Is Instagram the New Teenage Facebook?

Facebook isn’t one of the cool kids

The reports are in that teenagers think Facebook isn’t cool anymore.

I think it’s the combination of too many changes with the program, too many companies selling stuff and too many of them seeing their parents (and some are even seeing their grandparents!) using the social networking site.

This was not news to me.

I heard about this teen attitude when I asked my 14-year-old niece how she likes using Facebook. In her puberty-filled voice she said, “Facebook is weird. We’re not on there anymore. Facebook is for old people like you Aunt Penney.” { Gee, thanks kid. }

While the stats are telling us that Facebook is the number one social network for teenagers, they’re not using the site like we do. Turns out teens use Facebook like we use email. We don’t click into our inbox every minute of the day but it’s there when someone needs to get in touch with us.

And that’s what Facebook is like for it’s youngest users. They use Facebook to connect with their friends when they’re not in school. They use messenger to chat with each other and as a way to meet the new kid in their math class.

Mostly, they hang out in Facebook Groups to share content with their friends. Teens are tired of the ever-changing Facebook algorithm determining what they’ll see in their home feed so they jump into Facebook Groups where they can be sure that they won’t miss their friend’s posts.

So where do you hang out online when you go into your room?

When I asked my niece this question, without hesitation, she said “Instagram.”

She pulled up the program on my phone to show me her page. After she laughed at the low number of followers I have, she told me all about the filters she likes, the comments and how all her friends at school are on Instagram.

I looked at her account and realized she has more Instagram followers in less than a year than I have Twitter followers. I’ve been tweeting since 2009. I do this stuff for a living. Hey, what the heck is going on here?

I started to follow her to see what teenagers are really doing on Instagram.

It’s mostly pretty innocent stuff of uploading pictures, making their own quotes, liking photos and posting comments. Some of the comments I read reminded me of the notes we use to pass in class or pushed through the slats in someone’s locker.

The same stuff we grown-ups do on Facebook.

Cool Photo-sharing App

If you don’t know much about Instagram, it’s is an app-based program that allows users to take a photo with their smartphone, apply a “filter” to enhance the image and then instantly share it with other Instagram users.

As parents, we’ve all been warned to keep our kids off of Facebook and to talk to them about the dangers of posting private information in the social world. So what happened to turn Instagram into the safe haven for tweens and teenagers?

Many say it was the growth of iPod Touches and iPads that has helped spread the use of Instagram with this young demographic who are still too young to own a smartphone. According to PiperJaffray’s latest report on US teens social media usage, 32% of teenagers claimed Instagram to be their top social network.

Even though statistics show more teens technically have a Facebook account, Instagram is the social site that most teens actually USE on a daily basis. Overall, they love the idea that this visual site is more content focused versus trying to sell them something.

But with Instagram, our guards were down

Talking to our kids about social media can be like having that dreaded sex talk with them. You don’t know where to begin, how much to tell them and what you should say.

As a mom of a tween boy starting middle school, I did my research about what to tell my son Jake. Let me share with you some guidelines I discovered about how to protect your tweens and teens if they’re on Instagram or have been asking to sign up.

Privacy setting: By default, anyone can follow you on Instagram and see your pictures and comments. Show your kids how to set their privacy settings so that they need to approve future follow requests.

Just follow these simple instructions:

1. Tap the profile button (the little silhouette image) on the right side of the Instagram app.

2. Then click on the settings icon in the upper right corner to adjust your settings (it’s in the three dots on the top right in Android products).

3. Scroll down to Private Account. The default setting is OFF so you’ll need to turn it on. When this setting is ON, only people you approve will be able to see your photos.

Block Random Users: Your teens may have a few random followers that clicked the follow button before you turned on the privacy settings. If you want to remove them from their follower list, just do these simple steps:

1. Go to profile by tapping on the profile button in the bottom right-hand of the screen.

2. You’ll be able to see the number of Instagram followers listed at the top. Click on the number and you’ll see a list of the Instagram users following your photo postings.

3. Scroll down the list and you’ll see the profile names of the people following you. Tap on their name to view their profile, then tap the three-dot menu in the top-right corner.

4. You’ll see a pop-up window with the following options: Block or Report. Click on Block and this user will no longer be able to view your Instagram account.

Location: Instagram also has the ability to display a map of where your photos were taken. This can also be turned off in the same settings location.  It’s always a good idea to shut off all GPS functions to make sure your kids don’t share their physical location.

Sharing on other networks: Instagram also allows you to share your images on other social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. Teach your kids NOT to share their Instagram photos on other networks, especially Twitter where the default settings allow anyone on the program to see them, whether they’re connected to your Instagram page or not.

Edit their profile: As much we worry about crafting a clever profile as small business owners, teens shouldn’t be concerned with this section. They really only need to list their names to connect with their friends. Information about where they live, how old they are and where they like to hang out should be deleted to ensure privacy.

To make changes to their profile, tap on the profile button in the bottom right, click on the Edit Your Profile button and delete anything that shares too much information about your teen.

The last thing I want to share …

Talk with your kids: Take the time to talk with your kids about whether they’re using Instagram and, if so, what they’re doing with it and who they’re connected to. You might want to ask if they’re familiar with the privacy settings and talk with them about what’s appropriate to share and what types of photos should not be posted.

But just because you’ve had one conversation with them doesn’t mean that you’re done. Pay attention to their account, what they’re posting, who they’re connected to and what they’re doing online.

And if something feels off to you, trust your instincts and have another social chat with your teen. Remember, you’re not their Facebook friend, you’re their parent.