Instagram has been reaching out to us

What do they have to say?

Hey there gorgeous,

There’s a lot going on in the background here. 

I’ve got a new website in the works, new business name coming, branding things, planning things and a whole new Instagram account I’m about to launch.

I’ve got my Intro to IG course due to launch later this month and next quarters 1:1 coaching spots about to open for enrolments too. I’m very much in the messy middle (which I DO NOT LIKE) and the truth is it is all a bit scary.  But I am forging ahead because I know once all this big stuff is done I can get back to what I love.  Helping other Quiet Creatives navigate Instagram and build their businesses in authentic, meaningful ways.

Which is all to say, good things are coming!

But that’s not what this letter is about. 

This letter is about Instagram and Meta.

In the last few weeks Instagram/ Meta has done something quite unusual.  In fact, I just about think it is groundbreaking in terms of how social media usually interfaces with its users.

Usually, working out how to strategically use a platform involves a lot of trial and error and seeing what other people are doing that works, to work out what you should be doing too. Or alternately paying to do an Instagram course, to speed up the learning process.

But Meta’s unusual take this last little bit?

Having team members reaching out to Instagram account owners directly, to hook up phone calls, where in their words, ‘Meta will tell you what they want you doing on Instagram.’

Sounds good right? As with everything Instagram, the answer is, yes, but...

What do Instagram/ Meta say they want us to do ?

Well, they are:

Encouraging people to keep up with posting (no surprises, they need us to make content for their business model to work)

Encouraging people to make Reels (again, no surprises there, they still desperately want us making Reels because it’s easy to embed ads between Reels)

Encouraging people to focus on consistency (you should be noticing a pattern about now- they want us making all the content regularly and consistently as that is what is required for them to make money).

Encouraging people to be on the app before you post to warm up your audience (again, nothing ground breaking here).

Interestingly they are also telling people in these calls that they want us to use no more than 8 hashtags in a post.  And I call BS on this.  Hashtags categorically still work, and using up to the allotted 30 has not been seen to get you penalised if you use them properly. My analytics repeatedly show that up to 25% of my views and interactions are still coming directly from my hashtags.  When I use fewer hash tags, I get fewer views. Now why would I not take advantage of the reach they bring? In short Meta want us to use less hashtags so that we get less reach, while simultaneously are telling everyone to post more, for more reach.  It makes me grumpy, but here we are.  Please do not stop using hashtags.  If you understand the way they work, they will absolutely drive eyes to your posts!

Finally, in the Meta outreach calls people are being encouraged to use Threads to help their Instagram accounts get traction. This is something a bit different, and obviously new territory for anyone interested in how Instagram works on the inside.

Threads and Instagram are quite different spaces to operate in, and as such they serve quite different markets and quite different content creators.  Threads is a far more wordy space (obviously) than Instagram, and posting there gets the most engagement when you have strong opinions that can both attract and repel folk, and in doing so generate lots of interaction. It is a sandbox to play in, that if you’re anything like me, is simply not all that fun.  I’m not interested in being controversial or having high energy argy bargy conversations. 

This doesn’t mean that you should discard Threads outright though, because there are advantages in spending time over there at the moment, not in the least that Meta are sharing peoples threads organically into Instagram feeds to try and entice folk onto Threads.  

Additionally, if you are looking to develop relationships with creators from Instagram accounts that are huge, the fact that Threads is still super new and fresh means you will probably have greater access to the actual content creators there, than you have in Instagram itself.

The number of people actually engaging on Threads is still super low, which means any engagement is generally going to be more noticed on Threads by someone with a large account than on Instagram if they’re massive.

And Meta want us there and engaging too. 

So while I don’t think the platform itself is really for Quiet Creatives per say, if you have the time and energy to throw it a bone for 15 minutes a day I reckon it will be worth it in the short term.  In the long term, my prediction is it will go the way of twitter/ X .  But used right now to have meaningful conversations with other creatives and develop relationships that can then cross back over into Instagram and offline altogether, it is absolutely worth it.

Which is something you might want to consider when you are deciding whether or not to spend any time there.

TLDR; The long and the short of it is that Meta is desperate for us all to keep showing up and creating content and to be consistent in doing so. They are so desperate for this that they are actually reaching out to us as users, via phone calls of all things, to try and reignite the space. The algorithm has changed (again) and is currently being more friendly to content creators who are doing just this as well. If you want a little extra love from Meta, hang out on Threads for 15 minutes each day with the idea to engage with accounts that you want to develop relationships with.

Until next time,

X Ilona