If you’ve opened your Instagram app in the past few weeks, you’ve likely seen people asking you to “Turn on your post notifications so you don’t miss a bit of my awesome pics & vids!”
Here are some I’ve seen just this morning:
C’mon – you know when @GaryVee is asking you to do something social media-related, it’s pretty damn serious.
As consumers & marketers, there are 3 important things to note here – plus, some analysis at the end:
1) What’s going on?
13 days ago, Instagram published a blog saying it was going to start treating your Instagram posts the same way it does Facebook posts – meaning that posts would not show up in chronological order on your feed anymore.
They are going to appear based on algorithms Facebook creates to measure what type of content you like best and who’s content you engage with the most.
Basically, they want to appeal to you, as their user, more.
2) How will this affect me?
There’s this large misconception going around that “No one is going to see my posts anymore! Why, Instagram, WHYYYYYYYY????”
First, chill, bro.
Second, this is simply Facebook’s way of trying to keep you engaged and using the app.
Think about it – when you scroll through Instagram and make it to a post you’ve already seen 4 hours before, what do you usually do? Close the app.
But, if they make it so the posts are ordered by an algorithm that caters to your behavior, you’ll spend much more time mindlessly scrolling through your feed, because now it appears to be ‘random’.
Third, yes, this will have an effect on ALL users – but it’ll go both ways.
Think about it – how many times have you posted the perfect pic or vid and fallen victim to bad timing?
You know your content is fire, but it just so happens that only 10% of your followers were on Instagram during the 24-hour period which you posted the image in.
The other 90% didn’t catch third-degree burns from your post because it was buried in their feed somewhere.
3) How can I avoid death by algorithm?
Keep posting fire content.
That’s the only tangible tip I have for you.
Whether you’re a consumer or a creator on this social network, keep posting valuable content and it will rise to the top. Make sure your content is valuable enough to get people’s attention, engage them and keep them coming back.
As for all of these accounts posting a pic, asking you to turn on your post notifications, I see the purpose in doing that from a marketing perspective, but it can also backfire…
The beauty of social media is that content is free, and people don’t have to be asked to engage with it. They just do.
Asking someone to do something on social media can sometimes be a death blow if your presence to them is not strong enough…careful what you ask for.
Bonus: What does this mean for the future of Instagram?
It’s fascinating to me what the Facebook/Instagram team is doing here.
The more and more Instagram develops, the more it is becoming more like Facebook.
Think about it: Instagram recently rolled out ads on its platform – and unless I’m totally missing something, people hate them for the most part.
As a marketer, I’m almost afraid to advertise on Instagram simply because of the plethora of “GET THE FU** OFF MY FEED!!!!!” comments I’ve seen on Instagram ads.
Now, they’re rolling out this algorithm-based feed – just like Facebook…
Hmm.
From a business & marketing standpoint, this move makes sense to me. Cater to your user more so that they see the content they want to first, keep them scrolling longer, and get them using the app more to stay caught up.
But from a consumer standpoint, it seems like Instagram is becoming more and more like Facebook every day.
What’s next?
Seeing posts in your feed from people you’re not connected with but that your friends have engaged with a lot?
Instagram groups?
I’m sure there’s a lot more backlash to come from this new ‘feed’ approach Instagram is taking – and there are plenty of new moves where that came from.
Let me know what you think about this new algorithm-based feed in the comments – would love to hear your thoughts!
