BeReal Is Gen Z’s New Favourite Social Media App (and Meme)
By Joel Nekooie
No more photoshopping your face to look better, BeReal is in town.
Posting a photo without filters or edits seems alien these days, and we’ve seen an evolution in most photo-reliant social media platforms such as Instagram over the years, but what if you had no choice but to post something authentic? That’s exactly the aim of the latest trending social media app, BeReal, which pushes users to share what they’re really doing (or what they really look like).
How It Works
Launched in 2020 by French developer Alexis Barreyat, BeReal is a photo sharing social media network that has slowly grown in popularity over time and is now blowing up the internet. The way it works is that at a random time once a day, users receive a push notification from the app — ⚠️ Time to BeReal. ⚠️ — where they then only have two minutes to capture whatever they’re doing in that moment in two photos, one with the front camera and one with the back shot simultaneously. Having breakfast? Snap a photo. Watching Netflix alone in bed? Now everyone knows. On the toilet? Too bad, smile for the camera. Once you’ve taken your daily photos, you can then decide whether to share them on the global feed or to only your friends, with your geolocation included unless toggled off, and then you can add a caption when your post is live.
Photos disappear the next day and are replaced with the next round of posts, unlike other platforms where you have to wipe the evidence manually. Also, with the ‘Memories’ feature there’s the option to save past posts, and any old photos are not public.
Next thing, you can’t see other people’s posts unless you post, an interesting barrier which is actually reminiscent of Facebook’s short-lived Slingshot (basically their version of Snapchat), but also an excellent motive for users because let’s face it, we’re all a bit nosey. If you post after the two minutes are up, your photos are publicly shamed as ‘late’ and you cannot view your friends’ posts unless you post first. That sounds like it could be a stressful couple of minutes, but nevertheless, it encourages everyone to get involved and outlines that authenticity is the key to unlock other people’s daily lives.
Aside from that, BeReal works similarly to any other social media platform in regards to interactions, though slightly simplified. Your friends can leave comments or RealMojis (that’s right, live reaction photos) on your BeReals, whilst strangers on the discovery feed are restricted to RealMojis.
Why It’s Popular
The big question: why is it so popular right now? There are a few reasons, but BeReal has already stated what it’s not about in its App Store description which reads “BeReal won’t make you famous, if you want to become an influencer you can stay on TikTok or Instagram.”
We’ll get to the point though, BeReal is popular because it’s fun(ny). The fact that most of the posts are uninteresting, is weirdly what makes it so interesting to users, because a joke can come out of anything. If you’re using it with close friends, it’s definitely great fun to see photos of them looking dreadful or doing something embarrassing.
The app initially sparked interest among students in the US and Americans are currently its primary user base, representing about 35% of its users (Source: Fast Company). The app continues to circle university campuses and create a new, twisted form of entertainment for all, but BeReal’s more recent surge in downloads can be attributed to a long thread of viral TikToks and Twitter jokes. Fast forward and according to digital analytics platform Sensor Tower, the app had 1.7 million installs during the week of July 11, the largest weekly gain ever. The following Monday, BeReal became the number one free app in the iOS App Store (and remains there today) and market research firms estimate that it has now been installed between 20 to 30 million times.
BeReal has also generated a feeling of nostalgia for many users, leading to more enthusiasm among social media addicts. It’s sort of the perfect timing too, with the big platforms like TikTok and Instagram getting floods of complaints over their constant adding of unnecessary features — BeReal is actually nicknamed the ‘anti-Instagram.’
The daily post idea is a clever approach too as it teaches users to embed it into their everyday routines — we actually went into more depth about this in our Wordle article, so check that out for another interesting read. These elements combined with other simple features like the dual camera (which Instagram have recently copied), timer, and random alert help to create an altogether thrilling user experience.
Loads of Memes
The wave of memes has only added to the hype surrounding BeReal, and actually the harassing through push notifications gives off the same energy as the Duolingo owl, which also had its time meme-wise. Some of the most popular memes right now however, are the ones that take a famous film or TV show and imagine what their characters’ BeReal posts would look like. It’s very amusing, so we’ve shared our favourites below.
Authenticity — Yay or Nay?
Total authenticity online is quite the debate, and BeReal has already claimed to be 100% ‘real’, but is it really possible? And could it actually lead to chaos?
Whilst we can be transparent online, we can’t rely on a platform to show the true depth of our human experiences, and we can’t expect it to change how social media works either. For example, even with BeReal’s seemingly fake-proof components, people have still attempted to go viral using the trend by capturing a photo of a celebrity and posting it on TikTok. That being said, BeReal has been praised for trying to shift the dynamics, saying “no thanks” to influencer culture which has been heightening insecurities in younger generations.
So, is authenticity really the new trend on social media? It seems so. People are tired of having to glamourise their lives to impress others online. When you look at users’ BeReal photos, most of the time they’re just sat on the sofa or something normal like that, but the fact that that’s expected makes the app refreshing, you don’t need to take it seriously. You don’t even have a follower count on BeReal, no visible likes or comments, and there’s no way to track analytics either.
All in all, the need to compare lives on social media doesn’t seem like it will disappear entirely, but it’s safe to say that BeReal has done a good job at connecting users who want to escape the pressure to be perfect. Social media should be enjoyable for everyone, which is why BeReal could may well be the right place for you, or me, at the end of the day it’s about what you find yourself having the most fun with.
Will you be jumping on the bandwagon? Tweet your thoughts to @Uni4mBrand on Twitter.