Instagram has changed its algo (again). Here's what it means for you
Social media data, trends, updates and content ideas to fuel your inspiration and help you drive growth.
Hey friends, Andy here š
May was another big month in social media marketing; new trends, new AI regulations and (another) Instagram algorithm change. But, fear not, this newsletter is here to break down what you really need to know.
For new readers, this is a monthly newsletter focused on simplifying social media marketing. Each issue covers:
Key new social media trends, data, and platform updates
Fresh content ideas to fuel your marketing efforts
Practical tips to help grow your brand's online presence
No fluff, just the important details you can actually use. Let's dive in.
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š£ The social media data, trends and new features you need to know
Hereās the slide deck, giving you a network-by-network run through all of the most important updates you need to know for May.
TL;DR. These are the three themes that stood out over the course of last month.
1ļøā£ Social media is becoming increasingly significant for brand discovery. Marketers are now understanding the impact of social and budgets are shifting accordingly.
2ļøā£ Instagramās new algorithm and latest guidance will help us maintain organic growth. Instagram continues to evolve, but Reels remains the most crucial tool for growth.
3ļøā£ Collaboration will help us unlock growth. Who we work with will define how fast we grow. Meta continues to evolve their Creator Marketplace and now TikTok are beginning to push ācollabsā more too.
š Instaās algo updates
Usually thereās sense of dread around algorithm updates, but these changes seem pretty sensible, well, bar a couple of them. But Iāll get to thatā¦
These 4-steps determine how your Reels get discovered.
First, Instagram categorises the content of your video (thatās why having a clear message is crucial).
Then, your Reel is surfaced to a small, focussed set of niche interest groups who Instagram believes will like the video. (This is why having a true understanding of your audience really matters)
If engagement (shares, watch time, comments and likes - prioritised in that order) within this audience is high, then your video will be surfaced to broader interest groups that overlap with your initial niche audience.
Finally, if engagement continues to be strong, then your Reel will be shown to broad audiences and, then, potentially go āviralā.
My personal take;
If we market a business, this 4th step should not be our goal. Broad audience engagement rarely does anything meaningful for our business. Consider going viral a happy accident.
Instead, we need to focus on these five things:
Ensure that weāve got a clear message for the content and that itās focussed on serving the specific needs of the audience we are trying to reach.
We use relevant keywords and hashtags (3-8 hashtags max) that relate to the content to aid Instagram in categorising it correctly. (Donāt use #explore or #viral, this wonāt help.)
We optimise for watch time and interaction. That means creating shorter videos (under 90 secs) and encouraging viewers to share the video with others. (Share rates are a big factor in influencing reach)
We should post consistently, ideally 3-5x per week. This helps Instagram understand our content and continually optimise for how your content is shown to your target audience.
Trending sounds impact reach too. I must admit, Iām not a fan of this, especially for the content I and many others create - trending sounds are not relevant. However, it does contribute to discovery, so itās important to consider. msaybe add a trending sound and just turn the volume to zeroā¦
š For any further reading on this, Iād recommend this newsletter.
šØ Stat of the month
Wait, are media budgets finally reflecting the importance of social media? Based on this data, it seems so!
Socialās impact on product discovery continues to rise and now budgets are adjusting to reflect this.
58% of shoppers discover products through social channels and 73% actively research products on social media before making a purchase. Now marketers confidence levels in social media delivering an ROI are growing.
If you work for a boss or client that isnāt yet seeing the potential, hereās hoping this data helps sway them!
š£ New feature of the month
Instagram have released new interactive stickers; like message to reveal, shake to reveal and the polaroid example below.
This underpins a growing trend of more interaction on Instagram happening in DMās as opposed to comments. Interactive stickers give us a way to encourage participation and interaction in a new creative way, as opposed to just encouraging comments on our posts.
The polaroid example could be a great way to collect user generated content and helps make your audience central to your content.
š Tip of the month
I created the best-selling book I published a couple of years ago based on a 6-step content strategy Iād devised. This strategy was central in building ContentCal from a startup to selling to Adobe 5 years later.
Now, Iāve created a simple template for you to take and use this strategy for yourself. I hope you find this useful!
šļø Upcoming events
Come and connect in person at the Adobe HQ in London on 11th July. Weāre assembling a great group of social media pros for a chilled evening of learning and sharing experiences. The spaces are limited to 50, it will be free to attend, but there will be a waitlist, so get in early!
How to use Social media and AI for REAL results; in this LinkedIn live on June 18th, weāll show practical examples of how AI can be used in marketing and how weāre missing a trick, if we only are considering AI as a productivity assistant. Hopefully see you there!
š¬ See you next soon!
Thatās it for this week, I hope you found this useful š
Look out for some new podcast episodes focussed on B2B social dropping very soon!
Made with ā¤ļø by Andy