It has been months since I suddenly lost much of my interest in social media. While I still use it, I do so unhappily. I want to keep up with the lives of people I know, but social media is undeniably toxic. It exhausts me. I’ve been longing for a middle ground, and I believe I have finally found one: Herd.
Herd is an up-and-coming app created by co-founders Mady Dewey and Ali Howard. I first heard about their plan while scrolling through TikTok, and it made me so excited. Not only was their concept everything I wanted, but, more importantly, it was everything I needed. The app will not include like or follower counts, something that many people on social media currently have based their value and identity. Additionally, Herd aims to make social media casual again, something that Instagram is fighting against.
Dewey, a casual user of Instagram, posted a video Herd’s TikTok explaining how encouraging more and more users to use Instagram in a casual manner will never result in it returning to a casual social media platform. “Instagram is fighting to make more money off of the content of influencers,” Dewey explained. As a result, Dewey and Howard decided it was time to make a social media app that “doesn’t have to be kept casual because it’s going to be casual.”
Herd is not yet available for users to download. When asked about when Herd would launch, Howard posted a video on TikTok saying that the beta version of the app will be available in February 2021 and that she and Dewey are hoping to release the full version by April.
In another FAQ video, Howard told Herd’s supporters that the app is currently being developed for iOS and Android devices, and the app will initially be available in North America. Dewey and Howard are hoping to roll the app out to other countries throughout 2021. Still, Howard emphasized that this is reliant on Herd’s success in North America. “In order to accelerate this process, just make sure you’re spreading the word and providing feedback once the app is launched,” Howard suggested.
If you are interested in being a part of beta testing, check out this link.