So we've all run accross the thought when setting up the perfect insta picture and caption: How many likes is this gonna get? In the age of social media influencers, instagram bots, and buying likes...it's a hard concept to consider not seeing the fruits of your aesthetic labor and viewing how many likes you received on a single instagram post. Well, that is about to be put to the test. The head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, has created the concept of 'hiding' your likes on a picture...or testing the theory anyway. The idea is stemmed from the twenty first century issue of creating the perfect lifestyle on the internet, via social media. Some social media stars this year have gone as far as faking a trip to Coachella as a social experiment just to prove that often influences will attend festivals or other deemed exciting activities JUST to post it on social media.
Mosseri wanted to test the thought of no one knowing how many likes you receive on a picture (besides you obviously) to bring the platform back to the idea of a "less pressurized environment where people feel comfortable expressing themselves" according to Buzzfeed News. The test will also further prove that the amount of likes you are receiving are not an accurate representation of your engagement, as above mentioned 'bots' have appeared in the past fews years, which automatically like your content and give you an unrealistic view of who is actually seeing and enjoying your content.
The test has been happening internally, and will move onto Canada first next week after Facebook's Annual Developers Conference, F8.
I wanna hear some thoughts on this test! Do we love it? Think it's a waste of time? And how will this change the approach of Instagram users in the future?