Instagram is one of the strongest platforms for marketing, and it’s here to stay.
With 2 billion users, it’s a relatively large target audience that businesses of all sizes can reach through it. The platform has been updating regularly since its inception to keep up with the changing times, so marketers have more tools at their disposal than ever before.
With a massive chunk of your audience actively lurking here, it pays to know about all the latest and new Instagram updates.
As a social media monitoring tool, we at Radarr always watch all social platforms closely.
In this post, we aim to keep you informed about all the new Instagram updates – bookmark it for easy reference!
New Instagram updates and features your marketing team needs to know
While there have been several new Instagram updates lately – some features and others in terms of the interface, here are the ones you shouldn’t miss out on:
Every video will be a Reel
Instagram started experimenting with the concept that all videos creators share will be in a reel format. This feature was only rolled out on June 30, 2022, for selected creators. As of now, the official date for the rollout of this feature is still unknown – but most users see the change.
What’s in it for you?
If this feature takes off, marketers may have to start diverting their focus to this format since most of the updates are centered around Reels. A great incentive for brands is that it increases their likelihood of being discovered in the Reels tab, which boosts their organic growth.
Longer Reels
In late April this year, Instagram introduced a new feature for Reels that allows content creators to share videos of up to 90 seconds which was 60 seconds before the rollout of this feature.
What’s in it for you?
Since most users spend a significant time scrolling through Reels, marketers have a better chance of engaging their current audiences and attracting new ones. With longer Reels, brands can highlight their products and share their story to draw in customers.
Captions on Reels
With this latest Instagram update, social media marketers can turn on ‘auto-generated captions’ for a seamless reel experience or have ‘AR closed captions’ for a more stylized and entertaining result.
(Reel source: Nike)
What’s in it for you?
By using the auto-generated caption feature, you can expand your content’s reach to communities that are hard of hearing. Further, with the AR caption feature, marketers can make their content with captions that look like a text message or from a comic book.
Multiple audio options
The three recent audio features include adjusting the video volume and adding voiceover, audio importing, and a text-to-speech function.
What’s in it for you?
Marketers can overlay audio from their existing Reel library or have a delightful voice option for their video for consistency.
‘Take a break’
Intended for users to concentrate on their well-being, this feature lets them schedule breaks for when they can’t use or are overwhelmed by Instagram.
In conjunction with this, another feature has been released that could act as a double-edged sword for marketers. In May 2022, Matt Navarra tweeted about how Instagram tested out a feature that would hide excessive story posting. It will show users three stories, after which they will be asked if they want to continue by clicking on the “show all” button.
What’s in it for you?
Well, the feature hasn’t rolled out for all accounts, but social media marketers must be savvy and convey their message in three stories or under. Further, it can also be a relief since you won’t have to remain active constantly.
Post pinning
This is a super helpful feature for individual creators and brands since you can pin up to three posts to your profile. This means they will show at the top of your grid and allow audiences to catch up with your key content.
(image source: Starbucks)
What’s in it for you?
This feature allows you to highlight important announcements, your brand’s story, or your top-performing content.
Got a new product release? Upgrading your services? Running a contest? Pin it to your profile!
‘Get a quote’ for online businesses
Own an online store? You can now leverage the ‘Get Quote’ feature, which will show up on your business profile on Instagram. It is also available on stories to let your followers quickly inquire about your products.
What’s in it for you?
This update is a fantastic solution to filter requests and take qualified leads to your direct messages. It saves social media managers the hassle of responding to every passive query.
Full-screen feed experience
Instagram has been going above and beyond to create an immersive user experience. Now, Instagrammers can enjoy a full-screen vertical feed layout. Creators can directly upload 9:16 photos owing to the company’s mobile-friendly approach.
What’s in it for you?
With this Instagram update, you won’t have to crop pictures awkwardly. Instead, you can focus on sharing quality content to drive engagement with a much better perspective.
NFTs for your community
With this Instagram update, brands can create their own NFTs and share them with their community. Not only do creators win with this feature, but brands too can share their NFTs in Instagram stories or through their feeds.
(image source: Meta)
What’s in it for you?
An NFT is a great way to monetize your brand on the platform. Moreover, the more visibility you gain through your creations, your brand awareness, and loyalty will be more substantial. This, in turn, could snowball into popularity for all your content formats on the platform.
Expanded product tagging
This feature allows accounts to add product tags to their posts. When a user clicks on this tag, they will directly be able to see all the details about the said product. Moreover, they can even purchase directly through the app without leaving it and taking multiple actions to get the details.
However, there is a catch. This feature is available only to accounts based in the United States. Further, it can only be done via posts and not on stories or reels. As per reports, they may soon expand this feature to be accessible via Stories.
What’s in it for you?
If you are currently in the U.S., you can enhance your customer experience and get them to shop from you directly on Instagram. It will even save you the bother of responding to individual direct messages since all the details will be available at the click of a button.
Content collaboration for broader reach
Are you collaborating with another brand or an Instagram creator? Then this update is for you! This super cool feature allows all Instagram users to create joint posts. The post or Reel you upload will be visible on your account and your collaborator’s profile. All you have to do is click on ‘tag people’ and then ‘invite collaborator.’
(image source: Puma and Dua Lipa)
What’s in it for you?
If your brand collaborates with influencers often or wants to highlight more user-generated content on your profile, this feature will help you draw in a larger audience. Since both account names show up simultaneously, it is easy for audiences to click on your account and follow you for more content.
Since audiences of two accounts will view your content, your post impressions can go through the roof and improve your engagement rate. Additionally, since Instagram has recently been favoring the Reel format, you can collaborate with other accounts using reels for an even better reach.
Chronological feed order
This Instagram feature allows Instagrammers to view their feed based on either of these options — favorites or following. However, it should not be considered a scary change since the algorithm can also come to your rescue and help your content get viewed once the user clicks on the ‘home’ button.
What’s in it for you?
An exciting and value-adding content strategy can help you remain relevant and increase your brand reach since the algorithm tends to favor it. By clicking on the ‘home’ button, your followers will have the same Instagram experience they enjoy.
Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, said in his video tweet that the ‘following’ feed would let users check their feed chronologically. This means your day and time of posting will still be crucial to your performance. Again, creating quality content your audience will engage with is vital to better your chances of pleasing the Instagram algorithm gods and reaching more accounts organically.
Lastly, with the ‘favorites’ feed, Instagram users can catch up on content created by their favorite accounts. Want to be a part of this category and increase your content impressions? All you have to do is have a robust content strategy that compels your audience to engage with it.
Final thoughts
Instagram updates are headed in the right direction with minor tweaks that enhance the user experience to pinning posts and uploading longer reels that help marketers bring more meaningful topics into focus.
With these tools in your marketing arsenal, creating an immersive experience for your followers isn’t a distant dream. All you have to do is align your content with your marketing initiatives, and you’ll do better than most businesses!
‘Liked this story?’ Check out Radarr’s top-notch tools today to get ahead of your competition!
