Instagram Updates For December

Can you believe we are less than a month away from 2021? Instagram has been laying on the updates thick and heavy so we’ve rounded up the most notable ones.

Home Sweet Home

Your home screen is probably looking a little different as Insta changes up the layout to encourage users to engage more with Reels as well as new Shopping features.

For a majority of us you’ll now find the Activity and New Post tabs on the top right hand side of your home page. While the bottom shows your; Home tab, Explore Page, Reels and Shopping tabs.

DM like a Pro

Since integrating Facebook and Instagram we’ve seen a range of updates across both platforms including the ability to message a user on Instagram from Facebook. As a small business owner these little changes can actually provide you with the capability to get more done in less time! Who doesn’t want more time on their hands?

You can now set up Quick Replies which is great for sharing answers to F.A.Q’s. This is a great tool to use when engaging with new followers as you can mimic the Automatic Reply function you’d find on Facebook.

Instead of leaving the app to set up a Zoom or even more archaic Skype-call you can now start a Video Chat with a single user or a group straight from your DM’s! Team meetings just took on a whole new vibe.

Have you noticed a Flag option pop up in your chats? As a small biz owner we often find ourselves having so many conversations that we lose track of really important ones. Essentially, this feature works the same way it would in your email inbox … although we do not as of yet have the function to sort our message by importance or give us a third inbox for flagged messages.

The Power of a Search Engine

This next update isn’t exactly anything new to us here at Immortal Monkey HQ as Mark Zuckerberg alluded, earlier this year, that Instagram would be developing in such a way that users wouldn’t need to leave the platform to accomplish certain tasks.

Search functions have certainly expanded as Insta now offers related search options just as Google would. All you have to do is enter the key word or phrase and Instagram will provide you with the most popular search options.

Saved by the Bell

Anyone else tired of hearing the same old, “Make sure to subscribe, hit the like button, leave a comment and click the notification bell?”

Well, Insta have moved the Notification bell to top right-hand side of a users profile making it easier to turn on notifications. Better yet, a simple tick sign will appear inside the bell once you have turned on notifications for that user.

Lastly, this update is definitely going to be a relief. Ever shared a post, stories or IGTV from a private account without realising only to have the person you’ve sent it to complain they cannot see the content? Instagram now warns you (before sending) whether a user will be able to see the content.

If you’ve really been paying attention then you will have noticed that although a majority of these updates are here to stay the algorithm does take into account how you behave whilst on the platform. Which is why you’ll see some updates appear then disappear and even re-appear depending on how you use Instagram.

So what do we predict for 2021…well definitely more ways to shop your favourite brands including adverts shown in reels. Longer version content is coming to reels too…infact REELS is for sure one to be watching in 2021. It’s the perfect way to get your content seen by even more people, now available on the home screen, the explore page and on individual profiles!

This is all just a small sampling of what’s been happening on Insta and what we think is going to drop in 2021. For more updates as well as tips ’n’ tricks make sure you’ve joined my FREE Instagram Gang over on Facebook!

Don’t forget you can still use  the code XMAS on the website to get access to all of our insta trainings for less than £10…check it out here

Until next time,

Stay safe … Estelle a.k.a #instaqueen