Instagram True or False (Revealing IG Secrets!)

Not all the advice you hear about how to rank on Instagram is good. In fact, a lot of it will work against you.

While Instagram advice is a dime a dozen these days, not all of it is very useful.

Instagram continues to be the highest-downloaded app and the eighth-largest platform globally, even surpassing TikTok. That means if you want to reach your target audience, you need to post on IG and do so effectively. The only question is: How can you make your profile stand out among all the others and maximize your follower interaction?

So today, we’re going to put it to the test with four true-or-false statements and you may be surprised to learn that some of the tactics you believe are good for increasing your IG engagement are actually working against you.

Sharing posts in Stories increases your engagement: FALSE

Algorithms dislike when you share a post inside your Story because it encourages negative interaction—the viewer either watches only the start of the post, skips the Story, or closes the app entirely. However, Brock Johnson, Instagram expert, and coach, says that it’s OK to share a post but limit it to one per day and give it some context as to why you’re sharing, like stickers or emojis, or conduct a poll to gain positive interactions.

Reels and carousels produce the highest engagement of any post type: TRUE

Two of the most successful ways to increase your Instagram engagement are by creating Reels, which are short,15-second videos and carousels. Both have high engagement rates, with 1.95% for Reels and 1.92% for carousels. Carousels are great because they’re easier to consume, and your followers can view your posts at their own pace and revisit them later, allowing them to see your content multiple times.

If you’re unsure what to post, doing a weekly photo dump (uploading a series of up to 10 images) is an incredibly effective way to increase your engagement. What’s even cooler is that instructing your viewers to swipe left on the first slide can also increase your engagement by 10%. Tactics like including a catchy caption or motivational quote or showcasing what you do and how can increase your engagement by 2%, surpassing the average engagement rates.

Using an external editing app hurts your reach: FALSE

Mosseri also says it doesn’t really matter how you edit your reels or carousels, just as long as you remember not to have watermarks in your videos—this means not uploading your TikTok video as an Instagram post!

Getting Meta-Verified will increase your reach: FALSE

Initially, one of the primary purposes of getting Meta-Verified was to help online influencers and brands increase their reach and visibility to attract more followers. However, it was removed before it was launched in the United States. That said, Johnson recommends getting Meta-Verified to protect your account. With the amount of spam out there, it’s worth the $15 per month. The service includes increased account security, a blue check next to your account name, support staff, and proactive impersonation protection.

We hope you enjoy this episode and act on the advice Luke offers at the end. We’d also appreciate it if you took a moment to leave us a 5-star review and comment on Apple Podcasts. (We read them on air!) Thanks for listening!

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