From Instagram to WhatsApp: A Timeline of Facebook's Acquisitions (Infographic)

Since August 2005, Facebook has acquired 68 companies costing the social media network a total of $23,124,700,000 USD – not including undisclosed payments. 

However, this is unsurprising since Facebook has established itself as one of the most powerful social media giants in the world, and it has the user count to prove it. As of 2016, just over 10 years after it’s inception, Facebook has a total of 1.7 billion users. 

The below infographic created by TechWyse lists each and every company acquired by Facebook since August 2005. 

Some of it’s most memorable purchases include its acquisition of Instagram for $1 billion in April 2012, and Whatsapp Messenger, a mobile group messaging app, for $19 billion – the largest acquisition yet. 

Using the infographic, you’ll also be able to see rising trends in the tech industry with Facebook’s $2 billion purchase of Oculus VR, virtual reality technology, in March of 2014. In contrast, some of Facebook’s earliest purchases include Parakey, an office applications/web OS program in 2007, and ConnectU, a social networking site, which it purchased for $31 million in 2008. 

While Facebook has not disclosed every acquisition cost, it’s total costs still equals more than the GDP of Fiji, Zimbabwe and Maldives combined! It’s smallest, and first, acquisition was for Aboutface in 2005 for a total of $200K. Since then, Facebook has paid billions of dollars to purchase social networking websites, office applications, travel websites, mobile app developers, software companies, fitness tracking apps and more.

Check out the below infographic to learn more about the companies Facebook has purchased, and determine for yourself which you think were worth the money. Even more, learn about some of the rising and falling trends that have taken place in the tech industry since 2005.

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7 Instagram Accounts That Inspire the Entrepreneurial Journey

Tony Robbins, Zig Ziglar, Ariana Huffington, Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson and Mark Cuban. Serial entrepreneurs with serious successes. We have become accustomed to their infinite wisdom as they’ve shared their success stories with us throughout the years. We find them on most social-media accounts and of course, Instagram.

However, while there’s no shortage of inspirational and successful accounts that represent the highs of an entrepreneur’s success, there is a new rising crop of Instagram users that are currently crushing it on Instagram by documenting their hustle.

These individuals embody the journey, and their accounts reflect the current realities of their day-to-day highs and lows.

They come from a variety of backgrounds ranging from fitness to fashion and from Internet publishing to digital marketing, but they all have one thing in common. They are rising stars that represent a new school of motivation -- aka hustlers, doers, innovators, brand and product developers, speakers, bloggers, CEOs -- and entrepreneurs.

Hence, I thought you should know about them. Here are seven Instagram accounts that motivate and inspire the journey.

1. @Prsuit

Founded by Case Kenny, @Prsuit (prsuit.com) is an online publication and part of the rapidly growing Trep Media Group of brands. Its motivational and inspirational quotes feature perspectives that inspire from millennial men for millennial men.

The online articles come from over 400 authors globally, and its Instagram account sends readers to select articles each day. PRSUIT is on a mission to put an end to online clickbait, and its Instagram reflects this mission by providing content and images that describe real life experiences and stories that resonate with its large following.

• Online publication for perspective that inspires
• Motivational / inspirational quotes for audiences
• Writers from all over the world writing about their experiences
• Providing valuable links to articles
• Guides for millennial men to download
• Podcast: The Hustle Sold Separately
• Help others launch their online publications and grow them

Image credit: Prsuit

2. @HDFMagazine

@HDFMagazine (hdfmagazine.com) is another online publication account from the Trep Media Group, and it delivers with pure style and design finesse. Similar to @prsuit, it features motivational and inspirational quotes taken straight from the most in-depth interviews of numerous up-and-coming global entrepreneurs featured on the site hdfmagazine.com, as well as from the creator’s (Matt Gottesman) own personal, business and life experiences.

