Instagram's 'TikTokification' is in full swing

Anyone else feel like Instagram is that kid in the playground that keeps copying the new cool kid instead of being themselves and simply owning it?

Ever since TikTok left and came back (RIP to last week), Instagram has been busy trying to become TikTok, with new updates being implemented left and right. Don't get me wrong, we still love IG and it's just as (or even more) necessary for your brand, it's just been a wild ride trying to stay up to date with allllll their updates.

Lucky for us (and you), we love a good challenge and are up to speed on all the changes so you don't have to be:

vertical content

Imagine sitting on your couch on a Friday night, scrolling through IG, and suddenly seeing the grids that you worked oh-so-hard to curate, now look misaligned because Instagram changed it from square to rectangle with literally zero warning. Yeah—not a fun Friday night. Instagram's grid preview ratio went from square (1080 x 1080px) to vertical (1015 x 1350px). Create all content to fit this new size so your grid doesn't look wonky. Sure, there's a resize feature that helps the squared posts 'look better,' but I personally think the white or black bars above the post just looks worse. So don't worry about editing previous posts that now look weird, just create with the new ratios in mind moving forward!

longer REELs

I'm going to guess I'm not the only one experiencing whiplash with REEL length suggestions? As of earlier this year, Instagram confirmed the algorithm's preference to short-form content, mentioning it leads to more engagement. Now, they increased REEL length to 3 minutes in efforts to get TikTok creators to publish their content on Instagram instead (news flash: if anything, they're turning to YouTube Shorts, not IG). I guess we're all going back to incorporating both short and long-form video into our content strategy.

(even more) unfiltered and unpolished content

This has been the biggest shift across the marketing landscape over the past two years, but TikTok and it's potential ban amplified it. Before the potential ban, tons of creators were going on TikTok saying they were 'worried' and 'scared' about what they would do when they couldn't just 'hop on TikTok and post what they wanted without thinking,' and that 'Instagram is too polished for this type of content.' Instagram has taken this as a sign to welcome and prioritize unfiltered and unpolished content, becoming more inclusive to all types of creators and trying to even out the playing field (again, enter YouTube Shorts). When creating content, be personable, show your human side, and opt for relatability over professionalism!

UGC

UGC is here to stay, and only getting more popular. Going off the unfiltered content, Instagram is favoring user generated content in order to increase connection and drive engegement. TikTok is HUGE on this, and creators on Instagram are gravitating more and more towards this, especially when it comes to ads and sponsored content. Send your product to potential customers, interview current happy customers, and talk about people's experience using your product or service. Milk this!

We suspect there are other changes in the horizon (IG has already teased Edits, among other things), but we'll make sure to keep you updated!