An algorithm is a set of step-by-step instructions designed to solve a problem or perform a task. While algorithms can be as simple as following a cake recipe, they are most commonly associated with digital systems that automate decisions and processes.
Today, algorithms are woven into nearly every aspect of our lives. From social media feeds and search engines to online shopping recommendations, they constantly influence what we see, read, and buy. Often operating behind the scenes, these digital algorithms quietly shape our perceptions, preferences, and consumption patterns. Understanding how algorithms work is essential because they play a powerful role in determining the information we encounter, the content we engage with, and ultimately, the choices we make as consumers.
Social Media Algorithms
Every day, when we open our social media apps, the algorithms quietly start analyzing our digital behavior to create a personalized user experience based on a variety of signals. Likes, Comments, Shares, Location, who you follow and what topics you’re interested in. Let’s take Instagram as an example: The ranking of stories at the top is set by an algorithm, as well as the selection and ranking of the content and ads on your starting page. The same goes for the Search, the Explore Page, and Reels.
Another important signal for the recommendation algorithm, especially for Reels, is the popularity. The higher the user interactions, the more supposedly relevant the content. This causes the video to slip into a self-reinforcing loop. High engagement, higher reach – higher engagement, even higher reach. And whoop – that is how trends are created in the blink of an eye.
While these recommendation algorithms create an enjoyable personalized experience for us, they also create a bubble. If our algorithm is trained on fashion, we will mostly see fashion content. But the type of fashion content is also decisive. If everyone in a social media bubble posts regular hauls from fast fashion brands and follows every new micro trend, that is the content with the highest ranking. So, content that tries to explain the problem with fast fashion will be left behind in the bubbles of people who already know about it. We need to be aware of the fact that the algorithm decides what we see, but we also have the power to (re)train the algorithm. And that takes less effort then you may think.
Want to make your digital habits more aligned with your sustainability values? Here are FIVE ways to consciously shape your social media algorithm and reduce exposure to content that fuels unnecessary consumption:
- If your feed feels dominated by shopping content or influencer marketing, consider resetting your content preferences and starting fresh. A conscious digital environment can support more conscious consumption habits in the real world.
- Engage more with content that inspires mindful living, sustainable fashion, repair, reuse, and conscious consumption. Every like, comment, share, and save teaches the algorithm what values and topics matter to you.
- Use features such as “Interested” and “Not Interested” to actively curate your feed. This can help reduce the amount of fast fashion hauls, impulse-buy recommendations, and consumer-driven content you encounter online.
- Step outside your algorithmic bubble by following sustainability advocates, environmental educators, circular economy experts, and creators from different backgrounds. A more diverse feed can expose you to new ideas, solutions, and perspectives.
- Consider hiding Likes and Shares on platforms like Instagram. Removing these social signals can help you focus on content based on its value rather than its popularity, making it easier to resist trend-driven consumption.
Fashion Content on Social Media
Our daily scroll time has become such a normalized everyday habit that we forget its consequences. It shapes us, the way we think and act, and with that the fashion industry. With social media platforms, fashion has found the perfect breeding ground. We love to visually experience silhouettes and fabrics and want fashion to speak to us and our feelings. Content can spark our creativity, bring us inspiration, and on top allows us to globally connect about fashion. And not just about the latest trends or the new iconic bag a celebrity was wearing when leaving the hotel for coffee. The discussions about fashion history and culture are integral parts of our scrolling experience. These platforms have an impact that goes beyond our closet.
But Instagram, TikTok and Co. are not solely existing for connection and creativity purposes anymore. They are an important indicator and tool for companies. Brands that understand how social media algorithms work can perfect their marketing strategy. Especially Gen-Z finds new products and brands in their feed, through ads or influencers promoting them. Content creators with high reach already have success navigating through these invisible systems that rule the platforms, creating a great opportunity for companies to use that and spread their ads all over the platforms. So social media is not only creating new false demands by bringing forth micro trends, but it also shows users straightaway how to fulfill them.
Influence on the Fashion Industry
Trends are created in no time causing the life cycles of trends to be drastically shortened through the impact of social media. From trend origin to it hitting the market and mainstream audience lie ,what used to be 2 years, a few months. With a traditional supply chain, brands can’t react fast enough to these rapid developments. Fast Fashion brands have changed the standard of seasonal collections with a 12-month window to half a hundred micro seasons to capitalize on the latest trends, further feeding our already existing problems of overproduction and consumption. So, by influencing clothing consumption social media naturally directly impacts the production.
Besides being an important marketing tool, it has evolved into a helpful instrument in operations to plan production processes accordingly. For that, brands use their own algorithms and AI (Artificial Intelligence). They can monitor emerging trends and closely watch customer preferences. They try to look for patterns, also taking into account historical data. The brand can then translate the results into new designs. Besides the design, their algorithms also tailor what you see on shopping websites, like our Instagram feeds, the clothes that seem most relevant and popular are prioritized. Basically our scrolling is always dominated by them.
Algorithms for Sustainability
But algorithms and AI if made right, can transform the fashion industry towards more sustainability. Because they cannot only analyze micro-trends but also trends in sustainable materials, they can forecast customer demand so the production volume can be adjusted accordingly and therefore reduce overproduction. They can also reduce resources by optimizing patterns for less fabric use or analyzing the supply chain to find potential for reducing the environmental footprint by finding the best delivery routes or high-quality suppliers. The possibilities are endless. For example, Vestiaire Collective uses algorithms to match users with their new pre-loved pieces, verify their authenticity, and calculate product values.
So yes, algorithms are a digital force, but they are controllable and can be incredibly useful. Despite their invisibility to the average social media user or shopper they are inevitable, we just need to learn how to work with (or against) them. That means mindfully consuming social media and trying to not fall prey to the latest trend just because everyone else seemingly is. The world struggles with heaps of left behind clothing already, we shouldn’t contribute to that further by trying to satisfy our wants and needs, that wouldn’t even exist without Instagram or Tiktok. But there is a lot of potential in sustainable algorithm design for a fashion industry that puts people and planet first.
If you want to read more about the way we interact with social media you can read Liz Mudri’s latest blog The Psychology of the Scroll: How Social Media Shapes Modern Fashion Choices
