In a bid to enhance discovery, Instagram has incorporated recommendations across its various features, including Reels, Explore and the Feed. These personalised recommendations aim to generate opportunities for creators to reach previously unknown audiences, while providing fresh but relevant content for users by catering to individual interests. This guide provides creators with the information to navigate the intricate landscape of Instagram recommendations, ensuring that their content resonates with the right audience and contributes to their overall success on the platform.
How Instagram Recommendations Operate
The recommendation system relies on different signals to tailor suggestions. Metrics such as the speed and volume of engagements (likes, comments, shares, and saves), a user's interaction history with the content creator, and engagement with other posts contribute to personalised recommendations. Users are provided with controls to shape their Instagram experience, indicating their preferences and comfort levels with sensitive content. These elements work cohesively to inform the recommendation system, ensuring that content reaches the most fitting audience.
Eligibility for Recommendations
To be eligible for recommendations, creators must adhere to stringent guidelines. Instagram maintains a higher standard for recommended content compared to what is visible to followers. This ensures that potentially offensive or inappropriate content is not recommended to a broader audience that has not explicitly indicated interest. Content that violates these guidelines may still be distributed to followers but is less likely to be recommended to non-followers. Violations include content depicting violence, promoting regulated products, or containing sexually explicit or suggestive material.
Best Practices for Recommendation Eligibility
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Follow Recommendation Guidelines:
- Adhere to Instagram's recommendation guidelines, considering the higher standard for recommended content.
- Avoid content that may be offensive or inappropriate for a broader audience.
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Follow Community Guidelines:
- Comply with Instagram's Community Guidelines, governing all content on the platform.
- Persistent violations may render the entire account ineligible for recommendations.
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Check Account Settings:
- Ensure that your account settings are public to enable content recommendations.
- Business or creator accounts are automatically public.
Best Practices for Recommendations
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Post Original Content:
- Share exclusive content that has not previously been posted on Instagram.
- Avoid reposting reels that are already on the platform or posting unoriginal/aggregated content.
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Create Engaging Reels:
- Optimise video content for full-screen, vertical viewing with high resolution.
- Keep reels under 90 seconds, making a strong first impression.
- Avoid visibly recycled or low-quality content.
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Be Discoverable via Search:
- Utilise relevant keywords in your Instagram handle, bio, captions, and hashtags.
- Enhance search visibility with content-related keywords in captions.
Monitoring Insights
Instagram Insights offers valuable data to monitor content performance and audience reach. Creators can analyse trends, track content performance, and distinguish between accounts reached by followers and non-followers.
Checking Eligibility
Professional accounts now have the ability to check their eligibility for content recommendations in Account Status. This feature allows users to:
- Determine if their content is eligible for recommendations in places like Explore, Reels, and Feed Recommendations.
- Understand potential issues violating recommendation guidelines.
- Edit or delete problematic content.
- Request a review if content removal seems erroneous.