The Perks That the New Instagram Algorithm Would Bring
Recently, Instagram revealed to the world that they are going to adapt a non-chronological newsfeed order, which is said to be like the one Facebook is using. With this update, the platform will be able to weigh in an array of social signals, such as post engagements, instead of sorting posts in a familiar linear order. Plus, it will consider content you liked in the past and try to sort images based on relevancy, or as what it perceives to be most appealing to you.
However, this move has caused uproar amongst Instagram users, mostly businesses, who are comparing the change to Facebook’s algorithm, which is notoriously known for discriminating content on business pages. You see, they have Instagram as their network of choice because of its unlimited reach of posts and chronological order. However, it is important to note that unlike Facebook, Instagram does not separate business from personal accounts, which means that the update will not be discriminatory of businesses. Let us examine what this algorithm really is and see if it can hurt marketers or not.
For one, Instagram chronological newsfeed would be effective in several cases, considering that businesses are posted every 30 minutes and followers are having limited numbers of handles they follow. According to an Optical Cortex survey on more than 20,000 users, this will not be a widespread trend, as the average number of people users follow is 822. So, for most of the brand following, these images are most likely not the first things they saw, which means that chronological order did not truly matter anyhow.
What would really count is for businesses and marketers to get ahead of the game using smart strategies, like focusing on quality visual content that will trigger valuable engagement. Aside from this, they should also be extremely strategic about their captions with calls to action, which are proven to be very effective in getting desired results. Also, asking the audience for their opinion is an easier way to gain insights and numerous shares.
Businesses that are currently enjoying high engagement rates are those who know their respective audiences very well. They know what types of images that catch attention and what types of content they should serve to properly cater to their audience, who will then stick to following such brands.
It is also good for Instagram to let us know of this update before rolling it out, as they are giving business and marketers time to build a new strategy with chronological newsfeed and keep their campaigns up. So, this algorithm change might be for the better after all. If you post appropriate and valuable content, it will just be waiting for your followers in their newsfeed even if you posted it a few hours already.
Considering all these things, it would be quite unreasonable to shy away from this occasional boost to be taken by Instagram. By employing the powerful advertising capabilities of Facebook on this social media platform, we will be able to target the right people.
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