The REAL Reason Instagram is Removing Likes

As you have probably heard by now, Instagram is removing likes. What does this mean for the platform and how will it affect us, the users?

Mental Health Aspect

Those of you who have heard about this change have probably also heard that it is being done for the well being of the Instagram users. As pointed out by Kanye West, there is a growing segment of instagram users who report suffering from depression and other issues because they aren’t getting as many likes as their peers, as celebrities and in general as many as they feel they should be getting.

Theoretically, if Instagram is removing likes, then you can’t compare the number you receive to the number that others receive, which should correct the issue. But would that REALLY fix the issue? Instagram is only removing likes from the public view – the owner of the feed will still be able to see them. If a person can see that they only received seven likes, they will likely still feel the same way because they want more.

That leads this blogger to believe that there is more to this than meets the eye. By more, i mean money is involved.

Instagram Influencers

It is no secret that people make large sums of money fron brand deals, sponsorships, shopify, etc. And Instagram, being a free platform sees none of that money. Instagram removing likes can make it harder to get these brand deals, as it will become harder to prove their worth to said brands. If influencers aren’t getting brand deals, they may leave for another platform, which monetarily, wouldn’t hurt Instagram at all, but could mean disaster for influencers.

The Zuck factor

The mastermind behind Facebook also owns Instagram. One of the moves that Facebook made to increase the number of users buying ads is lower organic reach. Currently, only about 6% of your followers actually see what you post. As a result, businesses purchase ads to ensure they are seen.

Now think about this – what if you could pay for the privilege of having publicly visible likes? I think that’s the true endgame. Instagram hasn’t been seeing any of this influencer money and now they want to be cut in. And it’s not just influencer money they’d be getting. If the price is fair, there are millions of users who would pay to get their likes back.

How do you feel about this whole thing? Leave a comment and let us know.

Author: Donnell Peavy