To celebrate the ending of 2019, we will be recapping some of our top Instagram updates from this year.

Multiple Accounts Posting

You may have previously tried to maintain your brand image by posting the same content across social media platforms. Although this is a good practice, it can sometimes feel repetitive having to go back and forth between platforms.

Due to a new update, Instagram has made it possible for content shared on Instagram, to be shared across other platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr.

This means that, rather than having to switch between apps, businesses can connect their accounts to Instagram and share posts, simultaneously.

IGTV Feed Previews

New to IGTV are horizontal videos and a feed preview feature!

In the previous feature, IGTV videos could not display within a person’s feed. This meant that unless a person was suggested the video or visited the creator’s profile, they could not watch it.

Since, Instagram has made it possible for a preview to appear on followers feed. This way if a user chooses to watch a preview (after a minute of watching) they will be directed to IGTV to continue viewing the video.

Another update to IGTV are their horizontal videos. Previously, IGTV only supported vertical videos but now businesses are able to upload horizontal videos. This gives users the option to watch videos in landscape mode for a full-screen video.

Countdowns

With this new story feature, businesses can place countdowns on their story, reminding potential customers when flash deals, events or announcements are taking place.

Users who view this story have the option to either select “Remind Me” or “Share Countdown”. For businesses with less than 50,000 followers, once a person chooses to re-share their countdown, a notification will be received via the business’ DM (Direct Message). Whereas, if a person selects the reminder option, they will receive an activity feed notification.

Polls for Instagram Story Ads

Within the recent development of Instagram’s Story Stickers, several businesses have found the poll feature to have caused more engagement between customers and businesses.

The Poll feature allows businesses to ask potential customers customizable questions about their products or services through their story. Customers can then vote their response, which will be stored as data.

This feature is now available for Story Ads too, giving advertisers the chance to add a polling question to a chosen image or video.

Branded Content Ads

Understanding the impact of influencers on social media, Instagram has tapped into its business opportunity and created a new way for businesses to advertise.

Instagram has achieved this by releasing branded content ads. These ads work by allowing influencers to promote business partners as part of their usual posts. The ad campaign works by appearing just like an average post but displays the text “paid partnership with [a business name]”, below the image.

For users familiar with the influencers, this will help capture their attention and lead them to the business’ profile.

Shopping Tags

For this feature, Instagram has transformed the way that users shop.

Instead of trying to encourage customers to view a website, businesses now have the option to post images of products and tag information to them.

These shopping tags make it possible for businesses (eligible to sell on Instagram) to add prices and description tags to specific items on an Instagram image. When clicked on, the user will have the option to either checkout on the business’ website or through Instagram.

Native Instagram Checkout

Last but not least, our favourite new feature… The Native Instagram Checkout feature!

With this new feature, businesses are able to create an in-app shopping experience for customers interested in purchasing their products. Users no longer need to leave Instagram to purchase a product. Instead, transactions have been made simpler and more secure through Instagram’s native checkout.

Need help managing your account? At WTS Technologies, we offer a social media management service where we will arrange, schedule and post your content directly onto Instagram. For more information, call us on 0113 204 7755 or email us at hello@wts-group.com.