Has Instagram Reached Its Peak?

A while back I reviewed Instagram's decision to launch IGTV. I didn't say it then but I thought it was a poor move on their part, I didn't think the platform nor the user base would gravitate to it.

However, with a billion active users, anything is possible, right? Put a turd in front of a billion people some are going to try and eat it that you can be sure of. As you can probably tell I'm really no fan of Instagram, I think it's a nothing platform that offers no real value or use to people with rational thought.

However the world isn't rational and millennials are governed and motivated by vanity since well things like racial, economic and civil liberties were handed to them on a platter their fight is for public attention and recognition thus Instagrams success, riding the waves of irrationality.

It is no secret that Facebook Inc has it out for Google and any shots it can take at claiming market share it's going to do just that. So IGTV was meant to take on YouTube for all its worth and 3 months later we're kinda seeing signs that perhaps they've bitten off more than they can chew.

The Video Experience for YouTube

The way I see it is YouTube is a site that offers users a mobile experience via their app and mobile site. The experience on mobile is decent and brings users into the ecosystem while serious users can make use of the desktop app to really get the full experience. YouTube also has serious embedding power across the internet as well as indexing preference via Google and Google Video search.

YouTube is the second biggest search engine in the world but what makes it so successful is its content recommendation, stumbling and discovery. There is a myriad of different ways to find the content you would enjoy on YouTube.

You can follow users, you don't have to either, you can still enjoy their content you're not really restricted

The Video Experience for Instagram

Instagram, however, defined itself as a mobile-first experience and this is what the majority of their user base is used to. They're not going to use the site to get a superior or superuser experience and even if they did there are fewer options on the site than the native app

Instagrams desktop site was an afterthought meant for acquisition via search and deep linking but is by no means an attraction for users to opt for instead of the app.

Being a mobile first application means you are limited to the amount of real estate you can present to the user at any given time. That's what apps are they are screenshots of the internet conveniently packaged for the user.

This makes content exploration horrid and simply impossible unless you're really going to look for something or you've built up a curation of accounts you really enjoy seeing. All the onus for exploration is on the user and Instagram users are probably the laziest bunch out there.

Did I not say that what makes YouTube great is its wide range of exploration options? So why would users want to use a shitty version of that? Well, ask Instagram they have the answer. Could it be arrogance? Could it be ignorance on their part? They'll never tell.

So have users taken to IGTV

Well not really, it has become a YouTube duplicate with content creators simply dumping their YouTube videos on IGTV and hoping for some views in the process. So what are the reasons why IGTV isn't making waves?

Well, the top ones are:

• IGTV doesn’t differentiate itself enough from Instagram.
• There’s no incentive for using IGTV correctly.
• Searching and browsing videos remain frustrating.
• IGTV must overcome the stigma of the vertical video format.
• There's No Ad-Revenue for Content Creators

The kids are alright

Instagram is a place for tweens, teens, insecure people, influencers and "cool moms" and I think they're running out of a user base. As the platform matures you'll see those fickle users begin to jump ship as they're not getting the dopamine hits they require and will move onto something new.

The biggest thing Insta had going for it was it was fresh, new and easy to use, but that's getting stale so how will they keep users engaged or will they start to plateau and eventually fall from the highs they once thought were unstoppable?

Time will tell, but for me, Instagram looks like its primed to implode.

Have at it

What do you think about Instagram? Can it continue to grow? Does it provide any real value in our current digital ecosystem? Is the hype train over? Let me know in the comments

Let's connect

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Sources:

• digiday
• nymag
• fansided
• mikespeer