Instagram'S Impact On Social Media Perception

Social media in our time can control and dictate people's lives whether its Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram and many more being created every year. Social media has changed how people interact with each other and how they express themselves through pictures and posts on the Web. Instagram specifically has changed people's perception of how social media should be and how it plays a role in the lives of normal people. Instagram is one of the cornerstones of social media today.

Instagram was created by Kevin Systorm in 2010, Systorm was born in 1983 in Holliston, Massachusetts. In 2006, he received a degree in management science and engineering from the University of Stanford. After he graduated, Systorm joined Google as an associate product marketing manager. Kevin Spent two years at google before leaving to join a smaller company, Nextstop. During his time with the company he made a prototype social media platform named “Burbn”. Intently, Systorm was a large fan of Kentucky whiskeys therefore, when he created the iPhone-based app, he rightfully named it after the booze. The prototype was largely based on features, Burbn granted access to users' locations, arranged for future check ins, allowed users to gain points when friends met up and posted pictures on the app.

However, the app was not very successful, it was way too complicated for the average user becoming a jumble of buttons that made the app very confusing. But Systorm payed attention to users, he saw what people liked and used, and after many tweaks Systorm scrapped everything besides photo sharing, commenting, and liking. This product development led to the creation of Instagram by creating a brand-new way of sharing photos quickly in an iPhone-based app. At this point Facebook was at the top, they were the reigning king of Social Media, but to Kevin's luck, Facebook's app had a very difficult way of posting photos, he saw an opportunity to fix that. On October 12, 2010 Systorm released his app, the name was not Burbn like before, it was now called Instagram.

Instagram is a mobile app that is based on IOS or commonly known as the iPhone. Now with Systorms knowledge he realized the app had to be as simple as possible. The app allows users an ability to post an image or video in simply three clicks or less. A way to share social experiences with friends with a click of a few buttons. Starting off, Systorm created filters for users to turn their mobile images and videos into something more artistic than the average still. Starting off Instagram brought in around one million users monthly, this was quite average compared to Facebook at the time. But in April of 2012, almost two years after the original launch, Instagram reached over 30 million users monthly. Facebook being the giant it was and still is to this day noticed Instagram's growth and purchased the app on April 9, 2012.

From that point on the average user base has grown exponentially, reaching over one billion users in 2019. With that number being so high, around five hundred million of them use the social media platform every single day. But even though Systorms did create the foundation of Instagram, Facebook's purchase of platform is what created the growth that has led the app to being so popular. Over a six-month period, Instagram grew by 23% each month marking it one of the most influential and fastest growing social media platforms on the market. Overall, Instagram has exceeded the worlds expectations in just about every spectrum that is now prevalent in every single social media platform today.

Fundamentally, how Instagram works is very simple, but it has gained a few more features along with its growth as a platform. Like Systorms had wanted, the app serves to let you see photos and videos shared by your friends or “followers” as Instagram calls them. This is the foundation of the platform even today showing that Systorms was on track with his ideas. Once you have downloaded the app onto your mobile device from either the Google Play Store or Apple's App Store your able to create an account through the platform.

After you have created your account by ether signing up with your mobile devices number or your email of choice you will be prompted to set up your new Instagram Profile. Now in your new profile you will be asked to set a profile picture, and also a bio or just a small fact that describes you. Most put their birth date, an anniversary or just something specifically about them that they want people to know. After setting up your basic credentials you can post right away, nothing is required of you that would restrict your access to posting photos or videos just as Systorm wanted. As you invest into the platform you can gain followers, lose followers, post photos, post videos, like people's posts, comment on them, send direct messages to other users on the platform, and many more. Instagram has a lot of potential and you can unlock that as many have. Famous celebrities like the Kardashians have created businesses that solely rely on social media to promote its products and services.

Large politicians such as Donald Trump have promoted their political campaigns through these social media outlets to reach wide ranges of people. In summary, Instagram is just easier, simpler to understand, and far more universal relative to other Social Media Platforms. Therefore brands, companies, people, interest groups, sports teams, events all utilize Instagram when aiming to reach their target demographic.