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🎙️ Instagram's head just told us what gets posts seen
Welcome back to TWISM!
How many of your posts last month got sent to someone in a DM?
Instagram's head says that's the number to watch. On Oct 26, Adam Mosseri sat down with Colin and Samir for a 71-minute interview, mostly about Instagram's new long videos (Colin and Samir).
In the middle, he got into what actually gets posts seen. Watch time counts for less than on other apps, carousels can land in the Reels feed, and a post type that used to work may just need a new format.
Here are the 7 things worth stealing. 👇
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📬 1. Track sends per reach
It's the number that gets your posts in front of non-followers. Mosseri says it's the key signal for reaching people who don't follow you (Colin and Samir).
It's coming to Insights, but you can work it out today: a post's shares ÷ accounts reached.
Do this: check your last 10 posts and make more like the top 2.
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💬 2. Make posts people want to DM
DMs are where the sharing happens on Instagram. More photos and videos get sent in DMs than get posted to Stories or Reels (Colin and Samir).
Every send puts your post in front of someone new. A like doesn't.
Do this: before you post, ask who someone would send it to. If you can't answer, sharpen the take.
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⏱️ 3. Don't stretch videos for watch time
Instagram weighs watch time less than other apps do. "We focus way less on watch time than all the competition does" (Colin and Samir). Sends, comments, likes and Story shares count too.
His reason: one 20-minute video is "maybe a hundred things that you could have sent to a friend" (Colin and Samir).
Do this: cut your next video down to the one point worth sending.
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🎵 4. Add music to your carousels
A carousel with music can show up in the Reels feed. Adding a track makes it eligible for the Reels viewer, next to the videos people are scrolling (Colin and Samir).
That's a second place for the same slides to get seen, with no filming.
Do this: pick a track for your next carousel. It's the easiest win on this list.
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📣 5. Start a broadcast channel
Channel subscribers asked to hear from you. Mosseri has about 4.1M followers and 200-300k channel subscribers. He says the smaller group is underrated because they're "willing to let me buzz their pocket every time I have a thought" (Colin and Samir).
A broadcast channel is a one-way chat you run from your profile. Followers see your post if the feed shows it, and subscribers get the alert.
Do this: use a channel for restocks, sales and last calls.
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🔁 6. Change the format before you drop the idea
A post type can stop working even when the ranking hasn't changed. Mosseri's shoutouts of smaller creators worked as a Story until they stopped, then as a green-screen video for "like a month." Now they work as a carousel (Colin and Samir).
He checked the data, and the ranking was the same. "What resonates with people changed."
Do this: if a post that used to work is sliding, try it as a carousel before you scrap it.
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🧰 7. Pick 2-3 formats and skip the rest
You don't have to use every format. Too many formats is a complaint he hears a lot, and his answer is "you don't have to use all of the formats" (Colin and Samir). If a new one doesn't fit your business, "that's also okay."
Asked whether AI-made posts rank as well as everything else, he said, "Probably not" (Colin and Samir).
Do this: pick the formats you can post every week, and let long videos wait.
✅ What to do this week
Check sends per reach on your last 10 posts. Shares ÷ accounts reached shows which posts people pass on.
Add music to your next carousel. It can put the post in the Reels feed.
Rework one post type that's sliding. Try it as a carousel before you drop it.
☝️ The one-sentence version
To reach people who don't follow you, Instagram leans on how often your post gets sent, so track shares ÷ reach and add music to your next carousel.
Hit reply and tell me: which of the 7 are you trying first?
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📚 Sources
That's all for today. Thanks for reading. Now…
Go BIG or go home!
~ Josh from "This Week in Social Media"
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