Instagram’s growth has been exponential since its birth back in 2010. Navigating through a mountain of change, Instagram proves to be high-ranking in social media— according to Hootesuite, the visual-centric app will reach 112.5 million U.S. users in 2020. As we move further into the new year, Instagram’s newest features and updates aim to improve their UX/UI and evolve the platform. The range of new rollouts provide new opportunities for both users and brands to advance their social media presence and marketing. Here are Instagram’s newest updates!
Instagram is grouping accounts you follow into those you interact with the most and those you interact with the least. These curated lists are easy to access— located under ‘following’, you can choose to see both of these lists as well as grouping your followers into latest or earliest as to when you followed them. These two features under your following list can be key in decluttering your Instagram from when you first started using the app to now; as your tastes evolve. Instagram wants to assist you with staying on top of your feed to tailor it to the people and brands you care about most. A relevant and functional feature as “spring cleaning” season heads our way – this update is prevalent in making sure you focus your usage on this app on your current interests and using the app wisely— in ways that could benefit you.
Reply to IG Stories with GIFs from Giphy. To do it, just swipe up on a user’s story then start typing a reply and the icon will turn to GIF. Adding another way to reply to stories rather than just an emoji or text – Instagram has opened up a new and unique way for users to interact with one another. Story GIFs proves to be a smart rollout for Instagram as GIF-related features have always proved high engagement. Brands and influencers can expand upon this rollout and use it to their advantage or users can utilize this to maintain fun, one-on-one conversations with friends and family in expressive ways beyond just emojis and text.
Instagram launches Layout Mode for IG Stories. A highly requested feature that provides the option of laying out pictures in a grid display of images within the app itself and not any third party alternatives. Instagram now allows users to post multiple pictures at a time using the Layout Mode. Found as you scroll through the different camera modes, this mode allows you choose between six different options of how you want to layout your pictures within a single frame— you can then capture a shot and edit accordingly to how you want your story displayed. This mode is another option for stories and will definitely heighten marketing engagement with users and brands alike.
Use New Boomerang Features on IG Stories. If you’re a Boomerang Story user, Instagram has now added three new modes: Slow Mo, Echo, and Duo. You also now have the ability to trim your boomerang to make sure you don’t have any unwanted video in your final shot. To do this, first capture your boomerang, and then at the top, press the boomerang logo neat the pen tool or the sticker tool; this allows you to change the pace of the boomerang to Slow Mo, Echo, or Duo. These added modes are perfect for users who love to use the feature.
A New Appeals Process for Disabled Accounts. This new update allows users to enable a disabled account decisions in-app from the log-in screen when you attempt to log in. After you enter your username and password, Instagram will then notify you that your account will be deleted with 30 days to appeal the decision. Then you are presented with two options: download data or request review. When you “Request Review,” you will be taken to a screen where you can enter your full name, email, and the reason why you think Instagram has made a mistake disabling your account— and will generally be resolved within 24 hours. Though this isn’t a guarantee your account will be reinstated. This is a secure step forward for Instagram to protect its users, in attempt to make it a safe place.
