Science has cracked the code on one of today’s most important mysteries: How do I get the most likes on my selfie when I post it online? Selfies – pictures you take of yourself and share on social media – are one of the hottest trends in tech right now, so a PhD student at MIT developed an algorithm based on 2 million selfies that can predict how popular a selfie will be. If you want to maximize your likes, here are a few tips to take a great selfie. Brighter colors – especially yellows and pinks – draw the eye and tend to generate more likes. That’s also true of pictures with more people in it – the study found that selfies with other people were more popular than selfies in front of scenery. Adding tags to your photos is important, too, because then they’ll show up in more searches. Finally – and this is no secret to advertisers – sex sells. So remember to smile big, wear bright colors and grab a friend. Thanks, science!
About Shelly Palmer
Shelly Palmer is the Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and CEO of The Palmer Group, a consulting practice that helps Fortune 500 companies with technology, media and marketing. Named LinkedIn’s “Top Voice in Technology,” he covers tech and business for Good Day New York, is a regular commentator on CNN and writes a popular daily business blog. He's a bestselling author, and the creator of the popular, free online course, Generative AI for Execs. Follow @shellypalmer or visit shellypalmer.com.