Party's Over: Ads Are Coming to Instagram
Sure, Lululemon has been making video ads on Instagram since day one, but you'll only see those if you choose to follow Lululemon—and why would you do that? Now the choice is going away: Instagram is officially putting ads in your face whether you like it or not:
Seeing photos and videos from brands you don’t follow will be new, so we’ll start slow. We’ll focus on delivering a small number of beautiful, high-quality photos and videos from a handful of brands that are already great members of the Instagram community.
Our aim is to make any advertisements you see feel as natural to Instagram as the photos and videos many of you already enjoy from your favorite brands. After all, our team doesn’t just build Instagram, we use it each and every day. We want these ads to be enjoyable and creative in much the same way you see engaging, high-quality ads when you flip through your favorite magazine.
On the one hand, ads are annoying, and bad for you. On the other hand, Instagram is free, and you love it, and Facebook paid a billion dollars for it and hasn't made a cent back since. So you can't have it both ways, buddy.