Young brands are concerned about Instagram’s new hidden Likes update. Celebrities and influencers have been vocal about their dislike of Instagram’s potential change (currently being tested in the U.S.), but they aren’t alone. Many smaller direct-to-consumer brands think that “removing [L]ikes removes a post’s power,” and worry that hiding Likes will decrease engagement and slow audience growth. Like counts have also been an “easy” way for brands to see if an influencer campaign is performing well, and some predict that Instagram will introduce paid ad-tools to allow them to access this metric in the future. (Glossy)