The account's creators say that their motto is that they don’t sell the dream, they document the hustle -- and they sure do. Their entire content fleet embodies people who are on the rise, and their visuals reflect it. Oh yeah, and if you comment on their wall, Gottesman is likely to respond to each and every post. How’s that for engagement?

• Online publication that documents the hustle
• Features rising star creators / entrepreneurs from international cities such as Hong Kong, Sydney, Montreal, Estonia, Los Angeles, New York City, Washington, D.C., Scottsdale, Argentina, Madrid, etc.
• Motivational / inspirational quotes for audiences, promotes self-awareness / individuality
• Hustle lifestyle (travel, culture, building companies, music, art, educating oneself)
• Podcast: The Hustle Sold Separately
• Help others launch their online publications and grow them

Image credit: HDFMagazine

3. @Garyvee

@Garyvee, owned by none other than Gary Vaynerchuk, is raw, upfront and direct. Given that he’s a serial entrepreneur as well as an avid investor in companies such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Uber, he’s got a lot to share about his day-to-day business ventures. His account features everything from marketing and social media insights to behind the scenes clips of his podcast and speaking engagements.  

• Motivational / inspirational quotes
• Short videos
• Behind the scenes
• Podcast insights from #AskGaryVee
• Marketing and social media insights
• Speaking engagements
• Mingling with other well known entrepreneurs

Image credit: Gary Vee

Related: How to Rock Social Media Like Gary Vaynerchuk

4. @AndyFrisella

@AndyFrisella is as direct as they come. A true entrepreneur who’s not afraid to tell people to quit complaining and start doing. He’s not only the CEO of 1st Phorm, a supplements company turned multi-million dollar company, he speaks straight from the struggles he endured on his way to his success. Andy’s account features video snippets of him talking on his podcast, amply titled THE MFCEO (I’ll let you Google it if you don’t know the acronym) as well as interacting with other entrepreneurs, fitness folks and everything in between.

• 1st Phorm CEO / hustler -- supplements company to multi-million dollar company
• Video snippets of him talking on his podcast (MFCEO)
• Raw motivational quotes and videos about bettering yourself
• Demonstrates the hustle and lifestyle
• Shows himself interacting with other entrepreneurs and fitness / health people
• Keeps it really real and raw / shows pictures of starting at the bottom

Image credit: Andy Frisella

5. @ArvinsWorld

@ArvinsWorld, started by Arvin Lal, founder of Shredz, has a highly engaged army of Instagrammers known as the #ShredzArmy. This man is pure motivation. He shares his thoughts on the journey of building a company that has gone global in less than a few years, as well as snippets of his speaking engagements. I like that Arvin also features behind the scenes footage and stories of him and his colleagues coming up through the hustle.

• His own motivational quotes
• Snippets of his speaking engagements
• Behind the scenes of his Shredz Journey
• Stories of him and his friends coming up through the building of his company

Image credit: Arvins World

6. @Crimebydesign

@Crimebydesign rocks culture. The man behind the scenes does an incredible job promoting individualism, remote worldly experiences and artistic thought. CXD represents a true cult following that I feel is inspired by his own definition of what it means to create one’s own trend. Not to mention he brings awareness to a lot of other people who are coming up and doing their thing.

• Lifestyle / culture of success
• Has his own clothing line
• Has a cult following
• Demonstrates his network / relationships with influential people
• Promotes events, promotes people
• Quotes that inspire self-awareness, individuality
• Creates his own definition of pop culture

Image credit: crime by design

7. @BethennyFrankel

@BethennyFrankel may be a reality television star, but it was her hustle to form Skinny Girl Cocktails that makes her account so good. She’s an entrepreneur through and through, and her Instagram details the work-life balance of an influential female entrepreneur. Bethenny’s account curates a behind-the-scenes look at the lifestyle of her numerous businesses and brands.

