Why removing Instagram likes is good for influencers, especially “micro-influencers”
When Instagram announced it was removing likes worldwide, millions of influencers gripped their phones in fear. Without likes – a key signal of popularity – how would influencers persuade brands of being the best fit for a sponsorship?
Recently, brands have been targeting “micro-influencers” – individuals with smaller, yet sizable followings of 10,000-50,000 followers. Traditionally, higher metrics such as likes and followers have favored top influencers because they generate information cascades and rich-get-richer effects. But where their numbers tower, their relationships sour compared to that of micro-influencers.
Brands are rewarding these intimate, well-connected networks because they are the ones capable of changing behavior. Since micro-influencer communities are smaller, they are easier to manage and start meaningful conversations among members. Increased comments and engagements further signal the quality of relationships, not just quantity of relationships, which are essential to fostering a tight-knit community.
From a business perspective, seeking micro-influencers is logical because it will increase their conversion rate – the percentage of users who become actual consumers of a product. This ties in nicely with the diffusion of networks which focuses on cascading behavior, rather than cascading information. When we imagine a cluster of nodes and decide which node to target, we choose the one best in a position to affect its neighbors’ decisions and spur subsequent cascades. This is the strategic position of the modern day micro-influencer.
So while many influencers are worried about the implications of likes hurting their profitability, well – they shouldn’t. If they are true influencers – people who cultivate genuine connections and have their followers’ trust – they can be confident knowing that if they adopt a behavior, others online will too. After all, they’re not called influencers for nothing.