Why Is Gen Z Turning Away From Brands? The Instagrammy Conference Highlighted Both Mistakes and Best Practices

57% of Gen Z users have unfollowed a brand’s Instagram profile—nearly a fifth more than the general population. So while young people are active on Instagram, they are also significantly more demanding: they expect authentic, relevant, and valuable content. And they don’t hesitate to unfollow a brand if it doesn’t deliver.

The behavior of this generation was one of the main topics of the Instagrammy conference, jointly organized by the agencies Konektor and NMS Market Research. The event offered a data-driven look at how the 100 most successful Czech brands operate on Instagram and provided specific recommendations on how to retain followers’ attention in 2025.

What leads to unfollows: cringe, information overload, and a loss of direction

“Our research has shown that young people are really sensitive to how brands communicate with them,” says Alice Bémová from NMS Market Research. “They care about authenticity and quality, but at the same time, they immediately recognize outdated trends or content that tries to appeal to them in an unnatural way. When communication tries to come across as youthful but doesn’t feel natural, Gen Z sees right through it—not only does such content fail to work, but it can even harm the brand.”

Research has confirmed that young users have a significantly lower tolerance for inauthentic content and over-the-top stylization. A key factor in their decision to unfollow a brand is a change in style or direction that no longer meets their expectations. Excessive posting without real added value also has a negative effect, as does stylization that attempts to “speak like young people” but results in an uncomfortably forced impression.

Conversely, the main reasons why young followers choose to follow brands include:

• Practical value – 76% follow profiles for discounts, promotions, and contests.
• Educational and inspirational content – 59% appreciate tips, tutorials, or visually appealing inspiration.
• Aesthetics combined with authenticity – content must be visually appealing, yet come across as natural and trustworthy.

Although visual appeal remains important, only 11% of young users said that the feed’s appearance is the main reason they follow a brand. The relevance and meaningfulness of the content thus clearly play a greater role than the design itself.

The best brands don’t follow trends, they follow context

“Even the most-followed brands don’t do everything. Sometimes they lack a logo, sometimes community management, but they’re still successful—precisely because they’re clear, authentic, and consistent over the long term. Perfectionism is often neither necessary nor possible—what’s more important is knowing what the brand wants to say and saying it simply and regularly,” notes Michal Marek, Head of Social at the Konektor agency.

An analysis of the 100 most-followed corporate accounts, presented by Konektor, showed that the key to success lies in a combination of consistency, a clearly defined style, and content that is relevant to the target audience. In numbers, this means:

• The average brand in the TOP 100 posts 326 times a year, or about once a day. The most active accounts post nearly 500 times a year.
• Videos account for 46% of all posts and dominate in terms of both likes and comments.
• Photos remain an important format—they make up 33% of the content on the 20 most-followed profiles and are often the most commented on.
• Carousels, despite their strength from the algorithm’s perspective, account for only 26% of content. Their prevalence drops even further among the top-ranked profiles.

In addition to the structure of their posts, other patterns of behavior also stood out. For example, many of the most successful profiles do not include a visible logo in their posts, do not use features such as Instagram Reels or Threads, and often do not engage in active community management.

Recommendations for brands: consistency, relevance, and calmness

Successful Instagram brands in 2025 aren’t necessarily those with the biggest budgets or the most visually striking graphics, but those that communicate regularly, clearly, and offer their followers real value. People respond to content that is practical, inspiring, or entertaining—not to overly stylized presentations. It is precisely this emphasis on clarity and long-term consistency that proves to be the key difference between average and truly strong accounts.

“Brands that have succeeded post regularly, combine promotional and organic content, and don’t strive for perfection at all costs. They don’t chase trends but stick to their own style. And what’s key—they speak the language of their followers, not the language of the algorithm,” summarizes Michal Marek, Head of Social at the Konektor agency.

The Instagrammy conference took place on May 13, 2025, at Prague’s Next Zone and, as the first of its kind in the Czech Republic, brought together data, research insights, and the experiences of brands building their presence on Instagram. It was organized by the agencies Konektor and NMS Market Research. It demonstrated that even in an environment influenced by trends and algorithms, clear and consistent communication is what matters—and offered marketers a clear roadmap on how to achieve it.

About Konektor

In communication group Konektor employs over fifty experts in strategic communications, public relations, advertising, digital and influencer marketing, and public affairs. In addition to its offices in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, it serves other markets through its long-standing membership in Eurocom Worldwide, a network of independent communications agencies. Konektor has long provided services to companies such as Microsoft, Skanska, Generali Investments, Heureka, Nvidia, Stock, CEMEX, Oriflame, and others.

About NMS Market Reserach

NMS Market Research is a research agency with more than 20 years of history, operating through offices in Prague, Bratislava, Budapest, and Bangkok. In addition to market research, which it provides to hundreds of clients around the world, it also studies political and social issues. The agency specializes in innovative approaches to market research that help clients better understand their customers, navigate the market, and see the world in context. NMS is a member of ESOMAR, SIMAR, SAVA, and MSPA.