What’s going on lately with Instagram? In the last two weeks, I’ve lost almost 200 followers, and my post interaction has been strange. I only receive 100–200 views on my photography/travel stories, but I receive 500–600 views on a simple iPhone snapshot of myself. Though 90% of what I publish is about travel and my profession as a photographer and videographer, I find it annoying that I don’t have much engagement when I post about these topics! I know the algorithm isn’t as good as it used to be! What are the tactics for that?
Without payment, Instagram engagement is nothing. Most of the time, my own wife doesn’t even see my posts unless she searches for them. In the meantime, a stock image with some copied and pasted text on it is being used as a reel and has received millions of likes.
Please let me know if you discover out how to increase reach and engagement since I have been blogging regularly for a long time and have tried a number of different “strategies” with little luck.
I wish someone would just release a different picture-sharing app to take the place of Instagram right away. I’m over trying with Instagram.We need to replace it because it is slipping off.
Yes, it’s unquestionably no longer about pictures. It irritates me a lot that I created unique accounts for each site and what it offered, just for them to all imitate tiktok. Short videos are suddenly all that matters to them. I no longer have anywhere to shoot photos.
Instagram, in my opinion, is eliminating bots and dead accounts, so those followers weren’t really beneficial to you.
The problem with the algorithm, though, is that nobody truly knows. We are yet at the beginning of the next chapter and we can only speculate. For instance, there’s been a lot of discussion about “reels reels reels” on this site, and I did observe a significant increase in non-follower engagement. However, my postings worked incredibly well with absolutely no non-followers, which is exactly who I want to be interacting with, so it’s all a little muddled.
Let’s clear up the Instagram myths once and for all:
- You can’t hack the algorithm.
- Instagram isn’t limiting your reach to make you pay for ads.
- Reels aren’t a guaranteed way to boost reach and engagement.
- Instagram doesn’t have it out for you.
- Having a ton of followers isn’t always beneficial.
The reality is simple: Instagram wants users to stay on the platform as long as possible. If your content isn’t resonating with people, Instagram won’t push it.
If your static photos are performing well, it’s because your audience prefers them over videos. If a snarky post outperforms a promotional one, it’s because your audience enjoys the humor.
Focus on what your audience likes, avoid what they don’t, and create content they love. Engage with others, and be social. That’s the key.
Because of what it suggests, many dislike hearing it, but truly excellent material is what engages readers. For the same reason that you’re losing votes, nobody like being told that they might not be as talented as they believe they are.
Here’s a photographer. I can attest to the same experience. According to a claim I heard, Instagram promotes reels shot on iPhones because it doesn’t want users to believe that professional equipment is necessary to generate engagement. The longer TikTok has been there, the more heavily it is pushed in the algorithm. This is obviously rumor, but it makes some sense based on what I’ve heard from other sources. So damned foolish. Instead of posting pictures I shot with my fucking cell phone, I want to share some badass photos I took with my professional camera setup.
Every engagement and reach have drastically decreased since the start of the summer. Something changed, severely disrupting many people’s ability to grow.