Dear Instagramer, this is why I stopped following you

dancingqueen ↓

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 1:18 pm

Wolfsbane wrote:

It's an open letter; it's not addressed to any particular person.

But her post very clearly was addressing a particular instagrammer. I’m not an expert on LH but such a specific public post shaming her even without naming names seems to be crossing a line. And even if it doesn’t violate halacha it’s tacky to paste this diatribe anonymously. If you really want to let her know all of your feelings you could dm her.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 1:22 pm

dancingqueen wrote:

If you think I am addressing somebody in particular, I’m sorry to tell you, but I’m not. Each one of the items in my post is referring to multiple people, not all of them are even Jewish. And I change details and made things pretty vague.

amother

DarkPurple

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 1:29 pm

amother OP wrote:

I’m in agreement with what you wrote in your OP. I got rid of my Instagram app a few months ago and never looked back. I don’t miss it at all. The only thing I might miss are inspiration for cooking ideas or recipes. But I’ve managed without Insta and I’ll continue to manage .
With that being said , Insta influencers are sales people with another title . When you go to a clothing store and the sales lady oohs and aahs over the item you tried on , it’s not because she really thinks you look that fabulous. It’s because she will make a commission off the expensive item she sells you . An influencer is no different. It’s being a sales person. That personality rubs me the wrong way in general , so I stay away. But the influencers could not care less whether you unfollow or not. They have enough people falling for their sales pitch.

amother

↑ Forsythia ↓

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 2:58 pm

amother OP wrote:

Who do you follow?

Inspirational people, therapists, coaches, musical professionals, mental health awareness posters, organizations, poetry accounts, comedians, family and friends, clothing brands.

There’s plenty to see on Instagram if you want a wholesome experience.

Other people enjoy following health coaches, food and meal prep bloggers, cleaning and organizing coaches, artists, fashion influencers.
Each their own.

It’s free content after all, you might be getting ads instead of having to pay for podcasts and videos.

amother

DarkViolet ↓

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 3:12 pm

amother DarkPurple wrote:

Same. I started following all these Instagramers thinking they genuinely wanted to share what they’re passionate about. For a while they did but almost everyone turns into a brand and a business once they get enough followers and it wasn’t healthy for me to bombarded with sales pitches all day.

↑ dancingqueen

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 4:45 pm

amother OP wrote:

Ok then. 🤷‍♀️. You’ll get a lot of support here, imamother has mostly negative things to say about any female influencer. (Which IMHO comes at least partially from jealousy and internalized misogyny.)

↑ Wolfsbane

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 5:08 pm

dancingqueen wrote:

I find that it's a pretty universal issue (not unique to frum women) that when lifestyle content-creators (of various internet mediums) gain popularity initially for there relatability, they often lose their original fans once they become successful because they are no longer relatable and stop making the kind of content they originally gained success for.

amother

Maple

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 5:39 pm

I was trying to get off insta for a while but couldn't quite kick the habit.
Then one popular instagrammer decried the anti-technology asifa as anti women because many women (including her) would lose their parnasah if we all quit using the internet as much. That was the kick in the pants I needed to get off.
If these people put their insta business above other people's mental health, then I'm out.

amother

Babypink ↓

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 8:29 pm

I found myself cringing and unfollowing a lot of influencers lately.

The one who shares her IVF struggles in real time. How does she expect a bracha in this area while broadcasting it to the world?

The one who was asked to suggest boots, and posted lots of four figure boots, then said, oh you want affordable boots? Well made boots are pricey! Here’s a steal: only $685!

The ones who post their outfit every day as though they’re flirting with their full length mirror as they swish their hips.

Love the cooking content, and mental health stuff!

amother

Slateblue

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 8:30 pm

OP, I totally get you. And it didn't hit me until recently that IG was making me feel sad and anxious instead of inspired and creative like it used to. You're right, it's not just one account, it's starting to feel like all accounts are pushing ads, clicks and giveaways and less content I can use and the worst part is that I'm on it more than before because I'm sifting through all these ads searching for something useful!!

Lately it's ad>a teaser of content that's yet to come>GIVEAWAY BUT FIRST LIKE AND TAG PPL>ad>giveaway reminder>NEW CONTEST!!!!>reminder to tag all your friends for new contest>minor reference to upcoming content>Q&A but only answering questions that I can answer with a link for you to buy stuff>DID YOU ENTER MY CONTEST??>ad.

Thank you for this post, I too need to work on myself with both cleaning up who I follow and with spending a lot less time on social media.

amother

↑ Crocus ↓

Tue, Feb 21 2023, 8:48 pm

If you're not following zeya comedy, you're missing out! She is the funniest! Best thing to get you in a good mood!
There are so so many wholesome, inspirational, Instagramers that don't promote products, show fashion, or post giveaways.

amother

Viola

Wed, Feb 22 2023, 12:25 am

amother Forsythia wrote:

There will always be unhappy customers.
There are plenty of viewers that enjoy the ads and the different content.
People aren’t stagnant.
They don’t need to be doing the same things from when they are born until their death.
Interests change.

Many instagrammers just enjoy sharing their life with their followers.
Feel free to unfollow if you don’t find it relevant, it’s always good to minimize Instagram use. But don’t control them and tell them how to live their lives.

They don’t need followers who are simply jealous, or critical.

Wow, this sounds super defensive.
Maybe you are one of the Instagrammers she is talking about.

amother

↑ OP

Wed, Feb 22 2023, 3:32 am

amother Slateblue wrote:

I laughed out loud when I read your post. Yes! DID YOU ENTER MY CONTEST?? And the upcoming content reminders and the AMA answers with links. You nailed it.

amother

Olive

Wed, Feb 22 2023, 3:50 am

I have a solid rule, I only follow people I know personally plus one comedian that doesn’t sell anything. Sometimes when I go through the friend offers I see things that make me feel not good so it keeps me strong to only follow the people I know.