8 Reasons Why 2012 Will Be Instagram’s Big Year

I’ve been bullish about Instagram for the last year and watched it grow to over 15 million users and it’s my own personal favorite social network by far. I love the pure experience that you enjoy there with no ads, little or no self promotion and engaging content that you can consume on the go.

It’s all been achieved on one platform only and despite pleas for them to open up on other platforms like the web and Android, they have kept it focus and continued spectacular growth. Here is why 2012 will be so huge for them.

It Will Launch On Android

It is amazing that they have had so much success on iOS only and despite half the world begging for an Android version, it has been 15 months so far since launch and there’s no sign of it. That will change in 2012 and the arrival of an Android app could more or less double their users overnight.

Non Techies Are Flocking To It

When Foursquare was big on mobile and people were hyping it as the next big thing, I always had my doubts as it was a seriously tech heavy crowd using the app. Most of the people I am seeing on Instagram are normal folk who are not that techie and who just love sharing photos. The audience is broad and because of the viral hooks built into the app, that reach is spreading further by the day.

No Pressure To Switch On Revenue

One thing that will hurt the Instagram experience is when they decide to switch serious revenue streams on but the chances are that won’t happen in 2012. Their main focus at the moment is acquiring users and that won’t change as the year goes on. In a world where Twitter and Facebook are squeezing ads into the stream in any way possible, you will still be able to enjoy a pure experience for at least the next 12 months on Instagram.

A Pure Social Experience

Instagram feels like Facebook did in the early days to me. I go there for a pure social experience and to see what my friends and family are up to and see the photos they are sharing. There are only really three things you can do on the app which are following people, commenting and liking photos and that is more than enough for me. I don’t really want to be doing anything else and the experience is incredibly simple and social at the same time.

Smartphone Penetration Continues To Grow

We are only at the very start of the adoption of smart phones around the world. As Instagram is built to work primarily on smart phones, they have a constantly growing market. It’s been interesting to see them completely ignore the web and that could just be their strongest trait as they become the first mobile only global social network.

Passionate Users

Talk to anybody who uses the app and they all speak about it in glowing terms. People actually absolutely love the the service and rave about it on all their other social networks. That sort of positive word of mouth is infectious and is one the main reasons it has grown so fast. When I am sitting beside somebody who has an iPhone, I physically insist they download it there and then because I know they will enjoy it so much. There are very few apps with the sort of positive feedback that Instagram has.

They Could Get A Huge Pay Day

It’s no secret that everybody from Google and even Facebook have been sniffing around this start up and it is not unrealistic to think that they could get bought out. They have been right to not sell up until now but if they were to grow to 50 million users by the end of the year, the price on their little heads could become very appealing. I’d love it if they didn’t sell out, but if the right offer comes along you just never know.