I cannot believe I am even saying this, but I no longer believe that you can just rely on Instagram if you want to be a successful creator this year and beyond.
Now, the first reason why I caution creators to not just rely on Instagram is because if you put all of your eggs in the Instagram basket, you are going to end up in an endless content hamster wheel.
Now we all know that the Instagram algorithm values recency, meaning it'll never show content that was posted a few weeks ago, months ago and, of course, years ago.
Instagram, as an algorithm, really values recent content and it always wants to push new content out to its users.
However, lately, it's been a lot more aggressive with this.
For instance, back then in 2019 or even 2020, we could all get away with just posting once a week, or two to three times a week max, and we could still see great results when it comes to growing on Instagram.
But nowadays, Instagram has prioritized recency even more to the point where us creators, we have to post pretty much every single day in order to see significant progress of growth on the platform.
Now, this is concerning, because if you are a creator who's only posting on Instagram, you're going to eventually burn out.
For many of us, we can't be creating new content every single day on this platform, because we're either going to burn out, but if we don't cater to this platform, then we're not going to see growth.
And that's basically a catch-22, especially if you are someone who prioritizes your mental health.
And that is a really big reason why, even for me, I have shifted my Instagram strategy along these last few years, because I have noticed these changes in the algorithm that I generally don't agree with.
So, for example, back then, my Instagram strategy included me creating original content for the platform.
If you look at my past feeds, a lot of my content I created specifically for Instagram.
I was okay with doing that because I was only posting two to three times a week.
It was manageable for me, because now, in order to actually grow substantially on Instagram, you have to post more.
I no longer have the capacity or the patience or the justification to be creating unique content pieces every single day for this platform that favors recency.
Meaning.
Even if I spend all of my energy creating all these unique pieces of content catered to the Instagram algorithm, Instagram's not even gonna show it weeks, months or years later.
Whereas platforms like YouTube.
I know that even though I'm spending hours on a video years later, I'm still getting traffic on that video.
That video is still resurfacing on the platform.
People can still find it.
And so to me, that is worth my time investment.
Whereas on Instagram, I can't justify creating unique content pieces every single day for a platform that's not even going to show my content after a few weeks.
To me, it's just not worth my time.
And so my Instagram strategy has shifted, where nowadays, a lot of my content pieces are actually repurposed from my other rich media platforms.
For example, if you look at my Instagram feed, you'll notice that a lot of my Instagram reels are actually repurposed from my long-form YouTube videos and a lot of my carousel posts are repurposed from my weekly newsletter that I write to my audience.
To me, this is a lot more manageable because in today's Instagram algorithm, I have to be posting every single day in order to see significant growth.
But if I was creating unique original content every single day on that platform, I would probably burn out and I wouldn't see a huge return on investment because, like I said earlier, the content that I post doesn't even get resurfaced months or years later.
Whereas platforms like YouTube and newsletter, I'm able to create a lot more leverage, meaning that every single video I create on YouTube it has an evergreen benefit, meaning a lot of people can find it even in the future, after I've posted that video.
And for my newsletter.
This is also a really great return on my time because my email list is probably the most warmed up audience that I have.
I'm able to sell, I'm able to nurture and I'm able to repurpose long form texts into blog posts, into carousel posts and so much more.
A lot of my newsletters actually end up being micro content pieces as well.
So to me, spending my time growing my YouTube channel and growing my email list is a lot better return on my time investment than trying to create unique content pieces for my Instagram account.
And one of the best parts of my newer strategy, because I'm leveraging a lot of other platforms in order to grow my Instagram account from a content standpoint I'm able to get my time back.
And in my schedule, I will fill maybe one to two trending videos that are optimized for Instagram.
Videos like this or videos like this, so that I can still create unique content for Instagram, but it's not every single day that I'm doing it.
And so that's why I feel the smartest creators know how to create time leverage for themselves.
And if you don't know how to do that yet, you are going to suffer in the long term, especially if all your eggs are in the Instagram basket.
Simply because the algorithm does not work in your favor, and you will eventually experience burnout or slow growth in the end.
Now, even though I have mentioned how important it is for creators today to know how to create time leverage for themselves, especially if they are using Instagram as a platform, I also want to say that there are key features on Instagram that are still incredible and can make you a ton of money.
And that is Instagram stories and direct messaging.
