Brief 2: Distribution methods

Instagram Account

“Prior to Instagram, you just saw whatever online. Now you can follow people that are into body positivity, feminism, radical body love, artists. People that inspire me,” 

“It’s really important to surround yourself with people that uplift you and support you, and so you really have a community of that.”

A digital space for all sorts of bodies

A recent study ranked Instagram and Snapchat as the worst social platforms for body image, though Instagram had good marks for self-expression, self-identity and emotional support. And Instagram has made a concerted effort to foster these online communities by building programs around well-being, and by prioritizing safety and inclusion.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/09/style/body-positive-instagram.html

Zine

Zine format to reference the 'safe space environment' given by the DIY collage style, sharing and contributing to fight body image beauty standards. The contribution from those allowing me to use there posted images for the same purpose, and the collected responses produced a female based focus on embracing and celebrating previous body hang ups, and the comments the way they are answered promote acceptance and that these are normal hang ups to have- even ones consumers may have not heard others talk about before. This zine would create a relatable celebration for a variety of women, and with the Instagram format influences being familiar.

Linking to charity/getting sponsored

Sponsored ads on Instagram are now the most succinct way to advertise within a users scrolling habit of their Instagram feed. Ideally, this would be a way to bring body positivity and reflection in to their social media use while they may be comparing themselves to others on the social media app (one of the hugest modern causes of body image issues). My plan is to link to a charity in which hopefully will sponsor the images, causing them to appear in this way. This is an important end goal of this project and why I was careful to only use imagery with permission, as making this commercial would be the point of a project like this.

Companies such as Cosmopolitan are using this sponsored feature to promote body issues and create a discussion within the Instagram community such as the above campaign which people share their make up confidence stories.

Have messaged Polyester and charities, awaiting feedback. I tried to be as succinct, clear, and especially for Polyester who get so many submissions, standing out with the title and a GIF.