Insta fraud: are you really looking at a story?

Before you swipe up on a story by one of your fave instagram accounts – you might want to check if the link is actually posted by them.

I was clicking through Instagram stories this morning and watching ones by the lovely Lauren over at Hunters and Heels and saw a story about a new service to try. I clicked past it at first, but given my line of work I’m always interested in start ups so I clicked back to see if this was a new venture Lauren was launching. It didn’t say it was hers, it wasn’t marked as an ad – it was a little vague to be honest – and so something made me glance up to the top left of my phone to see who the story was from – and it wasn’t Hunters and Heels.

Instagramers often have a style, or a grid aesthetic. Lauren’s is sophisticated with neutral muted colours, and shots can often include neatly manicured hands with a cup of coffee.

Her stories follow a similar vibe, and for text she’ll often use the block undercolour option in a hue that matches her grid:

So when this story came up immediately after hers, it matched very nicely! 

But it wasn’t from Lauren – it was from The Good Trade. Their grid isn’t a million miles away in colour, but it does – to me – have a slightly different “feel” to their story so that does make me think that this ad was intended to appeal to followers of Hunters and Heels.

I asked Lauren and the “ad” wasn’t a collaboration so I think it was “clever” marketing by The Good Trade, and just a reminder to be aware when you’re swiping and clicking around on the Internet.