These days many people are interested to know how Instagram algorithms work. Recently, Instagram representative have held a conference, where they told all the truth as it is. So, let’s start.
Instagram has never revealed its algorithms before. All the information we have had it was a guesswork of bloggers, who had popular accounts or people, who made experiments with their accounts and wrote some articles about that.
But now, after the conference, where all the myth were broken, we can discuss the presented facts. If talk about the feed, there are three key points, which influence to post being shown to users. They are: interest, recency and relations.
- Interest. Instagram algorithm work to show to user the content they are interested in. It is the content, which pushes you to react somehow - to like it, to comment or to save. Algorithms of Instagram analyze your reactions and offer you the related content in news, TOPs or your feed.
- Recency. These days, the most preferred Instagram posts are the recent posts. The core is that users could be in course about all the news. The content in Instagram is a real-time content, and people consume it right here, right now.
- Relations. Algorithms of Instagram check how close your relation with a user are (how many photos or locations, where both of you are tagged, do you have. If algorithm concludes that your relation are close – you will see posts of that user more often.
Additionally, there are other factors, which can make an influence to ranking of posts on Instagram’s feed frequency and follows.
- Frequency. If user doesn’t use Instagram often, he/she will see all the content, accumulated from the moment of the last visit. But, if you check your feed every hour, Instagram will show you TOPs content, which was added during the last hour. It means that Instagram offers you a content, which is actual for you according to your frequency of visits.
- Follows. If you follow too much people, Instagram filters your feed, and shows you the most recent. On one hand, Instagram doesn’t show you everything to stay interesting to its users, and it does a filtration to save you from boring and non-actual information for you.
And now about myth.
- Instagram hides some post from you.
No, it doesn’t. If you swipe your feed on and on till the end, you will see all the posts from all users you follow. But, I would recommend to reduce your follows cause it’s not good for your account. If anybody sees, that you have 300 followers but 5.5K posts you will automatically be recognized as diver up and mass-follower, and any automation application will recognize you as a bot.
- Priority of the content.
No. Neither photos (multiple too) nor videos have a priority. If you prefer video watching – you will be shown them. So, simple!
- Priority of accounts with stories or lives.
No, there is no priority for such accounts. Instagram positions stories and lives as additional type of content available.
- Shadow ban. No shadow ban! That’s all about it! Any response delays can be cause server change or inner data reorganizing, but in couple of weeks, account appears according to the related hashtags.
- Instagram dooms the posts, which have a lot of hashtags added. No, the rule is common for all the posts. The same is with frequent-posting users. If algorithms conclude that the content of such users isn’t so actual for you is may miss some posts or show them later.
Instagram representative have also told why reach groups become less. They explain it as a simple competition. Now there are much more users now, who publish qualitative content and use Instagram correctly, a competition grows and reach groups become less. So, this all just push people to create a more qualitative content.
Instagram representatives have also told that there is no difference between business accounts and personal ones. They do not make the rank of business accounts to get a payment for advertising from them.
There were all the main news from the Instagram Conference. Hope, they will be useful for understanding of Instagram algorithms and will help you to build a more effective promotions strategy for your account.
