Not sure if it’s just me, but Instagram has been an absolute crapshoot lately. Reels either get slaughtered with brutal engagement or they take off days, sometimes weeks later. Carousel and still image feed posts perform well, but don’t reach many new people. The look of Instagram is constantly changing and it seems increasingly difficult to track and plan for what content will hit and what will flop.
Well, the good news is we got a LITTLE clarity from Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri through a series of interviews and videos he posted to his account.
Pubity did a breakdown post on everything he has said recently. Swipe through the post here:
“Evaluate a post does not only after the first two days, but after the first week or two”
We like to call these “delayed fuses,” meaning your post can take off days or weeks after it is published. Initial engagement is obviously a good indicator of how the post will perform, but don’t panic if it takes a little longer in this current algorithm. Mosseri also says in this clip that most of what we see in our recommendations from other accounts we don’t follow is more than two days old. Something to keep in mind.
“Engage in your comments for the first two days, it will help engagement.”
This isn’t new information, but it’s good to hear it from the head honcho so we know our efforts aren’t going to waste. Three quick hacks for responding to comments:
- Use keywords about your hometown and real estate as it may help with the searchability of the post.
- My favorite hack: When you respond to comments, respond with a question to get an additional comment out of it.
- Pin a comment that is funny/engaging that you think will cause more comments!
“Share is the most important metric.”
Specifically, he said to look at “send per reach.” Meaning, of the people who saw it, how many people sent it to a friend or shared it to their story? This will be a good determining factor of how the post performs. Shares over saves, likes, and comments.
Carousels Give You Multiple Chances To Be Seen in People’s Feeds
Mosseri said that sometimes Instagram will recommend the second or third slide to you, even if you already saw the first to give it multiple chances to be engaged with.
Whenever I’m in an IG drought, I always try to post a “swiper of old bangers,” aka a carousel of posts that performed well in the past to rejuvenate the algorithm.
Engagement Rate is more important than follower count
Your likes, comments, saves, and shares mean WAY more than how many people follow you. Back in the day the only metric people and brands were concerned with was followers, but this is not the case anymore.
So, if you are talking to a seller and they ask about your social media following, let them know what it is, but shift the conversation to engagement rate if you’re crushing it. Show them post specifics: “I may have 2,000 followers, but it reached 40,000 people and was shared privately and publicly 200 times.” Get specific with your metrics and your posts for a more impressive presentation.
None of this is enlightening or particularly new, but it’s good to get a little clarity on our Instagram suspicions from the man himself.
Major takeaways:
Don’t delete posts. Your Reel can take off weeks after it’s posted.
Respond to comments as they keep coming in, even if it’s days later.
Shares are the most important metric.
Post more carousels.
Judge your account by your engagement rate, not your follower count.
Don’t get discouraged. The platform is going through constant changes and we are all feeling the engagement volatility.
Join BAMx. On July 1st we are coming out with my Instagram Insights course, where I teach you exactly how to read your Instagram analytics to improve the health and performance of your account.
In BAMx you get a new course every month, weekly social media templates, emails, scripts, and blogs, and you get exclusive access to our mastermind and community.