• Motivational and inspirational quotes
• Founder of SkinnyGirl products (i.e. vodka)
• Curates behind-the-scenes lifestyle and her businesses
• Features ideas around branding
• Female perspective

Image credit: Bethenny Frankel

Everyone’s entrepreneurial path is different, but something we can all relate to is the fact that the journey can be rough. In a day and age where success is often glamorized and glorified, sometimes it’s hard to find motivation that’s not only relevant, but applicable -- motivation from your peers if you will.

For me, these Instagram accounts are not just about motivation, but it’s their overall delivery of their content that truly excites me.

@AndyFrisella is very vocal about putting in the work, @prsuit features millennial men who define the journey, @hdfmagazine lays out the hustle of rising stars and thoughts with a killer brand and design, @crimebydesign curates culture, @bethennyfrankel balances her work and play, @arvinsworld demonstrates daily work strategies and lessons while he builds, @garyvee offers commentary on business and life.

These accounts are curating real conversations with their highly engaged audiences, sharing their raw emotions and experiences in the process. They are definitely worth a daily read and they’re a must follow.

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10 Ways to Grow an Organic Instagram Presence

Do you want more Instagram followers?

Looking for organic Instagram growth tactics?

With more than 300 million active monthly users, Instagram still offers businesses the opportunity to reach new users without buying ads.

In this article, you’ll discover 10 organic tactics used by top Instagram marketers to gain more Instagram followers.

Discover 10 organic ways to grow your Instagram presence.

Tips From Sue B. Zimmerman

@SueBZimmerman, a featured speaker and recognized Instagram expert, started her Instagram accounts five years ago. Here are the organic tactics she’s used to amass an audience of over 40K followers on two separate accounts.

To start with, you need to post consistently. While the average Instagram account posts once per day, more successful accounts (like Sue’s) tend to post more frequently. Choose a frequency you can hold to.

Sue B. Zimmerman has amassed a large following on Instagram.

As you begin to receive comments and questions on your posts, be sure to respond to everyone who engages.

You’ll also want to find and engage with others who post content related to your business, industry, or brand. You can find these users by checking hashtags that are relevant to your interests and brand, or by viewing the followers of your favorite accounts.

As you engage with others, don’t simply like the photos or leave generic comments. Comments like “Nice pic!” won’t leave an impression or inspire someone to check out your account. If you want to gain a new follower, leave thoughtful comments that have some heart!

Ready for some pro tips?

#1: Cross-promote to Gain Followers

If you have a blog or are on Twitter, Facebook, or Snapchat, you’ll want to broadcast and amplify the fact that you’re also on Instagram.

Share your Instagram username on your other social channels.

For example, take a screenshot of your Instagram account and share it on Facebook along with a link to your Instagram page. Or simply share your Instagram usernamein the post and ask your followers to follow you on Instagram.

#2: Add Emojis to Boost Discoverability

Emojis are the universal language on Instagram. In fact, Instagram reports that nearly 50% of all captions and comments on Instagram now have an emoji or two.

Because emojis are searchable on Instagram as both a hashtag or in your user name, people can find you based on which emoji you use.

Sue B. uses bee emojis in her bios!

For example, if you’re a photographer and include the camera emoji in your bio, a stranger who’s looking for a photographer by running a search for the camera emoji just might find you.

Users might find a photographer’s Instagram account by searching for the camera emoji.

#3: Create a Photo Theme to Reinforce Familiarity

Instagram is akin to a digital magazine, so curate content that shares a similar theme or vibe. For example, crop all of your images the same way, post pictures of the same subject matter, or use the same filter on all of your photos.

Sue’s followers are used to seeing a clean font and images with lots of color.

#4: Add Hashtags to Gain Traction

The right hashtags can expose your images to a large targeted audience. You can add up to 30 hashtags, and interactions are highest on Instagram posts with 11+ hashtags.

Looking for supplemental hashtags? You can use Hashtagify to find hashtags that are relevant and related to your business. Simply type in a major hashtag from an already-popular post and see which of the resulting related hashtags you can add to your post to bring in new traffic.

