Instagram has launched a trial across several countries, including Australia and Japan, where the amount of likes a post has are hidden on your timeline. Instead, each image will be viewed without the number of likes underneath. Users will, however, be able to monitor the likes on their own posts. The experiment comes as pressure mounts on social media sites to do more to address the damaging effects such apps can have on the mental health of users. Instagram spokespeople have suggested the move is an attempt to ‘relieve the pressure of the app’, stating that they want users to feel comfortable expressing themselves on their platform.
This new revelation has called into account our individual relationships with Instagram, and specifically with the value we place on likes. Whilst some may dismiss likes on social media as meaningless and suggest caring about them is a purely egotistical act, likes equate to a sense of approval, no matter how insignificant. We all seek approval in various aspects of our lives, no matter on what scale. For some, likes on a post provide a sense of belonging, validity and support that might not be experienced elsewhere in their lives. It is for those people that this new feature might have the most damaging effect: people searching for validation in, albeit unconventional, aspects of their lives. Removing the liking function on Instagram might, for these people, be initially damaging, but, like all things and with time, adjustment will come. Also, individual users will be able to view their own likes, whilst remaining invisible for other users. Arguably, the validation some so desperately seek can still be attained in some way.
Where this move might cause the most dramatic change is in the influencer/social media marketing industry, where livelihoods have been built upon likes, followers and engagement with content on Instagram. There is an argument that by removing the liking function, as well as the ability to see a post’s total likes, Instagram runs the risk of devaluing the currency that separates this platform from others and the very affordance that has enabled it to develop into a financial landscape. Social media has changed the way brands use targeted marketing; individuals have become brand ambassadors and work in paid partnership with brands to promote products/services. Social media ‘influencers’ have ignited a new wave of marketing techniques that has changed platforms like Instagram into a competitive, professionally-curated, business-focused environment at the expense of normal users. With some accounts making a reasonable, sometimes very lucrative, living from Instagram through highly curated and aestheticized content, everyday users are left, rightly or wrongly, comparing their own posts/likes. This has culminated in a toxic online environment.
That being said, is it fair to rid those who have fashioned a career online of the very validation that enables them to work with brands/build a reputation (likes)? Ultimately, by removing likes, there is a risk of some careers ending. However, this may see a shift in the way popularity and success is measured on Instagram; comments may become more important, the push for followers may increase and the information individual’s have of their own data regarding likes may be able to be shared. This shift may also force brands to reconsider their marketing strategies. Basing partnerships solely on numbers seems flawed to begin with; in an age of fake accounts and ‘buying likes’, numbers cannot be solely relied upon to indicate loyal following and influence. The removal of likes might encourage a more organic relationship between brands and influencers, whereby decisions are built upon more research than just the amount of likes a post receives.
There is also a sense here that this shift marks the beginning of the end of Instagram influencers, and more broadly, this kind of social media marketing. It feels like people are beginning to switch on to the fact that product placements, paid partnerships and sponsored content aren’t what they used to be. This was marked most notably with the introduction of the ‘in paid partnership with…’ function on posts and the requirement to use the labels ‘#ad/spon’.
In my eyes, the positives out removing the liking function on Instagram outweigh the negatives. Some argue that the new initiative will return the social media platform to it original, authentic, creative and spontaneous nature, where users posted the content they wanted to, without consideration for its appeal to others. Without likes, we might be able to retain some of the positive aspects of Instagram and rid ourselves of the anxieties with which it is currently associated. Instagram has the potential to be a space for creativity and inspiration to thrive; if we remove the competitiveness associated with comparing likes, we might reinforce this as the primary function for the platform.
Additionally, and most significantly, the decision to remove likes from Instagram will benefit most the people who suffer from low self-esteem, lifestyle envy and ill mental health. Without the comparative nature that is so rampant on the platform currently, Instagram might become a safer space for those struggling with their mental health. Personally, I have uninstalled the app from my phone during times of low self-esteem and high anxiety, feeling a relief from living my life without knowing what exciting things people are doing that I am not, or where people are on holiday when I’m writing essays and walking to work in the rain. Removing this aspect of my life during difficult times has alleviated something for me, something which I think would be almost entirely removed if likes were eradicated.
Nevertheless, there are users of Instagram who use the platform solely for good and without the success associated with likes might not have had their voices heard. For example, Jameela Jamil’s I Weigh community might not have gained the same momentum on other platforms, or even existed whatsoever. Equally, activists such as Florence Given might not have gained the popularity they currently experience if the amount of likes weren’t visible to show their favorability amongst some online communities. Without Instagram showcasing their popularity through likes, we might not have heard and benefitted from their messages.
Like most issues, there are two sides. Whether Instagram decides to roll this trial out across the app worldwide, the discussion surrounding the value we place on likes seems like a valid one. It has challenged us to question our relationship not only with the app, but with the value we place in the validation likes from others gives us. It must be said that the removal of likes on Instagram has a hugely different impact for regular and professional users. Personally, it would make very little difference to my life and would certainly be seen as a positive change. However, for those who have ingeniously built a career online, this could have a detrimental impact. In my opinion, the world of social media influencers feels limited and with a short lifespan, so perhaps such a change is merely indicative of a wider social comment about the imminent death of influencer culture.
A Twenty-Something Opinion 