I personally love creating Instagram stories because it shows people a behind the scenes of my life, my business, my thought process.
I also love all of the stickers that allow me to pull my audience and get to know them a lot better.
This is invaluable to my business because it humanizes my brand and it allows me to get connected with my followers that I'm not really able to in any other platform.
Not only this, I also love the fact that anyone can have the link sticker that will direct people to your products and services.
So personally for me, I think that Instagram can still make you a ton of money if you are very strategic in leveraging the Instagram story feature.
Not only this, I love the direct messaging feature because it has actually made me so much money simply because I leverage chat automation.
For example, I use an automation tool called ManyChat.
So for example, I sell my social media planning dashboard for $47.
It's on Notion and it's a huge hit for a lot of people.
And what I did is in a lot of my posts I told people to DM me the word notion or comment the word notion and my bot will send them the link to purchase this product.
By creating that automation, it actually earned me 60000 in three weeks because I reduced any type of friction point in order for people to buy the product.
And it's really great because when you set up that automation and people DM you, you're then able to actually have a one-on-one conversation that could lead into something else or that can help someone overcome any objections from buying your product.
And so personally for me, I think that if you are a business owner, Instagram is still a really great tool to actually make money.
And so I wouldn't discount that.
The only thing that I really don't like though, is the fact that it has a very aggressive algorithm that requires you to create new content on a frequent basis.
And so that is why I recommend a lot of creators to learn how to create time leverage for yourself and understand which other platforms have better bang for buck, and then take that content and repurpose it on Instagram instead.
Doing so can really get your time back to focus on other areas of your business or your personal brand.
For example, it could be focused on working with your clients.
It could be focused on doing research on trend-based content and then maybe you filming one or two a week so that you get a better boost.
But it's not necessarily every single day because, like I said, you're definitely going to be burning out.
Or it could be spend getting to know your audience better on Instagram stories or through direct message, or doing more sales related activities.
So, all in all, I just simply disagree with the fact of you creating trend based content that's going to expire every single day on Instagram.
And that is ultimately why I believe creators should not put all their eggs in the Instagram basket.
Now here's the second reason why I believe creators should not put all their eggs in the Instagram basket, and it is because you are not future-proofing your business or your brand for the next generation.
Check out this survey where they polled teenagers asking them which social media platforms they use.
Unsurprisingly, Facebook is at 32% and there is a steep decline in popularity.
Then you have Snapchat at 59%, which has risen in popularity amongst teenagers.
Instagram's at 62 and TikTok is at 67, which is surprising because TikTok is a relatively newer platform and it's already surpassed Instagram.
But even more surprisingly, check out YouTube, which is at 95% usage amongst teenagers.
So what does this tell you?
If you are a creator and you want to future-proof your brand and your business for the next generation, my recommendation is you need to incorporate YouTube in your strategy today.
Because it is really clear, based on this data, that YouTube is not going anywhere, whereas platforms like Instagram and Facebook are showing slower growth.
Now, like I said earlier on in this video, I don't believe that Instagram is quite dead yet.
Especially if you compare it to platforms like Facebook, it's pretty clear that Facebook is dying.
However, I do believe that if Instagram doesn't get its act together, there are a lot of risks associated with putting all of your eggs in the Instagram basket.
And that risk is the fact that Instagram has lost its identity.
Now it's really clear to myself and many others that Instagram is threatened by TikTok, and they should be.
If you look at this survey data, you can see that TikTok has already surpassed Instagram, despite being a newer platform.
And, as a result of feeling threatened, Instagram has made substantial changes to their algorithm and to their platform.
That has upset a lot of users but, more importantly, has created an identity crisis.
For example, if you look at all the platforms, there's YouTube, which is known for long-form videos.
If you look at TikTok, that is short-form videos.
Back then with Instagram, it was really photos and being able to see content from the people that you follow.
You've got Snapchat that's really about photo messaging, and then you've got Twitter, that's really about following political figures celebrities, business owners and really understanding what their thoughts are in single tweets.
But now, because Instagram is trying to be like a TikTok, they've really lost their identity to the point where even celebrities like Kim Kardashian are complaining for the fact that they wish Instagram was what it was back then, as not only a photo sharing app but, more importantly, a platform where you can actually see content from your friends and family and the people that you follow.
