Demystifying Instagram
“Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain” - The Wizard of Oz.
The Wizard of Oz from the movie of the same name famously offered this piece of advice to Dorothy and her friends once the curtain was pulled back and the Wizard’s true identity was revealed. Much like Dorothy, digital marketers today have been in the dark for some time about the inner workings of Instagram and specifically how it determines which content is served up to users across each of its key features. Until now.
BY GAVIN MANLEY
A recent blog post by the head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, entitled “Shedding More Light on How Instagram Works,” offers insight on how the platform behaves—helping to answer questions like “How does Instagram decide what posts to show first?” or “What factors determine what shows up in a user’s Explore tab?” Knightsbridge Park offers a quick summary of our key takeaways below.
1. The Myth of “the Algorithm”
Despite what you may have heard, there is not just one algorithm that controls what users see on Instagram. Several algorithms are at work, depending on the feature (Explore, Feed, Stories, or Reels), and these are activated by how each user interacts with the platform or “signals.” More on signals below.
2. Signals Point the Way
Very simply, signals can be understood as 1) what content was posted, 2) the people who made these posts, and 3) a user’s specific preferences. There are literally thousands of signals, and these data points include everything from what time a post was shared to whether Instagram users were on their phone or a web browser.
Instagram uses these signals to make a series of educated guesses that help predict how likely users are to interact with specific content and leverages this information to “surface” posts based on users’ behavior on the platform. This data then helps determine which posts have a higher ranking within a specific user’s feed.
See below for a quick guide below on how posts are ranked across Instagram’s key features.
3. Entertainment Is Key
Instagram’s Reels feature is designed to entertain. Much of what users see is from accounts they don’t follow; the platform relies on its signaling process to make predictions about what reels people might like and then orders them based on how compelling, funny, or engaging they might be for specific users.
The signaling process for Instagram’s Explore feature closely mirrors Reels. When a user engages with a specific post, they will be presented with other content from analogous creators. In practice, this means that if a user is interested in interior design, for example, they may be presented with posts about related topics like color theory or soft furnishings.
4. Content Is (Still) King
How quickly users like, comment, and save posts, as well as a user’s history of interacting with the one that posted the content, helps determine what shows up in Instagram’s Explore feature.
For marketers, this means that compelling content has a higher probability of finding its way onto a user’s Explore tab. Conversely, engaging content from your competitors may also be presented to your followers within the Explore feature, so having the edge on creative content is crucial.
Final Thought
Instagram is clearly committed to demystifying the mechanics of how the platform works and should be applauded for these steps towards greater transparency.
Originally published on Knightsbridge Park’s blog.