How will Instagram''s Algorithm work in 2021?

It’s sometimes difficult to understand how Instagram’s Algorithm works in 2021, as it changes relatively often…

Much more than a social network, Instagram allows you to connect with your potential customers. This allows you to increase your visibility and your sales. Why miss out?

Instafrenchie is regularly updated on the different strategies used by the Algorithm of the international company. Come and discover how the Instagram Algorithm works in 2021.

How does Instagram's Algorithm work in 2021?

Instagram's Algorithm: More than a social network, a real business

First of all, we must keep in mind that Instagram is not just a social network. This company does business and tries to earn revenue.

From this observation, we can therefore deduce that the algorithm of the application is thought to allow to increase the profit of the company.

And these revenues are possible, whether for Instagram or Facebook, thanks to the many ads present on the platforms.

In fact, Instagram seeks and highlights active users. Users using the application both for their photos and for product placements.

Why would these people bring revenue to Instagram?

When a brand wants to put an ad on Instagram, whether it’s in a story, in Reel or even in your news feed, it must pay a certain amount to the social network.

For example, if you stay logged in on Instagram for 1 hour, scrolling through your news feed and hanging out on two / three accounts that interest you, all the ads you will view will generate to Instagram $1.00 each.

In other words, one hour on your phone viewing about 20 ads could generate almost $20 to the application… Imagine this figure multiplied by millions or even billions of users!

The longer you stay on the application, the more Instagram increases its profit… More than a social network, Instagram is a real money machine!

Some Instagram Algorithm strategies to retain you on the platform and earn maximum money

Tracking your data

As we have seen with Facebook, social networks and other websites track our data to attract us to our various interests.

Simply put, data tracking allows platforms to track what you want to see in order to show you ads for products/services that would attract you and show you content that would make you stay on the platform.

How is data tracking possible?

Although it may be scary, you should know that platforms and nowadays all websites are watching you.

In the case of Instagram, the Algorithm looks at what kind of content you like, share or even what format you prefer.

If you prefer Reels, Instagram will put Reels in front of you more than simple photo posts. Conversely if you like carousels, the social network’s algorithm will make sure you see more of them.

Similarly, if the algorithm understands that you do not like certain content, it will make sure that you do not come across it anymore or less.

In short, it shows you what you like to keep you on the platform as long as possible.

So, if you like fitness and bodybuilding videos, Instagram will manage to show you accounts of athletes such as Sissy Mua, Morgan Rose Moroney…

If you see things you like, you will stay a few minutes longer and Instagram can slip you one or even two more ads… enough to increase the revenue of the social network!

How does Instagram's Algorithm know what content we like?

1. Instagram looks at engagement by content

Posts with the most engagement will be highlighted as they are considered viral.

When the Instagram Algorithm -which let’s not forget is a robot– sees a high rate of engagement under a post, it thinks that you would like to see it too. This is how many viral posts denouncing causes (Black Lives Matter…) were able to quickly go viral.

2. Instagram's Algorithm analyzes the content of your photos

Through many calculations that we can’t explain, Instagram’s Algorithm manages to analyze your photos, its pixels and all of its data to know its content.

If your photograph is a landscape, Instagram will know it and will push your post to people who like landscape photos.

3. Instagram's Algorithm analyzes the videos you watch

Like YouTube’s Algorithm, Instagram can listen to the content of the videos you watch. Thanks to the analysis of the audio of the videos, the algorithm of the social network records some keywords recurring in the videos you follow and will be able to select new ones with the same keywords.

Example: you watch videos about feminism. The keywords could be « equality» « man»« woman». Once the video is analyzed, Instagram will show more videos of this kind of content on your news feed or explorer.

4. Instagram analyzes your network

Indeed, to choose the content and ads that it should put forward, the operation of the 2021 Instagram Algorithm analyzes your relationship with your subscriptions / subscribers.

In fact, the Instagram bot assumes that if you are in a relationship with someone, it is that you must have points in common.

It will thus analyze the different interests of your relations, look if you have the same and which content(s) it can put forward.

Let’s imagine that one of your friends regularly posts sports content. You follow him and also follow another sports athlete account that he also follows. If he follows other sportsman accounts that you don’t follow, Instagram’s Algorithm will make sure to put his fitness accounts in your recommendations.

Conclusion

To conclude, to properly use the social network that is Instagram, we must keep in mind that the Algorithm of the platform is thought only to generate money.

Again, more than a social network, Instagram is a real business.

Although you are offered a free application, Instagram allows you to generate profit by increasing the visibility of your brand… It would thus be normal that it does the same, right?

This is possible thanks to the :

Numerous ads that it puts forward
Strategies he uses to make you as addicted and active as possible
Innovative features that it creates to keep you on the application (Instagram Shopping, Reels, IGTV…)

More globally, Instagram’s Algorithm aims to make you addicted to the application.

The goal is to maintain your addiction for the social network. Addiction specialists have actually been hired by Instagram to keep you on the platform, show you the ads and thus make a maximum profit!

We hope to have answered all your questions about how the Instagram Algorithm works in 2021, feel free to take a look at our other Blog posts.