Over the past few days, Instagram has been exploding with rumors and comments about changes to the newsfeed and how users will see posts from the profiles they follow starting today (March 29). The supposed algorithm that will be used by Instagram will present photos ordered based on the “likelihood you’ll be interested in the content” versus chronologically.
Instagram commented a few weeks ago that the change would be rolled out over the next few months to all users. Of the 300 million users on Instagram, many have been under the idea that the change would be happening immediately and has sent quite a few into a panic. Assured by Instagram recently, the change has only been made in select test profiles so far.
Due to this recent panic about losing engagement, many brands and profiles have been posting images that inform their followers to select the “Turn On Notifications” option so they can be alerted every time a new post is published. As a brand this is indeed a way to ensure that your followers are seeing your posts. As a follower though, if you’re following a profile that publishes frequently, you will receive Push Notifications on your phone every time something new is published – which could amount to quite a few alerts if you’ve done this for multiple brands or people you follow.
Why has Instagram done this? They’ve stated that the average person on Instagram typically misses about 70% of posts in their feed anyways, and that by ordering the photos and videos “based on the likelihood they’ll be interested in the content, their relationship with the person posting and the timeliness of the post” will result in a better experience for all users. Makes a certain amount of sense doesn’t it?
So what should you do as a Brand on Instagram?
First of all, don’t ask your followers to turn on notifications to follow you. I know, this might seem counter-intuitive. If a user is a big enough fan or advocate of your brand (check out one of our other posts on peer armies here), they will have already done this to ensure they keep up with your posts and updates, or they actively will seek out your profile to view your latest posts. Asking for all of your followers to do this can make your brand seem like your begging for attention instead of encouraging organic engagement.
Secondly, and possibly the most important, create quality content. If you have quality content, your posts will naturally gain exposure and views. This means that not only will the message and copy that accompanies your posts, but that your image is attention drawing and is something that your followers will enjoy and relate to, and of course, hopefully like and even re-post.
Third, don’t forget about the power of properly used hashtags. On Instagram, hashtags serve as powerful search tools that viewers can easily follow to discover new brands, pages or posts that they might not be already following. And unlike on Facebook or Twitter, using multiple hashtags in a single post is completely okay.
Lastly, if you truly feel that your viewership and engagement on your posts has drastically declined even after paying attention to your content and hashtags, consider exploring some advertising options with promoted posts. Instagram has now made it pretty easy to promote your posts, which you can even create through Facebook as well to create simultaneous ads on both platforms. This is a great way to ensure that important posts such as new products, announcements, coupons and contest are seen by not only your followers, but other audiences that might not be already familiar with you.
Overall, best advice we can give you about the upcoming Instagram changes, or any social media platform changes for that matter, is to stay calm and to not throw the baby out with the bath water. As we’ve seen with Facebook changes, many times it just takes some time to get used to what has happened, and to adjust plans and tactics, and continue moving forward.
Have more questions about your Instagram content and strategy, or looking to improve your content? Feel free to drop us a line or send us a message on Facebook.
Written by Alison Eiler
Marketing Coordinator
Alison@FullTiltMarketing.net
