TL;DR—TikTok Drama and New Instagram Updates
TL;DR—TikTok Drama and New Instagram Updates
If either you're living under a rock or blissfully ignoring the news (both sound like fabulous ways to be, no judgment), let me catch you up. Social media is doing its thing again, and the last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind for TikTok and Instagram users.
TikTok's Rollercoaster Ride
In case you missed it, TikTok narrowly escaped a nationwide ban in the U.S. just days ago. Concerns over its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, led to intense scrutiny. While TikTok has been granted a temporary reprieve to address these issues, this situation is a stark reminder of how fragile can be our relationships with social media platforms—one government decision can literally shut the whole thing down.
Instagram's Feed Gets a Makeover
Instagram is also keeping us on our toes. Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, recently announced some significant changes to profile layouts. Here's what's happening:
A New Grid Layout: To better showcase the vertical photos and videos most users upload, Instagram rolled out a taller grid on profiles. While this allows for more content visibility, it’s throwing off creators who meticulously curate their grids. In response, Instagram plans to add more customization options for thumbnails to restore some control.
Story Highlights in the Grid: Highlights will soon move into the grid as their own tab. Kinda weird I think, but this will be an interesting change to watch.
Grid Reordering: Instagram is developing a tool to let you reorder your entire grid—praise. 🙌🏼
Direct Posting to the Grid: Instagram is adding a feature to post directly to the grid, skipping the feed.
Mosseri also acknowledged that the lack of advance notice for these changes was a misstep and promised more transparency moving forward.
Both TikTok’s regulatory challenges and Instagram’s rapid updates highlight one big truth for us as business owners:
Social Media Access is a Privilege, Not a Right
We don’t own these platforms, and we never will. They’re tools—powerful ones, sure—but they can change the rules, algorithms, or layouts whenever they want. And they don’t need our permission to do it.
Lesson of the day: Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
Diversify Your Marketing Strategy
TikTok could disappear tomorrow, Instagram could change its format next week, and Facebook could…well, who knows. Here's how to protect yourself:
Build your email list. It’s the one thing you truly own.
Strengthen your website’s SEO. Make sure your audience can find you directly, no matter what happens.
Leverage multiple platforms strategically. Diversify your presence so no single platform controls your audience access.
AKA, social media should support your business, not be your business.
TL;DR—
TikTok and Instagram’s latest updates remind us we’re playing on borrowed land. Treat these platforms as tools, not assets, and start diversifying where and how you connect with your audience.
What are your thoughts on these changes? Are they affecting how you approach your marketing strategy? Hit reply—I’d love to hear how you’re navigating this.
