How Insta Reels and Content are Changing the Fame of Media Celebrities?

The invention of social media has made people crave being famous instantly. Celebrities are not immune to this phenomenon. But with many social media platforms being available at present, the selection of an appropriate platform, which can make them relevant to their fans, has become more difficult. In India, the main reason for celebrity worship is the “feeling of relevance to the celebrity” or “the aspiration to become one.” Having a social media presence can tackle all of these targets, including branding, improved connection, more autonomy, and monetization of their popularity.

The only social media for the celebrities to opt for, for all the above reasons is Instagram, which has 2 billion monthly active users worldwide. With the top 9 following accounts being global celebrities like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Selena Gomez, Dwayne Johnson, Kylie Jenner, Ariana Grande, Kim Kardashian, and Beyoncé. Instagram features like short-time reels, creative filters, user-friendliness, and the interactive interface of the app, topped with Instagram engagement metrics, have helped these celebrities to gain popularity over time, making them the most followed personalities on Instagram.

Here’s how the celebrities are utilizing the platforms to change their fame.

Deliver’s Instant Fame

The word 'famous' already comes with celebrity. But with this platform, such fame can be achieved in a fraction of a second, thanks to the Instagram content strategy. With trending hashtags, audios for reels, and filters, it develops tailor-made content for the users. This Instagram content strategy makes the celebrities get a better understanding of the current trends and stay relevant to their audience, making them feel more authentic.

One of the best examples is Shanaya Kapoor, daughter of Sanjay Kapoor and Maheep Kapoor. Shanaya Kapoor has 2.4M followers on Instagram. Considering that Shanaya has just begun her career in Bollywood, without a movie released to the public, she already has a dedicated fan base. This fan base is created after understanding Instagram's content strategy. From having huge brand deals to constantly updating the feed, Ms.Kapoor has been making headlines in the newspapers for her Instagram game.

Creation of Identity

Instagram content strategy helps one to create and establish oneself as a brand in the long run. With the opportunity to create a reel, posts, and hashtags and conduct live sessions, the platform enables the users to give a real-time update to their followers. Instagram gives celebrities the option to be who they want and what they want, as indicated through their posts. With celebrities often rising for social causes, doing charitable activities, brand association, and their interactivity with their fans, it frames their personality in the eyes of the followers, creating their brand image.

The Bollywood actress Dia Mirza is known for eco-activism through her Instagram. As a UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador, Dia Mirza has always been advocating for ecosystem, wildlife, and environmental safeguards. Her Instagram postings and collaborations highlight what she stands for. This creates a strong impression among the Instagram audience insights. Therefore making celebrities as social media influencers. Influencing fans on the right cause can create a positive brand image for one.

Autonomy over content

Instagram facilitates the user to create the image that they want to be known for. With traditional media, celebrities never had the complete autonomy of presenting themselves in the way they wanted to be known for. Page 13, always filled with gossip, gave celebrities the tag that the journalist gave them without giving them the opportunity to tell their story. With Instagram's existence, it is easier for the celebrity to tailor the content according to their wants. Instagram audience insights help them to understand more about the audience's behavior; the changing pattern of the audience can be studied, and content can be generated according to the insights. This can make one’s popularity timeless and more relatable.

The actress of films like Ashiqui 2, Ek Villian, and the Stree franchise, Shradha Kapoor, has understood her followers’ insights very well. From creating posts matching her personalities to reacting to the posts and comments and tagging her fan fanpages in her stories, the actress has created a relatable bond with her fans.

Increased connectivity

Instagram has a user-friendly interface, which helps in two-way communication. In old times, the celebrities had only traditional media to seek for communicating with fans. Again, this was limited to work-related news and one-way communication, often creating a gap between the celebrity and their fans. But with Instagram, the fans can interact with their celebrities’ through comments, tagging, hashtags, and live options. This has helped the celebrities to highlight their personality and get in contact with their fans more often. The constant update of feeds about their personal life, brand collaboration, and work has given the fans an opportunity to feel closer to the celebrities compared to olden times. Consistency on Instagram can help the celebrities to gain closer connectivity with their followers.

Shraddha Kapoor, gained popularity by constantly interacting with her fans through comment sections, reacting to tagged posts, and following her fan accounts. This acknowledgement from their favorite actress made the fans support her more.

The tool for PR

For many celebrities, Instagram is not just a social media. It has become a social influencer marketing platform to promote themselves as a brand. Many of the celebrities have their own products to promote. Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty, Kylie Jenner’s Kylie Cosmetics, and Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS all utilize Instagram to promote their products. With their fans being accumulated in one place, it gives them the opportunity to monetize their image into their products. Creating trends, making reels out of songs from their movies, and crafting creative campaigns, Instagram facilitates the promotion of themselves, their projects, and their products. Therefore, Instagram works as a good PR tool for promotion.

In conclusion, Instagram has helped in creating fame for media celebrities. From Instagram’s content strategy helping in creating the brand image of the celebrities, it has also helped them to gain more authentic followers by facilitating two-way communication. With the platform being correctly used, one can create a lasting image among their followers in the long run.