Instagram Is Adding Age Checks for New Accounts & There Are New Options to Restrict Messaging
Instagram have announced a new process in which users will be required to enter their birthday when they sign up for an account.
SocialMediaToday
Instagram explain:
“Starting today, we will be asking for your date of birth when creating an account on Instagram. According to our Terms of Use, you must be at least 13 years old to have an account in most countries. Asking for this information will help prevent underage people from joining Instagram, help us keep young people safer and enable more age-appropriate experiences overall.”
This is a first for Instagram, users have never been required to prove their age before. This has meant that there has been a lot of younger users on Instagram, causing issues surrounding mental health and inappropriate use of the app. However, this won’t eliminate the problem. It’s not hard to lie about your date of birth.
Reports that emerged a few months ago revealed that younger users are switching their accounts to business accounts to view more insights on their posts. Reverse engineering expert Jane Manchun Wong found a new test in the back-end of the app that includes a minimum age qualifier for business accounts.
A worrying factor is that when you sign up for a business account your contact details are on display. Most worryingly this includes phone numbers and email addresses, sometimes even specific addresses.
As well as the new age restrictions, Instagram is also tightening policies around direct messages. With their new features, users will be able to choose who messages them. Instagram says that their new features:
“…give you the ability to allow only people you follow to message and add you to group threads. People who enable this setting will no longer receive messages, group message requests or story replies from anyone they have not chosen to follow.”
2020 Trends to Watch For Your Social Media Strategy
Influencer Marketing – It’s Going To Keep Growing
Almost 60% of marketers plan on increasing their influencer marketing budget next year. Whether you’re a large or a small business this a technique you should be considering. Identify key people in your industry/area and get in touch. There is nothing more important to customers than reviews/opinions of real people.
Social Shopping
You can now make purchases within Facebook and Instagram, users don’t have to leave the platform to buy your products. Take advantage of that. There’s no heading to a site that might not load quick enough to put people off. There’s no time for them to have second thoughts. It’s fast, it’s convenient, it’s the future. 2020 is sure to see smaller brands having access to these tools.
Stories Are Queen
With the rise of Instagram and Facebook stories we’ve seen more and more businesses using them. If you don’t you’re behind the times. They’re a great way to share information that might not necessarily need to be on your grid. Your audience see them as being more authentic and they make them buy into your brand more. Great for flash sales, appointment slots, behind the scenes information and quick videos.