I Gave Up and Let Instagram Shop for Me
The first product I ever bought directly from an internet ad was a pair of Nike VaporMax sneakers, which cost $200 and were a rosy shade often referred to as “Millennial pink.” The shoes appeared while I was tapping through my friends’ Instagram Stories, and it was a sales pitch so perfect for me, a Millennial sneaker fanatic, that I felt concerned about how well Nike and Instagram apparently knew my taste. That feeling was coupled with a vague sense of shame that advertising had worked on me (not to mention the price). That unease was overcome by how badly I wanted the sneakers, so I swiped up to go to Nike’s website.
Like many people young enough to have that it threatens the viability of online media. But Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, may have cracked the code. The app’s treasure trove of user data, combined with its pretty, advertising-friendly aesthetics, do an unnervingly good job of getting past the defenses of even its savviest users. I often feel like Instagram isn’t pushing products, but acting as a digital personal shopper I’m free to command.
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