Instagram's Latest Change: What It Means for Your Business

Since its founding in 2010, Instagram has become one of the top social media platforms in the world. According to Hootsuite, Instagram attracts one billion users each month.

A recent announcement from Instagram's CEO, Adam Mosseri, shared that the platform would be removing public likes. In a follow-up tweet, the company said they wanted users to "focus on the photos and videos you share, not how many likes they get." Their main focus is to make users' well-being and mental health a priority, rather than popularity.

Why Remove Likes?

Content is king on Instagram. Instagram says that the reason for removing likes is so that users can stay focused on the content instead of paying attention to how many likes it may have. This may seem like a change for the worse, but Instagram Stories has grown without showing how many views each story post had. This shows that users could pay attention to content without focusing on how watched the story was, and instead focus on content that they truly find interesting.

How Will This Change Work?

While this roll-out has already taken place in seven countries (Australia, Brazil, Canada, Ireland, Italy, Japan, and New Zealand), only a select group of U.S. citizens will initially see the change. Instead of seeing the number of people who have liked a post, users will see a couple people who have liked it, but that's all. The poster, however, will still be able to see who and how many people liked their posts.

How Does This Affect Businesses?

Believe it or not, this is a change that shouldn't cause an issue for businesses. Companies will still be able to track how many people are interested in the content that they post to Instagram. There is only negative impact that could impact the business' Instagram. With likes not being displayed, it might prevent followers from liking the content. However, likes are not the only metric that can be used to track how well content is being received by followers. With reach, impressions, engagements, and saves, there are still plenty of ways to determine how well content is performing on Instagram.

What Can Agents Do About It?

This change shouldn't really impact your social reach, so there isn't much that needs to be done. There are some guidelines that can help you form better connections with your audience:

• Content Is King: While this has been a best practice for years, it's even more important now. Follow the 80/20 rule, where 80% of your posts aim to engage your audience and 20% are about your business. Whereas before, you may have been scheduling your posts based on how many likes you received, now you can post as topics are relevant. Instead of relying on likes to tell you what's popular, create posts that support what you want your business to represent.

• Be Helpful: One of the best things you can do for your followers is provide value. It's a great way to build trust and help viewers associate your brand with positivity and usefulness. Share your favorite local coffee houses or advice for holiday decorating while trying to sell your home. Utilize the power of Instagram Stories to showcase landscaping tips to increase curb appeal or interview a home inspector so the process seems less daunting to potential clients.

• Be Genuine: Instead of thinking about "what will get the most likes," consider what will create the most meaningful engagement. Give a behind-the-scenes look at life as an agent by taking your followers through your office. Instagram can be a great way for people to get to know you before they even meet you. It can be the perfect opportunity for you to show potential clients who they would be working with so they can start building a trusting relationship.

It can be challenging to create content that will bolster engagement, and it can take some time to learn the platform and how it works. But in the end, Instagram is a great platform for sharing content with your followers.

To view the original article, visit the Homes.com blog.