DENVER — The popular social media app Instagram has started to remove a popular feature for several users. Some no longer have the ability to see how many likes or hearts a post receives.
One child psychologist is applauding the move because she says that simple gesture can lead to increased rates of depression.
“If they post something and it didn`t get a lot of likes they literally beat themselves up,” Dr. Cheryl Ziegler said. “Having people a little less addicted to the ding, ding, you`ve got likes…will only do good.”
Others claim the seemingly simple change could end up having a financial impact. One social media strategist says more likes can equal more money for businesses.
“If they see that there`s a lot of social proof of people liking things, following them, engaging with them, people are more likely to jump on board and feel like that business is legitimate,” said Valerie Morris.
Morris believes if Instagram continues with this strategy companies and businesses will have to change their social media strategies.
“I think there`s gonna be more of a focus on comments and engagement with actual content,” Morris said.
Instagram hasn’t said what kind of benchmarks they are using to assess the new strategy.