Instagram is an app that we have come to expect to tap each time we are using our phones. The app was launched in the year 2010 and Instagram has seamlessly integrated into our daily lives in less than 10 years. Instagram is now popular not just from a user viewpoint, but also within the realm of marketing on the internet and boasts over millions of active users on a monthly basis as of today. How did this happen? What’s the history behind Instagram? Let’s see the story behind it:
Conceptualisation — Humble Beginnings
Its popularity grew in 2010 when Instagram was created as Burbn in 2010 in 2010 by Kevin Systrom, an app that connects people from all over the globe by revealing every person’s check-ins when they went to a new location. In less than two weeks following discussions with venture companies, Systrom earned $500,000 in investment. In the meantime Systrom began looking for a team , and eventually discovered Mike Krieger.
In the following years, Burbn underwent a drastic revision. Krieger and Systrom discovered that their vision was not as similar to an existing mobile application, Foursquare. They also discovered an important trend: social media communication was increasing. Users on Burbn “were publishing and sharing pictures in a flurry”. This led to them redeveloping the concept into what we now call Instagram in the present.
(Did You know? “Instagram”‘s name came from a mix that combines “instant camera” and “telegram”!)
Launch — Target to the Moon
On October 6, 2010 Instagram was officially launched. The excitement immediately grew; Instagram gained 1 million users in only three months. It was followed by 2 million in the six weeks following the milestone. To give you a sense of how long it took the timeline, Facebook took Facebook about 10 months before it reached one million users, Twitter 24 months while Tumblr 27 , months.
The original Version of Instagram was simple. You could upload photos as well as like, comment, or follow others. In September of 2011, Instagram introduced a new icon that featured a multitude options for camera setting and options within the app including one-touch rotating and other camera effects. In conjunction with the continuous improvements on the iPhone camera, smartphone photography increased in popularity; that in turn, helped Instagram’s rise to the limelight.
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The month of April may have brought the most significant change: Instagram was brought to the Android operating system. This opened the door to an entirely new market which led to the next milestone for Instagram within the period: the 50 million people using the app. By this milestone, Instagram proved it was in the game for the long haul.
Acquisition — A New Turning Point
In the same year in the same year, the Facebook acquisition of Instagram announcement went viral and spread like wildfire. Facebook has now officially purchased Instagram at a price of $1billion. In the beginning, it seemed impossible to acquire an organization with only 13 employees for this amount. Many speculated that Facebook purchased Instagram because of its the fear of competition, since their user base almost coincided. Others, based on recent leaks from anonymous sources, speculated that Facebook purchased Instagram to compete with other competitors, such as Twitter and Google who were trying to acquire the brand new appealing, beautiful photo-sharing platform. Facebook has refused to refute or confirm this theory.
No matter the reasons the reasons Facebook bought Instagram it was well-supported by Facebook’s persistent efforts to expand its features over the past few years. In June of 2013, Instagram no longer was an only a platform for images; it added video-sharing capabilities, through which users are able to upload and share videos. Since December 2013 Instagram introduced Instagram Direct which is a private messaging feature also known as “DMs” currently. In November of 2016, Instagram brought to life Instagram Live, which essentially are streams that allow users to broadcast their music, events or even life news to followers at a moment’s notice. With each new feature Instagram introduced the possibility of opportunities for businesses to expand their reach and improve their marketing.
Assistance — Helping Businesses
Instagram recognized its strengths as a tool for marketing particularly with its growing popularity with all different age groups that range starting from Gen X to Gen Z. From the time Facebook acquired Instagram up to the present it offers a myriad of features that allowed businesses to grow.
Sponsored Posts In the era of the use of social media became increasingly common in our life, Instagram introduced Sponsored Posts in November 2013 with which users could boost their most engaging content to their users’ feeds. This was the beginning of Instagram’s transformation into an advertising-focused platform.
Businesses Analytics “Insights”: In August 2014, Instagram allowed business accounts to access “Insights” where they could track their weekly performance, ranging from their Accounts Reached, to the number of interactions.
Advertising Features: While it began to blossom in 2013 as an appealing chance for companies to reach new customers, Instagram only completely fleshed out its potential in 2015. Businesses are now able create ads through Instagram Stories, use Facebook Pixel to track their customers’ interests, track how well their advertisements have been performing, and connect via Facebook Ads Manager for multi-platform marketing.
Shop: Alongside other major updates, 2020 saw an astronomical growth in the various features of Instagram. A significant change, found just to the right of the “Post” button is Shop. Businesses now have the ability to display their prices and products directly on the app and let customers browse their feeds which mimics an online store.
Competition — Keeping on with the Generation Xers and Gen Z
Recent years have seen other social media platforms have increased their penetration into our daily lives like Snapchat and its revolutionary communication system, and TikTok to cater to our short attention period. To keep its most loyal users, Instagram has attempted to create similar features that its rivals do not have.
It’s the Battle Against Snapchat: Instagram Stories
The success of Snapchat is due to its unique method of communicating which allows you to swipe right at a person and snap a photo instantly to them. The length of time the photo is displayed can be altered from one up to 10 seconds. In addition, Snapchat allows users to create videos and photos on the site’s “My Story” where they can show it to their followers and friends for 24 hours.
To beat this feature, Instagram announced the beloved Instagram Story feature, which is still popular today. Like Snapchat Stories, Instagram Stories lets users upload photos and videos for 24 hours and then show it to their followers.
The result? Instagram Stories, though developed in the wake of Snapchat, has gathered 250 million active users per day while Snapchat was able to maintain its number of users, which stood at 166 million as of 2018.
From a quantitative standpoint, Instagram undoubtedly wins out when it comes to returning customers. But both platforms have merits and differences in the way they market your business , as they appeal to various customers. So, it’s not fair to claim that Snapchat isn’t a good choice for advertising opportunities, but in recent times, a variety of speculations and theories are suggesting that Snapchat is losing its appeal.
The War Against Tiktok: Instagram Reels
In the brief time since its launch, TikTok has experienced rapid increase in popularity, ranging to 300 million in the month of January, 2019 and up to 800 million by January 2020. The main reason for this is its ability editing and uploading video clips, the fresh algorithm that is based on content and community-building feature “Duet”.
In view of rising popularity of TikTok, Instagram rolled out its own features: Instagram Reels and Instagram Remix. Instagram Reels are designed to serve the similar purpose of TikTok videos, a quick-form video feature. Meanwhile, Instagram Remix is an exact match to the TikTok Duet function, which allows users to create videos alongside the other person’s Reel. Although it’s too early to determine if Instagram Reels & Remix will get the same attention like Instagram Stories, one thing can be said for certain is the fact that different platforms are likely to start to catch up creating a huge rivalry to catch the young generation’s interest.
Conclusion
It was initially created as an easy photo-sharing site, Instagram has emerged as an effective channel for marketing for businesses and an integral component of our everyday social media use. It is certain it is likely that Instagram is likely to grow into the future, remaining present to our lives for a lengthy time. If you’re not already look into the rest of our blog posts to learn how you can make the most of social media along with other platforms to enhance your marketing efforts for your business!
