Significant changes are coming to Instagram. Soon, the app will start showing posts according to relevance rather than time. According to Instagram, users miss, on average, 70% of their feeds; the new algorithm was developed to ensure that people see the content they care about most.
The order of photos and videos in a user’s feed will now be based on the likelihood that he or she will be interested in the content, his or her relationship with the person posting, and the timeliness of the post. All posts will still be there—just in a different order. Users can also turn on notifications for any accounts of interest to receive updates when a photo or video is posted.
“If your favorite musician shares a video from last night’s concert, it will be waiting for you when you wake up, no matter how many accounts you follow or what time zone you live in,” Instagram said in a March 15 blog post.1 “And when your best friend posts a photo of her new puppy, you won’t miss it.”
The feature will reportedly be gradually rolled out and may change over time.
“We’re going to take time to get this right and listen to your feedback along the way,” Instagram said. “You’ll see this new experience in the coming months.”
For those being inundated with posts asking you to turn on notifications, Instagram says: You’ve got time. In a March 28 tweet, the company wrote, “We’re listening and we assure you nothing is changing with your feed right now. We promise to let you know when the changes roll out broadly.”
Stay tuned, and here’s hoping this goes over better than Twitter's killing of the beloved star.
- 1. See the Moments You Care About First. Instagram. March 15, 2016. https://blog.instagram.com/post/141107034797/160315-news. Accessed March 28, 2016.