Instagram Scraps Flipside Feature

So, Instagram started playing around with this cool feature called Flipside back in January 2024. They were just testing the waters to see how folks would like it. Well, now they are getting rid of the feature on May 24th, 2024... What happened?

What is Flipside?

Flipside is kind of like having a backstage pass to your Instagram profile, where you can share more personal stuff just with a close circle of friends, separate from your main feed and even your 'Close Friends' stories.

The idea was all about giving you more privacy and a spot to be your unfiltered self without worrying about everyone seeing it. Think of it as having a little hidden room in your Instagram house where only selected friends can come hang out. It's another layer of socializing, tucked away just for laughs, secrets, or whatever you feel like sharing with your chosen few. While the 'Close Friends' feature allows users to share stories with a select group, Flipside takes this concept further by creating an entirely separate profile space within a user's account. This space is visible only to a personally curated list of friends, offering a distinct and more private way of interacting compared to the more transient nature of stories shared with Close Friends.

The key difference between Flipside and Close Friends lies in the permanence and visibility of content. Close Friends is specifically for stories, which are temporary and disappear after 24 hours, while Flipside content can be more permanent, similar to regular posts but visible only to a chosen few. This could appeal to users who want to maintain a lasting yet private digital presence where they can express themselves more freely without the pressure of a broader public audience. A buddy of mine highlighted a neat aspect of Flipside: its secrecy. Here’s the deal: while people can stumble upon finsta accounts on Instagram and you get to choose whether to let them follow you or not, just knowing your account exists might not be what some users want. Flipside tackles this by keeping its very existence under wraps — no one knows you have a Flipside unless they’re invited. It's a subtle yet significant feature that respects user privacy in a unique way!

What about spam accounts?

On Instagram, the trend of creating "spam accounts," also known as "finstas" (fake Instagrams), is pretty popular, especially among the younger crowd. These accounts are usually private and let users share more personal or unfiltered content with a close group of friends, keeping it hidden from the wider public eye. This really shows how much users crave a more personal, controlled space on social media to express themselves freely and genuinely.

Seeing this, Instagram introduced Flipside to streamline and formalize this behavior right within the main app. Flipside brings the essence of finstas into the main Instagram experience, offering a simple, integrated way for folks to manage their private sharing without juggling multiple accounts. This move was part of Instagram's strategy to keep its users engaged by aligning with their privacy and sharing preferences.

Here’s why Instagram was keen on bringing finstas officially under its wing with Flipside:

• Safety and Regulation: By incorporating finstas into the official Instagram setup, the platform can better oversee and enforce safety protocols, ensuring that everything is up to snuff with age restrictions and other rules.
• User Retention: Merging finstas with the main app through Flipside could boost user satisfaction and help retain users. It’s a smart way to keep users on Instagram rather than seeing them head off to other platforms for similar private sharing capabilities. Flipside also adds a unique touch by notifying users directly about new posts, which likely boosts engagement since these alerts come from a close-knit circle, prompting more interaction and time spent on the app.
• Data Insights: With Flipside, Instagram can collect detailed data on how users engage with these private spaces, providing valuable insights that could drive future app enhancements and targeted advertising strategies.

In essence, Flipside was Instagram's nod to a user-driven trend, integrating it into the core Instagram experience to enhance the platform while sticking to broader business and safety goals.

Usage of flipside

It looks like there aren't any detailed public stats on how Instagram Flipside was used. Since it's still in the testing phase, Instagram hasn't shared any specifics on user engagement or how widely it's been adopted. They usually only share this kind of detailed data for features that are fully launched and widely used.

From a bit of snooping around on Reddit, though, it seems quite a few users really liked Flipside and are actually bummed out to see it go. A lot of the buzz there has been pretty positive.

On the flip side (pun intended), some users weren't too impressed or didn't even really notice it much.

I decided to dive a bit deeper, so I ran a quick poll on my Instagram to see how many people had actually used Flipside. Out of the 96 responses, only 11 people said they'd used it at least once. I think those numbers pretty much speak for themselves.

I personally thought Flipside was a creative endeavor to see if people wanted a spam account linked to their main account. However, I can see some reasons for low adoption.

1. Some people might just prefer having completely separate accounts where they can keep their identity, interactions, and content totally distinct from their main Instagram vibe. This way, they can manage different personas or levels of openness with various groups without everything blending together in one account.
2. Finstas are often set up with entirely separate email addresses and minimal links to a user's main identity, which might make some users feel these accounts offer better privacy from Instagram's data tracking or algorithmic suggestions.
3. Managing a separate spam account might seem simpler for some users compared to navigating new features within the main app. Users might find it easier to switch between entirely separate accounts than to manage different layers of privacy within a single account structure.

For those who've invested time and effort into their Flipside content, don't worry—Instagram's got you covered. They're tucking all that content into the archive of your main account where you can keep it or share it as you see fit. And if you want to save everything directly to your device, just make sure to do it by August 25th!

Future of Instagram

Instagram really seems to be taking a page from Facebook’s playbook, which is all about bundling a variety of features under one roof. If you’ve used Facebook lately, you’ve seen it all - from Marketplace to Dating to Events, they’ve got a bit of everything. Instagram is cruising down the same path, spicing up its platform by borrowing popular concepts from other apps and weaving them into its own fabric.

They saw the magic of TikTok and brought us Reels, and even tried to snag a bit of Twitter’s charm with Threads, though that hasn’t quite hit the mark yet. And who could forget Instagram Stories? That feature really revved up Instagram’s engagement, taking a leaf out of Snapchat’s book. If you’re curious about more on that story, check out my earlier article here.

The big takeaway? Keep your eyes peeled for more experiments from Instagram. They’re not shy about trying out new features or tweaking ones from other apps to see what sticks. It's all about keeping things fresh and engaging over at Instagram HQ!