Use Hashtagify to find relevant hashtags to use in your Instagram posts.

Alternatively, you can search Instagram for one of your hashtags and look at the Top Posts results to see which hashtags others are using in their own posts. If you go this route, don’t copy and paste the string of hashtags from a post. Stay relevant to your audience and use only the hashtags that make sense.

#5: Use Audience Preferences to Inform Your Content Strategy

It’s important to go back through your photos periodically to see which posts got the most likes and comments. This helps you serve up more of what your followers are interested in and weed out the types of posts that don’t perform well.

You can use a tool like Iconosquare to streamline this process and incorporate what you learn in your future posts and Instagram stories.

Tips From KK Fashions

@KKFashions, an Instagram clothing shop, boasts 15K engaged followers. Here’s what Kimberly Kniep has done to more than double her following organically over the past year.

KK Fashions is an Instagram clothing shop with more than 15K followers.

Kimberly echoes Sue’s advice about maintaining an overall look for your account, posting consistently, and using popular hashtags to bring in more legitimate followers.

For example, if you’re a shop owner, post new items on a weekly basis so your followers have a reason to check back and see what might be available for them. Also add hashtags like #shopaholic, #fashionista, #shopig, #retailtherapy, etc.

As you work each of the following tips into your marketing, you’ll find that they combine to create a snowball effect that produces more followers with each cycle.

#6: Offer “Share for Shares” to Boost Exposure

This is a tactic you can use every day or potentially several times a day to form connections with similar businesses on Instagram and reach their followers. You offer to share an account or a product post that’s relevant to your own brand and your partner agrees to do the same for you.

Partner with other businesses on Instagram to mutually share Instagram posts.

#7: Run Giveaways to Attract New Followers

To bring in new followers and give your current followers something to look forward to, set up frequent giveaways. At the close of your giveaway, encourage recipients to tag you in an Instagram post that shows what they won. Every winner’s post will expose your brand and account to even more potential followers.

Tips From Brilliant Liu

Brilliant Liu is the founder of @house.of.leaders, a popular Instagram account with more than 267K followers. Here’s a few tips on how she grew her highly engaged Instagram account in a little over a year.

#8: Craft a Bio to Clarify Your Purpose

It’s simple but important to create an Instagram bio that describes you and tells people why they should follow you and what they can expect to see.

Stay true to the promise in your bio and once you’ve gained new followers, you’ll rarely lose them.

#9: Create Quote Graphics to Reach New Users Through Shares

Sharing quotes in images on Instagram isn’t an unheard-of tactic, but it’s important to post only high-quality pictures and take time to select quotes that are relevant and meaningful to your target audience. And don’t forget to give attribution if you take the quote from someone else!

Share quotes that will be meaningful to your Instagram audience.

As you match images to quotes, choose a visual that elicits an emotion central to the theme of the quote. When your quote resonates, the shares will grow and you’ll reach new users.

#10: Pay It Forward to Increase Exposure

An effective tactic that can help you build a network faster is to promote others. Post an image with a statement or a question on it, and then tag a specific follower. Ask for his or her input in the comments and include a reminder to tag another user for input.

Tag other users in your post to ask for their input.

As the image is tagged over and over, you’ll be seen by a wider group of potential followers from around the world.

Conclusion

While gaining followers on many social platforms can feel like an uphill battle, Instagram is a surprisingly easy place to create a quality following no matter what type of account you manage. Each of the Instagram accounts above is vastly different from the others, but they’ve all managed to build large, engaged audiences of loyal followers.

The way you engage with people on Instagram, and how you answer and motivate them, can help your Instagram account grow. When you help other people, they’ll tell their friends to follow you.

To spark meaningful engagement that turns passive users into loyal followers, take the time to create posts designed to open someone’s mind. As people ask questions, give each person a thoughtful response that moves him or her forward in some way.

