Back To Basics With BeReal

No filters. No photoshop.?No Fame.?No Problem.?This is the premise of BeReal, the “anti-Instagram” platform that’s taking the social media world by storm.?The upstart app has seen a surge in popularity in the recent weeks, per digital analytics aggregator SensorTower its been downloaded more than 10 million times.?This past week alone it’s notched a number of noteworthy achievements by ascending the ranks of the AppStore. Not only has it scored amongst the top 20 most-downloaded free apps, but additionally has secured the 4th spot within the Social Media category behind only Meta’s collection of networks.?It’s an impressive feat when one considers that the company formerly known as Facebook spends upwards of 14 billion dollars yearly on advertising while BeReal has relied predominately on word of mouth and a college ambassadorship program.?So what is it about BeReal that users are finding so appealing, how is this fledgling startup suddenly standing in the ring with monoliths like Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok??

Simple; It got rid of all the things people hate about social media and kept the things they like.

Rather than reinvent the wheel BeReal has instead dismantled it, removing the proverbial chrome-plated lug nuts and gold spinners to effectively bring things back to basics.?It works like this: The app sends out a notification to all users concurrently (regardless of time zone) at a randomized time during the day, at which points said users will have two minutes to post a picture using their phone to create an image that layers the views out of the front & back cameras respectively.?These photos can’t be edited or altered, no filters or facetune allowed.?These photos are then uploaded to a feed comprised of all the people you follow & who follow you and are able to be viewed for just 24 hours at which point they vanish.?There are no likes, only comments and a ”RealMoji” feature where you can react to friends posts with a selfie of your own.?If you miss the two minute window you can still post, but BeReal narcs you out by adding a caveat to your picture to let everyone know that it wasn’t uploaded on time.?Lastly, no lurking allowed.?Nothing on your feed will be visible until you post, using participation as a means to drive perpetual engagement.?

The appeal lies in its simplicity, the tools offered by other platforms that essentially compel users to modify or edit their content just aren’t available here.?It allows people to show off their lives, however mundane, with the reassurance that their friends are doing the same.?The app has been described as having a feel akin to the early days of Instagram and Facebook back when those platforms were about friends, not followers.?Among the aspects for which BeReal has received praise is that it offers, for the moment, an escape from the toxicity that has come to surround social media through the culture of unattainable perfection that has developed around it.?Speaking to Instagram specifically, its effect on the youth is known to be damaging, in fact Meta itself confirmed as much through an internal study (not shared with the public until it was leaked) that found substantial evidence that users, especially those in their teens, experience emotional distress relative to the amount of time they spend on the app.?One finding noted that 32% of teen girls said when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse.?Cognizant that increased screen time leads to decreased self-esteem, BeReal stands as the lone dissenter amongst its peers by actively discouraging mindlessly scrolling.?Its design is such that because everyone is prompted to post at once and only once, in theory users should really only be inclined to visit the app once a day.

Cementing its renegade stance as “not another social network” is the platform’s complete and total rejection of influencers.?In a landscape that’s been largely defined by digital stars, so much so that the term “creator economy” has become part of our societal lexicon, this is practically unheard of.?While its contemporaries are immersed in a bidding war for influencers and their content, BeReal has built its brand around the idea that it’s intentionally an influencer-free zone, going so far as to (loudly) advertise that the app “won't make you famous. If you want to become an influencer you can stay on TikTok and Instagram”.?It’s a stark contrast and a welcome reprieve for many who are tired of being presented with idols who are sold to them as relatable while wearing Rolexs’. ??Influencers have come to take center stage in an exhausting follow-the-leader game where everyone is desperate to showcase how great their lives are, lest they be deemed uncool or unhappy. The stress of presenting this perfect fa?ade has come at the cost of genuine contact and understanding.?Friends become strangers when you no longer know who’s really behind the camera, how they’re feeling or what they might be going through.?This perception of idealistic presentation is so?ingrained within digital culture that it’s hard to imagine anything being able to overcome it, but BeReal is attempting to challenge this notion two minutes at a time.

With an eye towards authenticity, by seeing each other watching Netflix, walking our dogs, eating dinner, and grinding out Excel spreadsheets, the hope is that we might be a little kinder to each other and to ourselves.?By its very definition social media is intended to bring us closer together and yet it’s done just the opposite, reports of depression and feelings of isolation have skyrocketed thanks in no small part to the parade of phony perfection that one encounters across the feeds other platforms.?BeReal serves as an attempt to retake the sense of connection the social media was once rooted in that has since been lost.?So in a world of filters and followers, blue checks and brand deals, are you willing set it all aside and be real?

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