The One When Instagram Tried To Be TikTok

It’s no secret that TikTok is the most popular platform in the world. What started as a dancing and viral challenge app for Gen Z evolved over time into a successful marketing tool for entrepreneurial millennials, and indeed that success continues to this day.

It is much easier and requires less effort to become viral on TikTok than on Instagram.

To try to reach a sizeable audience on Instagram you need to use professional cameras, near-professional editing, and filters, use the right hashtags, post it on the right day and time, and pray that the algorithm hasn’t changed for the umpteenth time so that your post is recommended among a certain number of users.

With TikTok, it is much easier. You only have to know what the viral trends are [just do a quick search within the app to find this out] and adapt your content to it.

No professional cameras, no filters, no right days and time. Just post it.

Instagram has seen TikTok as a threat and for the past few months have tried to compete with them through Reels. However, they have seen that it is not enough, that they do not get the same popularity and statistics that they used to have before the arrival of the Asian platform.

And this last week they decided to use one of the most desperate strategies of all “if you can’t beat them, join them”.

Instagram really wants to be TikTok so badly. And people (including me) were really upset about it.

People want to go to Instagram to see pictures of their friends and not to see random videos of strangers.

Each app fulfills a specific function, and when they try to be something that they are not, that is when the problems come. TikTok does a wonderful job of showing random videos of strangers doing viral challenges or dancing. And he was born to be that.

Fun Fact: Did you know that GenZ uses Instagram way differently than Millenials do? For example, I heard one time they use Instagram to get access to a party. If the account isn’t following you, then you can’t get in. I mean, these are really creative ways to use the platform. Instead, Millennials, we use it to post vacation pictures and a bunch of hashtags.

Instagram was born to be a photography platform and it was doing a wonderful job doing this until they screwed it up by changing its algorithm at every moment.

If you’re good at something don’t try to change. Better focus on improving what you are good at because if you are the best at what you do then you will not have competitors.

A specific example of this is Apple. They are the best mobile phone manufacturers in the world. It is a fact. They play in another league. There is Apple and then the rest of the world’s mobile manufacturers.

They use the best technology in the world to adapt it to their ecosystem. They do not need to be the pioneers, simply be the best in taking advantage of these tools. Its strong point is the protection of the privacy of its users, and every day they are better at it.

And if TikTok isn’t enough of a problem for Instagram, there’s a new app coming out that’s becoming more and more popular with people without making a lot of noise.

I’m talking about BeReal.

And if you don’t know BeReal, it’s basically a photo App that allows you to post a photo every day, and you only have two minutes to do it.

“Everyday at a different time, everyone is notified simultaneously to capture and share a Photo in 2 Minutes. A new and unique way to discover who your friends really are in their daily life. “— BeReal.

The App gives you a couple of chances to post it however you like, but you have to post it raw. No filters, no professional cameras, no hashtags, no timing to worry about. Sharing real life just as it is.

By the way, this article is not sponsored by them. In fact, I don’t know if this photo app is going to succeed or not. But I just found it really interesting to share because that’s how Gen Z uses Instagram. They don’t use filters, they don’t care about how they look. They just post it as it is.

Anyway… Instagram should focus more on solving the thousands of problems they already have regarding the toxicity around the platform and bad practices on privacy policy, instead of trying to be something they are not and never will be.

What do you think about all of this? Do you like Instagram TikTok-ish or just as it used to be? Did you know about BeReal!? Let me know!