With a confused look on my face, I scratched my head in puzzlement to a friends mocking remark about Instagram being the tool of the Hipster. I countered his statement by saying, “What are you talking about, I use Instagram all the time.”
There was no need to reiterate how I am in no way a Hipster since I was dressed in my usual XL Jordan basketball shorts, high-top Nike socks paired with Nike Free shoes, a thermal, and – naturally repping my San Francisco Giants – New Era flat brimmed hat. I continued to protest in my mind as I thought to myself, “I’m the furthest thing there is from a hipster and I love Instagram.”
Twitter, Flickr, Tumblr, Facebook are all great tools but the simplistic manner in which Instagram captures a moment and allows users to endorse their activity is ingenious. Can Instagram really just be for Hipsters? If it is, I must object to this segregational opinion. To grasp the possibilities of Instagram one need only consider its options in the internet marketing sense.
Instagram as an Internet Marketing Equalizer
Instagram unlike other social media outlets is among the great equalizers in internet marketing. The combination of image and text allows businesses to create a following and loyalty unlike its competitor Twitter that is more geared toward text. The obligation to be more active with an Instagram account as opposed to the requirement of limited updating with Facebook and or Blog account allows small and large businesses alike to stay highly interactive with their audience.
Instagram allows businesses to incorporate all of their employees and grants ownership to all individuals of the company. The increased responsibility inherently demands a greater sense of loyalty from the employees and thus creates a greater sense of goodwill with the customer base. As customers see a group effort from his or her favorite “store” the ties to said business is exponentially enhanced.
The wonderful thing about these identifying qualities is that the small business can be as strong as the large corporation. With creativity and a dedicated effort toward gather a following, Instagram may be the first operational means by which meritocracy within the free market is a viable possibility. Jason Howie of Social Media Today provides some other ways in which to best utilize Instagram for internet marketing.
In the Words of Mr. T
Thus to my friend who is determined to define the quality app that is instagram by a small subgroup, I say, “I pity the fool!” Obviously he is unable to comprehend the empowering capabilities of an app that like other social media outlets encourages individuality while enhancing community engagement.
photo credit: An ex-Hutterite’s Life. Kelly Hofer via photo pin cc
photo credit: IAN RANSLEY DESIGN + ILLUSTRATION via photo pin cc
- Taking Instagram to a New Height - September 11, 2012