With over one billion monthly users, Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms out there. The platform is all about visuals, making it perfect for bloggers, influencers, photographers, florists, hairstylists, and other creatives.
In recent years, Instagram has made changes to its algorithm. If you feel like your Instagram content doesn’t receive the engagement it deserves, you probably are not using the algorithm to your advantage. Keep reading to learn more about the Instagram algorithm and how to use it to increase your overall engagement.
What Is The Instagram Algorithm?
An algorithm is a process or a set of rules. So, think of the Instagram algorithm as a set of rules that decide what content we see and what order we see that content in. In recent years, Instagram has changed its algorithm.
The content that you see in your Instagram feed used to show up in chronological order. Now, your Instagram feed is ranked based on a complicated series of calculations. Instead of having a chronological feed, content is now ranked based on relationship, time, and interest.
3 Tips To Increase Your Instagram Engagement In 2021
Now that you know how Instagram’s current algorithm works let’s talk about some pro tips to use the algorithm to your advantage and increase your Instagram engagement. These tips include being consistent, posting at the correct times, using appropriate hashtags, and trying new post types.
1. Be Consistent
Posting consistently on Instagram will not only increase your engagement but will also increase your follower count. The first step in posting consistently on Instagram is to make a goal and stick with it. How many posts do you want to publish each day, week, or month?
It is also beneficial to use a social media scheduler tool like Planable. With these tools, you can plan all of your social media posts for the week or month in one sitting and schedule a date and time for each post.
2. Post At The Right Times
The newest Instagram algorithm looks at timeliness to rank posts. Although news feeds are not entirely chronological anymore, more recent posts often rank higher than older ones. It is vital to post when your audience is online and most likely to engage with your content to increase your engagement.
If you have an Instagram business account, you can access information about your audience in the professional dashboard under insights. There is a graph that shows the days and times that your audience is most active.
3. Use Appropriate Hashtags
The Instagram algorithm determines what type of content interests each user and puts similar content near the top of their feed. Using hashtags that accurately describe your content tells the algorithm what your post is about. That way, you will reach more users that frequently engage with similar posts.
4. Try New Post Types
Trying out Instagram’s newest features and post types like Reels and Carousels will increase your overall engagement. Although Instagram has not announced this, it is said that the algorithm boosts Reels in an effort to be as successful as TikTok.
You will also see a boost in engagement if you post more Carousels. The algorithm does not boost Carousels more than traditional posts; however, Carousels are popular and can pull up to 3x more engagement than traditional posts.
Final Thoughts
Instagram’s algorithm is a lot more complicated than it used to be, and it is constantly evolving and ever-changing. To achieve the most significant degree of success, be sure to stay on top of the latest changes to the platform and the latest trends taking hold.
Using the Instagram algorithm to your advantage with these four tips will help increase your Instagram engagement and boost your chance of gaining a following.
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