Start by adding one or two of these tactics into your own Instagram marketing and see what works for you.
What do you think? Which tactic will you try first? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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Eventually, most companies decide to venture into social media. It’s the new frontier of marketing, and while it does have its downsides, we’ve all seen the upsides, and they’re undeniable. Possibilities include engaging customers in a new way, staying top of mind, and even carving out a new niche in the social media landscape. But, social media needs constant attention, and many businesses don’t have the bandwidth to do it internally. So we offer a customized approach that fits each company’s business category, supports its brand, and aligns with its marketing strategy.

Ranking Channels: What’s right for your company?

Not all channels are appropriate for all companies. Once we look at who you want to talk to, what you want to say, where your stakeholders are having those conversations, and how much effort you want to expend, we can help you make an informed decision about the channels you should consider. We’re talking about using a bow and arrow approach versus the shotgun method we see taken so often, so . . . tragically.

Tailoring Content: What kinds of posts will work for you?

It’s helpful to think of social media in terms of parties. You have different conversations at business mixer than you do at a family gathering. That is due to the familiarity you have with your audience and their familiarity with you. So consider why an audience is present at any given channel. Here are our thoughts:

Facebook: Where people go to catch up with friends and family

LinkedIn: Where people go to catch up with colleagues, for career opportunities and networking

Twitter: Where people go for customized news and thought leadership

YouTube: Where people go for entertainment and education

Instagram: Facebook for generation z

Pinterest: Visual inspiration

Editorial Calendar

Once we determine which channels are appropriate for your company, we’ll develop an editorial calendar that makes sense for your brand and your audience.

Response Protocol: Feedback is good

Once you start having conversations online, customers will respond. This is a good thing, even though sometimes you won’t like what people have to say.

A lot of our customers are concerned about online feedback, but think of it this way: Those conversations were probably happening before, you just didn’t know about it. Our approach to responding to hostile posts was founded by the US Air Force. Now those guys know how to scramble the jets when there is trouble!

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SOCIAL MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS Riding the Wave

Eventually, most companies decide to venture into social media. It’s the new frontier of marketing, and while it does have its downsides, we’ve all seen the upsides, and they’re undeniable. Possibilities include engaging customers in a new way, staying top of mind, and even carving out a new niche in the social media landscape. But, social media needs constant attention, and many businesses don’t have the bandwidth to do it internally. So we offer a customized approach that fits each company’s business category, supports its brand, and aligns with its marketing strategy.

Ranking Channels: What’s right for your company?

Not all channels are appropriate for all companies. Once we look at who you want to talk to, what you want to say, where your stakeholders are having those conversations, and how much effort you want to expend, we can help you make an informed decision about the channels you should consider. We’re talking about using a bow and arrow approach versus the shotgun method we see taken so often, so . . . tragically.

Tailoring Content: What kinds of posts will work for you?

It’s helpful to think of social media in terms of parties. You have different conversations at business mixer than you do at a family gathering. That is due to the familiarity you have with your audience and their familiarity with you. So consider why an audience is present at any given channel. Here are our thoughts:

Facebook: Where people go to catch up with friends and family

LinkedIn: Where people go to catch up with colleagues, for career opportunities and networking

Twitter: Where people go for customized news and thought leadership

YouTube: Where people go for entertainment and education

Instagram: Facebook for generation z

Pinterest: Visual inspiration

Editorial Calendar

Once we determine which channels are appropriate for your company, we’ll develop an editorial calendar that makes sense for your brand and your audience.

Response Protocol: Feedback is good

Once you start having conversations online, customers will respond. This is a good thing, even though sometimes you won’t like what people have to say.

A lot of our customers are concerned about online feedback, but think of it this way: Those conversations were probably happening before, you just didn’t know about it. Our approach to responding to hostile posts was founded by the US Air Force. Now those guys know how to scramble the jets when there is trouble!

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