INSTAGRAM has removed the NUMBER of LIKES FROM POSTS, this was a programmed and reported 'test' running in several countries, including BRAZIL.
I've seen a large number of theories on the subject, let's try to go back in time to understand this better??
The History of this change
In 2016, Instagram had already announced that the algorithm would prioritize moments that really matter, extremely aligned with Facebook's subsequent changes in 2018 prioritizing family and friends.
The thing is, in the case of Instagram, it has always been about 'things you like'; in the very release, Instagram makes it clear that 'the artist you prefer, the things you engage with the most, will be there when you log in'... regardless of how many people you follow. Did you notice the intention?
The content you want to see the most will be prioritized, not all content from the people you follow.
Now, let's jump to 2019, when we had a vital update on the platform, amidst questions about declining reach, Instagram stated that the fundamental pillars of post reach were:
✅ how much we engage with the content
✅ the time we spend on the platform
✅ the times we access the platform
✅ the number of people we follow
In this update, it also mentions never hiding posts from users; as the user scrolls, they will see all content in the feed, but basically, it kills the chronological order and implements a definitive relevance algorithm, well expected for those who need to capture user attention amidst exponential growth.
This does reduce the reach among your followers who will not 'scroll' more than the time they spend on the social network.
So, when that guru of yours talks about lower organic reach on Instagram accounts, what he should know and tell you is that 'no one can have such a high degree of importance for so many people, but rather for the right people.'
This is the big play of all updates from online platforms, whether from Google, Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn that I've seen in recent years:
– Stay important, continue to be useful and interesting.
And now, we have this update that seems to be the 'Zombie Apocalypse of vanity metrics.'
Why hide 'like counts'??
The first hint they gave is to say that they want people to share the photos and videos they like without worrying about likes.
By signaling this, it points to a major flaw in the platform because we know of the existence of millions of bots, very similar to those that almost killed Twitter in other times.
A bot that generates a like is not a person engaging with content; it's a flaw in the matrix. ☠️
Added to the fact that likes have become increasingly automated and unconscious HUMAN actions as well.
Have you ever caught yourself liking as if you were a robot? ?
Have you ever seen low-quality posts that make people like them out of unconscious action?
'Hey, look at my face when I discovered the 3 likes feature on Instagram'
Your brain has turned the act of liking into something meaningless
It's also worth remembering the number of unconscious actions we perform with our lazy brains.
85% of our actions are coordinated by habits (the 85% is pure manipulation; no one knows for sure the exact number, but they are predominant?)
If we understand that relevance is directly associated with engagement on social networks, when an action ceases to be such a reliable indicator of engagement, what do you do? ?
✅ all social networks are reducing the value of likes and focusing on actions like comments and content views; even time spent on the screen serves as a greater indicator than a like, semiotics becomes fundamental in strategy again as it was in email marketing for years.
✅ And if a distorted metric starts to influence user behavior? For example, do I consume content just because I see it has more likes?
Well, in this case, we are generating engagement with a faulty database; again, we are drawing wrong conclusions from flawed premises, so the way is to hide these numbers.
Just as Facebook reduced the reach of posts like 'Like, share, and win' back in the day.
If humans are influenced by social proof and social acceptance, they will tend to like what more people liked, plain and simple, and often, these are not things they really cared about.
Notice that the metric has not been removed; you see all the people who liked your posts but not those of others.
Do you know why this is?
Robots used the list of likers to follow people who engaged with the content.
Finally, all privacy and freedom defended in an official text smells to me like pure data protection, increasing market valuation of the product protecting against threats from automated organic strategies that harm the monetization model and, of course, data intelligence concealment.
Here, privacy becomes the banner of those who keep users' personal data only for themselves, making it clear that you, my friend, are the main product of this 'menu'.
Sources:
Instagram, Moments that You care about:
https://instagram-press.com/…/see-the-moments-you-care-abo…/
2019, algorithm change