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Ok. If you haven’t already heard from any and every Instagram fanatic, Instagram updated their algorithm again, and there are quite a few changes this time. DON’T SWEAT IT. With change comes opportunity. Opportunity to learn, to grow, and to scale. Brands and influencers alike get discouraged by these updates because it effects their growth and engagement. However, these updates aren’t made by Instagram to hurt those trying to scale on the platform, they are just tweaks to keep the community engaged, authentic and fun. Instagram is HUGE on person to person relationships. They want people using their app to connect with others genuinely and try to limit, spammers, and those who try to hack the system by leaving “Great post!” comments. So what are these updates?

Instagram Algorithm Updates You Need to Know:

1. 10% Rule- Apparently one new update that can strongly affect your current engagement is the 10% rule. This means that your posts will only be shown to 10% of your followers once posted. If your post gets a positive response in a timely manner with the 10% it will then be released to the remaining 90%. If you were wondering why some of your posts are receiving twice the amount of engagements than others, this is why. This is Instagram’s way of saying “Post engaging content”.
2. We Need You Rule- Instagram may possibly be restricting your accounts exposure based off your activity. That’s right. You can’t get away with just posting your own content and exiting the app, hoping it will blow up. Rumor has it that it may be beneficial to engage with people who engage with you, which means responding to their comments and DM’s within the first 60 minutes of posting.
3. 4 Words or More Rule- I think this is one we can all agree on accept for when we want to show love on a post that’s short and sweet. Instagram is now prioritizing more genuine comments. These include comments with at least 4 words to restrict comment bots from fake engaging and boosting posts with their emoji’s and “Love it!” comments.
4. Shadow Banning Rule- Instagram is restricting the use of using the same hashtags over and over on your posts. Shadow banning is a new tool used to hide you posts from showing up in the results of a hashtag. It is used when Instagram thinks you are misusing the hashtag and coming off a “spammy”. To avoid this make sure you are switching up your hashtags and picking quality over quantity.
5. Instagram Stories Rule- Since the introduction of Instagram Stories, it has opened up a lot of opportunity for not only the platform but users alike. Instagram likes to see people engaging with their new features so being active on stories is a must. Adding locations and doing shout-outs to other accounts are all ways to help increase the exposure of your story to be noticed more as well.

Needless to say, all of these updates are general observations and highly agreed upon theories to how the new algorithm works. Instagram doesn’t not disclose exactly what will help you and what will ding you on the platform however you can ask them questions about the new algorithm update and they are happy to answer. If you are unsure of how to hack the Instagram algorithm updates and would like your brand or business to scale on Instagram feel free to contact us for social media marketing! It can be a time-consuming task, but it is where you audience lives and there are tons of opportunity to get noticed!