By Doug Brown 
If you have been using your Instagram account during the past few years, it must have come to your notice that Instagram is changing constantly. Some changes such as, IGTV, Instagram Chat, and the capability of incorporating music into your Stories are some of the changes that took place for the better and benefited everyone. However, modifications to the fundamental Instagram algorithm imply that Instagram will be playing quite differently from now on. This has culminated in the emergence of some clear winners and numerous losers as well.
What seems especially challenging for organizations that have already mastered the art of marketing on Instagram is that the brand new Instagram algorithm implies that it is far more difficult to place your marketing message in front of potential clients to see. It is of pivotal importance to rethink the kind of messages you would be posting on Instagram from now on.
What Do You Mean by Instagram Algorithm?
The Instagram algorithm undoubtedly is the intelligent programming that helps to determine the order of posts in a user’s Instagram feed. Before 2016, all Instagram posts appeared in sequence and the newest or latest posts showed up right at the top of the user’s feed. Over time Instagram gained a lot of traction hence, this became quite cumbersome and unwieldy. The average Instagram user started getting far too many Instagram posts and it was no longer possible to see all the posts. This implied that several posts potentially from near and dear ones were never seen just because those posts were near the bottom of the queue.
We know that Instagram has already changed its algorithm twice during the past few years. It switched from a purely chronological feed to primarily presenting posts as per the preferences of individual users. As per Forbes.com, Instagram seems to be operating in ‘mysterious’ ways. Simply speaking Instagram has made things difficult and your posts may not reach your entire following. This could mean a major setback for brands and businesses that rely predominantly on mass exposure. However, this could provide users with the golden opportunity to connect with your niche target audience that will prove advantageous to your brand in the long run.
Instagram now plays a pivotal role in creating a personalized user’s feed for all Instagrammers. It focuses on posts from family and friends. It implies that if you are a business owner, it would become incredibly difficult for you to make your posts visible to the public. Your posts will be given the least preference as Instagram will be giving top priority to posts that its algorithm believes are far more apt for a specific Instagrammer. The latest Instagram algorithm showcases pictures and videos in far more chronological order in comparison to 2016 after the modifications were implemented. Thanks to the latest intelligent Instagram algorithm, several factors will be impacting how conveniently people will identify your posts present in their Instagram feeds.
Factors That Impact the Instagram Algorithm
There are a host of factors that impact the order in which a post will appear on your Instagram feed and even the freshness of an Instagram post individually. Here are some important factors that influence the possibility of a post showing up at the top of someone’s Instagram newsfeed.
The Engagement Received by Post
If a post gets very high engagement, there will be a greater possibility of Instagram boosting it straight away to the very top of someone’s Instagram feed. Suppose you have a track record of generating posts that receive high engagement, automatically Instagram will push all your posts to the top anticipating that all your new posts on the platform will also get quality engagement. It is predominantly the reason why Instagram influencer marketing is still going strong. Influencers have a solid background and a track record of creating highly-engaging content that performs exceptionally well. The intelligent Instagram algorithm takes this into notice and rewards suitably the influencers by placing their posts higher up on other users’ feeds. Moreover, Instagram rewards users who could generate quick engagement. You may seek professional assistance from a reliable and reputed digital marketing company such as Blastup.com for buying likes or views to further boost Instagram engagement.
Time Spent by People Browsing through Your Post
Instagram observes for how long users are spending time viewing your post. Suppose Instagram sees that Instagrammers are spending more time on your post as compared to the time they usually spend on other posts, your post will be placed ahead of the rest. That should give the right motivation to devote time to generating compelling captions. It takes more time to go through high-quality captions and then think about leaving a comment.
The Specific Kind of Content
The Instagram algorithm has been quite proficient at setting up a picture of the interests of users over time. Instagram will be noticing if you are in the habit of sharing cat pictures regularly. Similarly, Instagram is monitoring if the maximum pictures liked by you are relating to boating or fishing. Instagram makes an effort to demonstrate to each user exactly what they are looking forward to seeing and what they are used to seeing. This implies that the Instagram AI will be giving top priority to Instagram posts that are dealing with topics that fascinate each user individually.
Influencers could make the most of this. If they focus on specializing in generating posts about a specific subject, their posts will show up more regularly in the Instagram feeds of users who have demonstrated an interest in that precise topic. Hence, people who are used to sharing pictures of fishing spots may encounter posts relating to fishing.
Instagrammers should note that the topic of the post may impact the possibility of that post being strategically placed in an Instagram feed, however, the post’s format doesn’t. Today posts featuring videos do not get any preferential treatment by Instagram in comparison to static pictures. However, if an individual interacts more frequently with videos on his Instagram account, he will get to see more video posts in his feed in the future.
Conclusion
Instagram can prove to be an extremely powerful marketing platform for brands and businesses provided the right stratagem has been implemented. If you want your brand to succeed on Instagram, you may focus on changing your mindset from gathering massive follower numbers. Instead, you should start engaging your specific target audience. Keep the above algorithm factors in mind to bring your brand to the limelight.
SME Paid Under
Sitetrail Research Team 
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