The Instagram algorithm is a complex, multi-dimensional system that determines what content is surfaced to people’s feeds. The Instagram app recommends other users and posts from their profiles to the news feed, so it’s important for marketers to understand how the app signals preference.
How the Instagram Algorithm Works
The algorithm pulls data from all sources, including likes, comments and photo tags. It then uses that data to predict which posts will be popular. Marketing campaigns should be based on these predictions rather than what happens in a vacuum. This is possible when you buy Instagram views from Goread.
The Instagram Algorithm
- The Number of Likes: This tells Instagram whether your audience likes content or not. Every like is a recommendation to add more posts (buttons) in a person’s feed.
- The Number of Comments: Comments tell Instagram if the content is interesting enough to spend time commenting on. If someone spends time writing a comment, it shows that they agree with what is being said in the post.
- Time of Posting: People who post at peak times are more likely to generate a lot of likes and comments. This means that if you schedule posts during high traffic hours, you are more likely to get a lot of attention from users.
- Photo Tags: Another way to create recommendations is by using photo tags. Tags, which are little icons that show up next to a person’s name in comments, tell the Instagram algorithm that a certain post is about a specific topic.
- Token Frequency: This is the most complicated algorithm of all and has the most potential for influencing what people see in their feeds. Instagram uses this algorithm to determine how many posts you can have up at any one time in your feed.
- Interaction with the User: Instagram will also determine whether or not you interact with certain users. If you comment on a lot of posts from one user, your feed will be filled with more content from that user.
Why is the Instagram Algorithm Important?
- It’s Proactive: The Instagram algorithm is dynamic and can respond almost instantly to new trends and behaviors on the network.
- It’s Personal: It focuses on the interests of people who follow you. So, if you are an influencer, it is important that you give a high priority to what interested users are sharing.
- It’s Targeted: The algorithm doesn’t just guess at what your audience really wants; it actually looks at the content and the activities of the people following you. This means that Instagram is capable of creating more relevant feeds for those people than can be generated by algorithms based on factors like Facebook Likes or page views.