Now, in addition to algorithm updates, where you're more likely to see people you don't follow than people you do, a lot of people are also complaining about the fact that Instagram has really lost its authenticity.
And that is exactly why TikTok has grown in popularity, because a lot of the videos are created by real humans that aren't filtered, that aren't perfect.
But also, many people are gravitating towards apps like Be Real.
Be Real is a photo-sharing app where it encourages people to post real-time photos of what they're doing on the spot non-filtered, to their friends and family, and it has grown substantially in popularity.
These are all things that Instagram used to be, but because Instagram is trying so hard to be like everyone else, it's really lost not only its identity, but also the authenticity of its creators and its users.
Ultimately, Instagram's value proposition used to be extremely clear and now it's really muddy because it's trying to be like everyone else.
And, even though it's not necessarily a huge pain point now, I'm foreseeing that in the future, if it keeps going down that path, people are no longer going to be choosing Instagram and they're gonna go on other platforms that give them more value and that have a clearer distinction.
Because, at the end of the day, with all these platforms that we can choose from, we only have a limited amount of time and a limited amount of attention span.
And so, as years go on, we are going to be more selective of the top three platforms that we're using.
And if there is no clear value proposition and no clear differentiator for Instagram, then of course we're going to go to other platforms that serve our needs better, like YouTube, who does long form videos a lot better, or TikTok, who does short form videos a lot better, or even maybe something like Be Real that shows authenticity a lot better.
And so, all in all, these are my reasons why I believe that you should be careful in putting all your eggs in the Instagram basket this year, especially if you want to be a successful creator.
Now, at this point in the video, you might be freaking out asking, should I be ditching Instagram?
And the answer is no.
I still believe that Instagram is the perfect all-in-one platform, especially if you want to make money.
I can't think of another platform that does it better when it comes to attracting the people you want, nurturing your followers and converting them into a sale, all in one place.
For example, with attracting people.
You can use Instagram Reels and reach people who don't even follow you yet to follow you.
Once they follow you, you're able to not just have a whole range of content that you can create, whether it's live streams, reels or photos you can also connect with them through stories and DMs.
And then when it comes to converting them, like I said earlier, you can set up ManyChat to create chat automations.
You can sell through DMs.
You could also link things in your stories and in your bio to your products and services.
And so, for now, I still believe Instagram still has legs and it is worth milking it so that you can make money on the platform.
At the same time, this video is meant to warn creators and make sure that you are creating a diversified content plan.
And if you weren't considering platforms like YouTube already, that you really think about it so that you can future proof your brand and your business?
And to recap the reason why I believe YouTube is the safest choice is because, number one, the content you create on YouTube doesn't date, so you get an evergreen benefit.
Any video you create now is still gonna last you months and years later and it's gonna earn you more followers and more money over time, especially if you know how to monetize.
The second reason is better bang for buck.
You can repurpose your long-form content into short-form content and once you've done that, you could put that short-form content onto Instagram, TikTok and YouTube Shorts, so you're able to maximize your distribution.
Speaking of which, the fact that YouTube also has YouTube Shorts is also a really promising feature.
If you actually look at this article right here, it's announced that YouTube is considering helping creators monetize easily with YouTube Shorts.
So back then you had to get 1000 subscribers and 4000 hours of watch time on your long-form videos.
But soon YouTube is going to open up its partnership program, where you can also get monetized depending on how many views you get on your short-form videos.
Specifically, if you are a creator who has a thousand subscribers and 10 million views on your shorts, you can then be monetized and make money off of YouTube Shorts.
To me that is really promising and it really shows that YouTube is taking YouTube Shorts incredibly seriously.
There was also recent updates saying that if someone watches your YouTube Shorts, they're also gonna be retargeted to your long-form content as well, and the fact that YouTube is planning to update its user interface where, on your main channel, you can have your long-form content and your YouTube Shorts separately.
All of these show promising updates for the platform, and that is why I ultimately, am very bullish when it comes to YouTube.
Now, if you are someone who wants to get started with YouTube, I recommend that you watch this video next, where I share the entire A to Z process of how I create, film and publish my YouTube videos.
This is definitely going to give you a leg up, especially if you are a newer creator, but also if you are an experienced YouTuber as well.
So thanks for watching this video, but I will see you in this one next.
