Over the last month, many Instagram users have noticed a shift in Instagram’s algorithm, especially those who are content creators. In light of these platform updates, we’ll be exploring some of the new updates and what they mean for brands.
The 2022 Instagram Algorithm Update Includes:
- Pinned posts (reel and carousel)
- All video content will be posted as a reel
- Higher ranking for original content
- Reel templates
- 90-second videos
- Engagement stickers for reels (this or that, polls, and sliding scales)
- DM response time
- Revamp of the Creator’s Studio
- Smart inbox for business accounts
- Ability to assign team members to messages
How Does The 2022 Instagram Algorithm Rank Content?
Relationship With The User
If a certain user has interacted with a lot of your previous Instagram content, they will be more likely to see your future content. This makes continual, repeat engagement on your posts important for building a loyal audience base. Once you build a loyal and active audience, Instagram will recognize your content as valuable and prioritize it on the users’ feed.
User Interest
User interest is determined by tracking who a user follows, what posts they like or comment on, and other websites and apps used outside the app. Knowing your industry or niche is important here so that you can attract like-minded audiences who are already interested in and engage with similar content.
Relevancy Of The Post
When you publish a post on Instagram the algorithm gives it a relevancy score, which impacts who it shows your content to in-feed and on the discovery page. For example, if Whole Foods’s Instagram account posted about YSL’s new collection their audience would most likely think the account was hacked and therefore not engage with the content. As a result, Instagram would flag the lack of activity on the post and consider it irrelevant to your followers and like-minded users.
Basic Information About The Post Or Story
Once the content is shared there are basic attributes Instagram has created to determine the likeness of the published content. These include factors such as; interactions (saves, sends, likes, comments, etc.), what time the content was posted, and use of engagement features (geotag, engagement stickers, tagged products, etc). Utilizing the various features available on Instagram will help create engagement and increase the visibility of your content.
Account Data
Every time an Instagram user interacts with an account the actions taken are stored in a database that helps the platform create insights that will determine the type of content displayed on the user feed and discovery page. The algorithm uses this information to filter out irrelevant content categories and curate specific content that reflects the user’s historical behavior. For this reason, it is important to keep a consistent Instagram content strategy to ensure that each post aligns with the category your profile falls under.
Tips & Tricks For Navigating the 2022 Instagram Algorithm Updates:
Videos and Reels
Our findings suggest that the highest organic reach on Instagram is now coming from reels and stories, presenting an opportunity for increased engagement as well. A key part of the new algorithm is user engagement and interaction, catering feeds, and explore pages to reflect the type of content users are engaging with the most. Our advice would be to share reels to stories and engage with accounts that are similar to yours, particularly that of creators and Influencers. Try out new features available on Instagram and participate in the latest trends to maximize visibility on the explore page – so long as the trends are relevant to your brand! Originality in content matters.
Hashtags
The use of hashtags has also changed and the original strategy of placing them in the comments section is no longer recommended. Instead, place your hashtags in the caption along with your copy, sticking to groupings of 3–4, 7-8, or 12 hashtags, and occasionally change the order for the best results. We recommend keeping a list of relevant hashtags on hand for easy reference, refreshing, and editing as certain keywords become more popular.
Timing
Timing still matters! Implementing a daily posting schedule is a continued best practice with the most generally popular times being 11 am-12 pm, 3-5 pm, and 7-10 pm. If you’re using a scheduling platform check to see if they provide insights on the best performing times for publishing content. Otherwise, consider testing similar content is varying times to see what performs the best.
We hope our findings are helpful to you and your brands, generating higher metrics on Instagram and successful campaigns!
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