If you haven’t heard about the new Instagram update you might want to continue reading. Just a couple days ago, on March 15th, Instagram posted a new update on their blog letting users know that the Instagram feed we all see daily will have some major changes. Apparently, we miss about 70% of the content our followers share, on our feeds. So what Instagram wants to do is change our feeds from a chronological order, to seeing the “best posts” first.
“The order of photos and videos in your feed will be based on the likelihood you’ll be interested in the content, your relationship with the person posting and the timeliness of the post. As we begin, we’re focusing on optimizing the order — all the posts will still be there, just in a different order.”
At the moment, there are SO many mixed emotions about this. Personally, the people/brands that I follow bring value to me – that’s why I follow them. I don’t need Instagram to sort through what they think is best for me to see. From a user experience, the new change is going to be so difficult for newbies (brands or individuals) to get the engagement they could potentially get on Instagram. It’s just not fair in my eyes and in the future, mark my words, I definitely can see “Instagram Boosted Posts” – much like Facebook’s boosted posts.
If you’re not on Instagram yet, I suggest you start NOW before the changes come into full effect. If you’re already an Instagram-er then get engaging! Below are 5 tips to help you beat the new Instagram Algorithm.
Be Consistent. Be Frequent!
Instagram is the fastest growing social media platform out there. Why? Because it’s all about visuals and people love visuals. The suggested amount of posts per day is 1-3. In my opinion, 3 can be a bit much, but having a strong presence is important. Develop a posting strategy and stick to it. I suggest posting daily to keep your account fresh and up to date.
High Quality Images
If you’re not sharing high-quality photos already, then you need to re-think your strategy. Blurry, pixelated photos will get noticed by Instagram and be penalized – memes are great but if they’re blurry then you need to do better. You don’t need a professional photographer with you everywhere you go. Just make sure the pictures are clear, fun and engaging.
Videos!
If you haven’t noticed, Instagram now shows you a key metric – views. Instead of showing how many likes your video received, it shows the number of views. The more views, the higher the chances of your video’s being shown to your followers. Like high quality images, make sure your videos are also clear and engaging, this way you can get more views.
Reach Out & Comment!
Engage! Engage! And engage some more! If you’re only using Instagram to share content, but you’re not engaging with the comments you receive, or engaging with other peoples comments, then you’re doing Instagram wrong. It’s all about engagement! Comment more on other peoples photos – and don’t just comment with “Nice!” “Great photo” or “Awesome pic!”. Take time and spark a conversation with someone. Instagram will take note and give you extra points for actually using the platform.
Hashtags
Instagram allows up to 30 hashtags on a post so why not further your reach and utilize them!? #Dont #Write #A #Sentence #Like #This. If you want to see results and see your posts coming up top, then come up with a hashtag strategy and put it to use. Just make sure to stay relevant to the content you’re sharing.
Marketers should already be putting the above tips to use, so this change shouldn’t be a huge scare to us. Am I missing any other important tips? What else would you add to the list to help others beat the new Instagram algorithm? Drop a comment below and let me know what I’m missing!
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