Make the Most out of the New Instagram Algorithm!
Like most of the digital marketing world, Instagram is ever-changing. The platform is always being enhanced to find better ways to connect its users with more relevant content. We’ve compiled a list of ways to make the most out of the new Instagram Algorithm in 2020! To learn more about how we help manage our client’s social media and use it to grow their businesses, click here!
Instagram Videos: IGTV, Stories, IG Live, Video Posts
Instagram’s fastest growing features are Stories, IGTV, and IG Live. IGTV videos can be up to 60 minutes and can help brands keep followers/viewers on their page for a long amount of time. The longer a viewer spends time on your page, the higher you’ll rank in Instagram’s eyes. This means, your content will likely be shown to more viewers. Stories and IG Live can be used to capture ‘in the moment’ content that disappears after 24 hours (great for promotions and to create urgency!)The latest instagram algorithm puts a lot of weight on the amount of time spent on posts. The content that holds the users attention for a longer amount of time will be more visible.
Businesses should start strategizing how to use the Instagram video tools to promote products/services, sales and promotions, provide information, and more.
Instagram Insights: Demographics, Saves, Actions, Reach, etc.
Knowledge is power! Instagram allows business accounts to view insights for their profile and for their individual posts. Business users can see their follows/unfollows, user demographics, and high traffic times and days. Users can also view actions taken on specific posts like: saves, shares, reach, and how they found your content.
Because of this, Instagram’s insights are a powerful way for brands to understand their target customer, create more directed content, and maximize the visibility of their posts.
Instagram Promotions and Ads
Businesses may use Instagram to Promote posts (similar to Facebook Boost) or create Facebook and Instagram Ads through Facebook’s Ad Manager. The advertiser may select target demographics, interests, timing, and budgets to make their posts and Ads more visible.
Instagram Influencers
Influencer Marketing is one of the hottest trends in Social Media Marketing. What is influencer marketing? It’s is when a brand works with an ‘influencer’ (someone who has a large following and is a credible source for information in a specific niche) to promote their product or service. This is a great way to gain credibility for your brand and make your content more visible to your target customers.
Instagram Likes are SO 2019
Instagram is beginning to hide Instagram Likes from users in certain markets worldwide. In 2020, Instagram likes are expected to be hidden for all users. This is all a part of Instagram’s strategy to create a more authentic experience for its users. With likes being less visible, they will carry less weight in the algorithm that determines how visible posts are.
Creating concise, readable, and informative content is the best way to ensure that you’re maximizing the algorithm. The next section explains why.
Saves and Shares Impact the Instagram Algorithm
While Likes are in the back seat, Saves and Shares are taking control of the wheel. An Instagram Save is when a user “bookmarks” a post, so that they can come back to it at a later date. A Share is when a user shares a post with someone else. Saves and Shares now carry more weight in the Instagram Algorithm. That is because Instagram has deemed that shareable and save-able content is better quality.
How To’s, Tutorials, Infographics, Calendars, Recipes, are all great forms of shareable and save-able content.
Instagram Algorithm and Hashtags
Hashtags are still a ‘thing’ in 2020. Wondering what that little pound sign means? Hashtags are simply key words/phrases that users can follow in order to view and find content that matches their interests. Instagram allows up to 30 hashtags in a feed post. Picking the right hashtags to target the right users is a great way to make content more visible and find new customers.
Importance of Engagement and Connections
Interacting with other users is still very important in 2020. Instagram is more likely to show an account’s content to users who engage with that account more. Brands can increase engagement by liking, sharing, saving, messaging, and viewing posts from accounts that they want to increase their visibility with (target customers, users with similar interests, influencers, etc.)
