow my attitude towards Instagram seemed to change. I cared more about likes and engagement. Then the dreaded algorithm came along (I knew I'd mention it!) after we said a tearful goodbye to the chronological order we favoured so much. It does sound awfully vain and petty of me, or anyone else for that matter, when we say, "Why is no one liking my newest photo?" Say that out loud next time you post something on Insta, you'll fully realise how daft and trivial you sound.



Although, a lot of us put so much effort into creating fabulous content, only for Insta to only show our photo's to a miniscule 5% of our followers. It's so disheartening when you've worked so hard to get the right picture. Especially if you rely on Instagram as your sole income.


In Defence Of Instagram

Instagram was made for us to share our memories of new and old, we shouldn't continue rubbishing the app. Instead we should all remember why we set up an account initially. Ultimately, Instagram is a creative platform made to share videos and photos. That's how it should be for all of us, even those who's Instagram is solely used for their job. Would we still love to hate on Insta if the algorithm wasn't in place? Hmm...I think not. If Instagram still had a chronological order in our feeds, I think we wouldn't be so heinous about the odd outage here and there.



I'm just gonna say it, I still love you Insta, even if you can be a pain in the backside sometimes. I'll still continue to share my memories and promote my blog posts through you. Instagram is my favourite app, alongside Twitter. Right, let's go and upload a new photo, I wonder how many likes I'll get today?




What are your feeling towards Instagram?
Lucy
23 comments
  1. I love Instagram but I don't rely on it at ALL and there definitely seems to be more issues than not with the app at the moment and I can't help but worry for the people who rely on it for income or their jobs!

    Jenny
    http://www.jennyinneverland.com

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    1. It is a worry for those who use Instagram as their main income!

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  2. I have actually fallen in love with Instagram for the first time these past few months, I love all of the home decor posts. Sending you all of my love 💜

    With love, Alisha Valerie x | www.alishavalerie.com

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    1. I do love interior posts Alisha, also travel posts, especially Beth Sandland's Instagram, it's incredible! x

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  3. I really believe that instagram is what you make of it. I recently did an audit of what I'm following and followed a load of new accounts to make my feed more inspiring and positive.

    xoxo
    jess
    The Crown Wings | UK Travel & Lifestyle Blog

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    1. You're right Jessica, Insta is what you make of it, I recently more followed accounts that inspire my feed more so it makes my feed more interesting and inspiring xx

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  4. I actually really enjoy Instagram! I’ve only got a blog Instagram and I still can sit on it for ages and scroll through all the photos but I do sometimes get a bit annoyed if my photos aren’t getting the most likes or engagement but I love looking at what other people produce as it’s so good! X

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    1. I enjoy Instagram too, it's still my favourite app! I'm the same, I love looking at other's photo's and admiring their creativity! x

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  5. Instagram is a unique platform that requires lots of lots of work. I use to stress over the analytics but I have now taken a step back and enjoy Instagram again. You made some great points in this post that I totally agree!

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    1. Thank you lovely, taking a step back sounds like a great idea! x

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  6. I love Instagram, although I am not using it to its full potential for my blog.

    I read something today about insta, something about hiding likes from others. I might have been dreaming though.... But I think that is a good idea, Takes the competitive side away from it and hopefully people can share their lives without the fear of people reflecting on the number of likes

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    1. Yeah they are trialling the hiding of likes in different countries at the moment. I think it will have a good effect on us as, like you said, we won't feel so competitive and comparative with others x

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  7. I've actually stopped worrying about the amount of likes that I have just to enjoy what I post!

    Love, Amie ❤
    The Curvaceous Vegan

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  8. The disapearence of likes from our will be interesting to see how it changes our mindsets! Although you will still be able to view your own likes it will be cool to see how the change will impact those who use it xx

    Lauren | itslaurenvictoria.co.uk

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    1. Absolutely Lauren! It'll be interesting to see how we look at Instagram if/when the disappearance of likes becomes a feature on the app! xx

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  9. I actually see Instagram as a platform dying in the not too distant future. I used to like it a lot more before I was a blogger when I could scroll however much I liked and didn't feel a pressure to post regularly. I think they really need to up their game and sort out all of the outages they're having or something else will come along x

    Sophie
    www.glowsteady.co.uk

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    1. Sadly I agree with you Sophie, before I became a blogger, I felt no pressure whatsoever to post, nowadays I do, which isn’t what it’s supposed to be x

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  10. Instagram is something that I just sort of have but don't really think too much about. Twitter is my favourite social media platform - I feel like I get it so I have the most fun using it! Instagram is a love hate thing for me, I love sharing my photos but I don't love the concentration on likes and follow-unfollowers etc. Great post x

    https://www.femaleoriginal.com

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    1. Twitter is such a brilliant app! Thank you Faye x

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  11. I still enjoy Instagram too but I definitely agree that when you're using your account for business purposes/blogging- it becomes slightly less enjoyable because you're focusing more on the analytics than actually just being on there for fun. Really interesting!
    Soph - https://sophhearts.com x

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    1. Absolutely Soph! I never thought I would be someone who focused on the analytics so much! x

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  12. I think you’re right! Now it’s become more about the likes and everyone takes it so seriously! Great post:

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