Icono-scuse me?

Instagram analytics platform rolls out new crowd-pleasing features.

By Alia RajputSocial Media Manager at No Limit Agency, textbook Gemini, pug enthusiast.

SPONSOREDUpdated 2:14PM • 06/24/15

Photo Credit: Denys Prykhodov / Shutterstock.com

April 28, 2015 was a dark day for social media professionals everywhere. When logging into their trusty (and complimentary) Instagram analytics tool, Iconosquare, they were appalled and dismayed to find the platform had surreptitiously begun charging a monthly fee of between $199 to a staggering $799. Through one united voice, their outcry of complaint clogged the streams of Twitter and stormed the pages of Facebook. Until, surprisingly, it worked.

Iconosquare, first unveiled as Statigram in 2011, decided to remove its prices and continue with free services. And for that, we applaud (golf clap, everyone).

Now that the platform has seemingly licked its wounds long enough, it has emerged with a shiny new plan that will have something for everyone. The announcement, which was found in user inboxes the world over this week, began with a genuflect: “The last month has been very intense for us. We have learned from our mistakes and thanks to your precious feedback we now realize how much you love Iconosquare and what you expect from it.”

The email went on to say that in only three days, over 10,000 replies came from random surveys sent out, helping the Iconosquare team formulate the next wave of Stati-Icono-Palooza.

Announcement 1: The platform will remain free (cue the “Santa!” gif from “Elf”). Content analytics will stay available and open to all users with an Instagram account. One of the great things about the tool is you do not need to be a community manager or social professional to have access to backend reporting. Every John Q. Filter can track how well his content is doing, the rate at which his personal page is growing, and yes, what filters he uses are getting the most engagement. Allowing all users to wield the awesome power that is social media reporting is probably an ill-advised offering, but at least we all get to see who’s unfollowed us so we can be sure to unfollow them back. #priorities

Announcement 2: Iconosquare will be rolling out a paid option. For the Iconosquare upgrade, which is called Iconosquare PLUS, users will have the choice to have their statistics updated daily with more sophisticated features, all the while enjoying an ad-free experience. All that and a bag of chips for only $4.90 per month ($58.80 per year) or a “lite” version for $2.40 a month ($28.80 a year).

And, finally, for those social managers that have always resented mingling with the peons in the Instagram analytics space, we’ll soon be getting a VIP room to ourselves. Iconosquare PRO, which the platform has toyed around with in the past, will be relaunched in beta soon. More robust tools on measuring both content performance and community engagement will serve as a “complement to our offering.” No word yet on those price points, but we’re almost happy to pay if it removes us from knowing our 18-year-old sister is calculating what time of day to post her latest “Juno”-tinged selfie with the same analytical capabilities that we have for clients. We’re excited to get acquainted with you again, Iconosquare!