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How Your Business Can Survive The New Instagram Update

content creation digital marketing agency instagram updates personal branding social media marketing Jul 01, 2022

As someone who spends a lot of time answering questions on platforms like Quora and Reddit, I can safely say that the biggest topic of conversation in business and social media marketing circles is what to do about Instagram's constant updates and their feed changes that basically make them look like TikTok . . .

You can't even scroll your feed for more than two posts now without seeing a "suggested video" or an ad of some sort, and if I'm being honest, it's pretty annoying to us as well.  For starters, if I wanted to find new people I'd go on the explore page, I don't need them clogging up my feed.  And don't even get me started on the ads . . . it seems everyone's a millionaire and can make you millions too lol.

All of these have created quite the frustration with Instagram overall, especially when it comes to people who are using the platform for business.  So what are some things that you can do to weather the current Instagram storm and come out on top?  I believe there are three key things you can do . . .

The first is you're going to have to change up your strategy.  When you have a personal Instagram account, you can post whatever and whenever you want, but when you have a business profile, it's not about you, rather it's about your audience and best serving them.

That means if Instagram wants reels, then you need to be doing reels.  If I'm being honest, most business owners should be posting a reel every day, but I understand that if you've never done that before it can seem like a tall task.  What I recommend then, is starting with a number you can manage, and working your way up from there.  Maybe you start with three reels a week, then work your way up to five, then eventually every day.

The point is Instagram is pushing reels, they have been for a long time, and it doesn't look like they're going to stop pushing reels anytime soon, which means that you need to not only start creating them but get really good at creating and editing them.

The second thing you need to realize is while though Instagram is pushing reels and changing their feed right now, this is only temporary . . . like all social media and algorithm updates.  I can't tell you how many people have all of the sudden said, "Stop posting carousels, infographics, and still posts and only post reels."  I personally think this is terrible advice, and there are a few reasons why . . .

First, this is only temporary . . . because if Instagram strictly went to a video platform they'd be no different than TikTok, and they have to know this, which means eventually they'll start giving favor back to still posts.  Second, with people using the same reels trends and the same sounds, people are starting to tune out certain reels completely.  This means even if you create a trending concept and sound, it might not do well because 500 other people have done the exact same thing.  Lastly, and this might be an unpopular opinion, I don't think reels are a great way of educating your audience.  People flip through them so quickly and they last less than 10 seconds, and people move on.  How is someone supposed to remember the value that you provide?  This is why we prefer carousels and infographics because then people can take their time and get the value from your post that you're intending for them to get.

Just because Instagram is focusing on reels NOW doesn't mean that the other content they allow you to provide doesn't carry with it immense value.

The third and final piece of advice I can give you is to STOP focusing on the metrics and start focusing on the value and conversions.  So many business owners complain about the lack of reels views thinking that if they got a million views it would somehow change their business . . .

But I'm here to tell you that if that's you're way of thinking, your business is going to be in trouble.

You don't need a million views to run a successful business on Instagram, you need the RIGHT kinds of views from the RIGHT kind of audience.  For example, we have a client of ours that gets between 1-3K views on her reels . . . nothing amazing right?  However, she runs a multiple 6-figure business through Instagram.

How is that possible?  It's possible because her reels are some of the most valuable we've ever seen, and she hyper-targets the RIGHT audience instead of trying to appeal to everyone.  If you try to connect with everyone, you'll end up connecting with no one.  You have a niche for a reason, remember?  You need to STOP focusing on virality and start focusing on connecting with the people that are your ideal audience.

You do this through the massive value you add in your reels, your SEO captions, and good, targeted hashtags that your ideal customer would look through.  Most business owners think they need hundreds of customers/clients to be successful when in actuality, you only need a select few to build the foundations of a great business!

I know Instagram can seem like a nightmare sometimes, but remember, algorithm changes and updates are only temporary, and if it's got you that upset, there are always SO MANY OTHER great platforms and ways to grow your business that you don't NEED to rely on Instagram to be your main bread and butter for your business.  The main goal should be to lean into what works, create great content, and focus on connecting with the people that need your products and services.  Social media changes come and go, but value, service, and heart, never change in business.