This is big news for Social Media. Finally, after years of complaints and confusion over the ranked algorithm system that Instagram has implemented, we are going to see some form of the chronological feed return to the platform “Early next year (2022)”.
What exactly is happening?
Well, so far we aren’t entirely sure. From what the Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri has said, we will likely be getting 2 new options on how to view our feed. Number 1, the “favourites” feed will consist of people favouriting Instagram users whose content they want to see and will show their content in chronological order.
Number 2 will be the true chronological feed, which will show posts from all users in chronological order. So in total, there is the potential that we have 3 different types of feeds.
The ranked algorithm, the favourites, and the chronological feed. Instagram still “believe that ranking helps us connect people with the content that matters to them most.This isn’t “bye-bye” to the ranked algorithm, it just seems to be a “hello” to what the users have been asking for, ever since it went away in the first place.
What does this mean for the platform?
It gives people options on how they want to view content, which is great, who doesn’t love having options!? Instagram gives people the freedom to use these tools as they please and it’s nice to see a big business like Instagram answering the needs of its users and giving them some freedom.
As for people that use Social Media for business, it’s not quite as straightforward. It doesn’t seem like this change will affect the way people make their posts, as the chronological feed will reward those who do their research and post at the best time to be in front of their audience, whilst the ranked algorithm will continue to reward those adhering to the best practices for engaging valuable content.
However, the favourites feed is where things become tricky. Unless you’re favourited, you aren’t going to be shown here no matter what (as far as we know right now), so the real question now becomes – how many people are only going to use the favourites feed?
If large amounts of people are only viewing a small amount of content, then the pool of users who will see the extra effort of your social posts could potentially plummet. This could result in some pages having seemingly inflated numbers, whilst others could have their numbers sucker-punched.
Overall, for the average Social Media user, this is a great change that finally adds back the feed style that everyone has been asking for and removes some of the pressure of “The algorithm”. However, for those using Instagram for business, it will potentially unsettle your statistics as your content isn’t guaranteed a certain amount of exposure anymore.
We will keep you updated with more information.
If you’re looking to get your business on Social Media and tap into the huge online audience that these platforms have, contact us today to see how we can help you.
