Instagram is testing a subscription feature for content creators

The latest effort by Instagram to attract and retain creators puts a paywall between you and your fans.

A guest post by James Shotwell of Haulix.

The latest effort by Instagram to attract and retain creators puts a paywall between you and your fans.

Instagram and Facebook will do anything to connect fans with creators except forge those connections for free. The Zuckerberg-led behemoth has understood the value of direct contact from day one, and that’s why they charge us for it.

In its latest move to connect artists and fans, Instagram began testing a subscription feature with select U.S. content creators this week. The tool, which launched earlier this week, allows users to charge followers to access exclusive content.

What kind of exclusive content, you ask?

Mark Zuckerberg, the co-founder of Facebook and chairman/CEO of parent company Meta, announced the test in a post Wednesday. “This will help creators earn more by offering benefits to their most engaged followers like access to exclusive Lives and Stories,” he wrote. “I’m excited to keep building tools for creators to make a living doing creative work and to put these tools in more creators’ hands soon.”

Subscribers will also gain access to exclusive badges, not unlike what YouTube offers users who subscribe to their favorite channels.

Again, the new feature is only available to a limited number of creators at this time. Instagram has given no date for a wide release, but later in 2022 is likely. 

As for pricing, create can set a monthly price of their choice and unlock a “subscribe” button on their profile. The program will let creators select from eight different price points, starting at 99 cents/month and ranging up to $99.99/month.

James Shotwell is the Director of Customer Engagement at Haulix and host of the company’s podcast, Inside Music. He is also a public speaker known for promoting careers in the entertainment industry, as well as an entertainment journalist with over a decade of experience. His bylines include Rolling Stone, Alternative Press, Substream Magazine, Nu Sound, and Under The Gun Review, among other popular outlets.