the problem(s) with Instagram: have we UNlearned the art of socializing?

attention spans and writing for profit

Photo by Merakist on Unsplash

What if the problem with Instagram is less about (OR, not only about) the algorithm and the way executives profit from our time on the platform… and more about how it shrinks our attention spans and even our abilities to read (and write!) anything longer than a caption? 

A few weeks ago, I started and stopped Jenna Kutcher's new book, How Are You Really? (I don’t personally recommend this book, but a sentence-long recap might read like this: It’s about beginning real conversations with people and genuinely digging into the so-called tough topics of life).

Instead of finishing the book, I decided to just watch this YouTube review (of the book!) by Savy Writes Books that asks - 

"Why is this book so completely unrelatable (and unhelpful)?" 

Maybe it's because Jenna Kutcher (much like Rachel Hollis, if you remember her "what made you think I want to be relatable" remarks) is trained to be unrelatable as an “influencer.” 

Maybe it’s because she’s trained (like most marketing experts) to be relatable ONLY to the right people: i.e. the people who buy things. 

What do you think? 

What I can say, as someone who writes marketing copy on the internet, is that - we have been trained, as business owners and in marketing, to zero-in on the audience: 

• what does your ideal client want to hear? 

• what does s/he *need* to know? 

• and can you frame this topic FOR HER ALONE?

That works, for selling things. 

But, have we forgotten that we're not here (on earth) merely to sell things? And to buy things? 

Have we forgotten how to interact with real-life humans? 

(I would say, yes, kind of. At least sometimes.)

I personally love the snapshots into human life (and business) that Instagram allows and encourages.  

I LOVE SUPPORTING SMALL BUSINESS ON THIS PLATFORM, TOO! (I don't mind selling-focused marketing on Instagram, because buying and selling is part of the game. Exchanging money for craft can be a deeply beautiful connection between us!) 

But I'm deeply concerned about how the algorithm changes what we notice, what we look for, how we show up here, how we think... and how young kids especially experience the modern world. 

I'm even more concerned about the long-term repercussions of three-second attention spans and the mindless scrolling that distracts us (myself included!) from what matters.

What do you think?

You can share your thoughts publicly when you comment on this post OR privately when you reply to this email. 

thank you so much for reading!

xx, alycia buenger