Ever since Instagram changed our news feed order from chronological to a proprietary algorithm based on interaction and interests, you have probably noticed likes and comments decreasing on your posts. Whether it’s on your personal account or an account you run for business purposes, reports are coming in that engagement is down. You likely also noticed posts at the top of your feed from several days ago. This has also been adjusted since Instagram launched the new algorithm last summer.
Marketers, influencers, and everyday users all over have been perplexed with how to interact with the app as it began to function on a completely different and complicated algorithm. As platforms are constantly evolving, so should your marketing strategy.
So the question is, how do you stay relevant and be seen as a brand with the complications originating from their new feed organization? Here are some key things to keep in mind.
- When you post a picture to your feed, Instagram initially shows your post to the 10% of followers that interact with you the most. The amount of interaction your post receives when it is initially posted determines how many more accounts Instagram shows your posts to.
- With this in mind, there are 2 ways to make this work to your advantage.
- The first is to figure out what times of day your posts do the best and use that data to create a strategy of when you post.
- The second is to remove ghost followers. When Instagram is only showing your posts what an algorithm determines is the 10% of your followers who care to see your posts the most, you want that to be people who are engaged with your account. So even though this might decrease the overall number of followers you have, it will be more beneficial for engagement, which, from a brand perspective, is more important than follower count anyways.
Increasing your interaction with the accounts you follow on Instagram can help encourage others to interact with you in return. Work on finding niche followers. The more accounts someone follows, the harder you have to work to appear on their feed. So instead of engaging with huge and popular accounts, focus on finding real people who can benefit from the information/advice/etc. that you share on your brand’s account.
Our team always keeps up with the latest changes to Instagram and shifts in best practices. If you need help optimizing your Instagram account, contact Smarter Searches.
