Like most social media
trends, Instagram trends move quickly. And in 2020, change has been fast and
furious, with a worldwide pandemic, social uprising, and competitors, shaking
things up.
Trends make the difference
between searching of touch or before the curve. That doesn’t mean you ought to
throw your social media content calendar out the window. It means you ought to
stay informed and stay flexible.
There are tons to remain
on top of at Instagram. From Instagram Story trends to measure Shopping, and
Instagram Shops, we break down the most important trends on the app.
From Instagram sharp turn
into e-commerce, to hash tag challenges, carousel posts, and even branded AR
filters, a lot has (already!) happened in 2020.
8
of the most important Instagram trends in 2020
1.
Instagram goes Live
Stay-at-home orders and
event cancellations have helped propel Instagram Live viewership figures to new
heights. Between February and March, the amount of individuals tuning certain
live broadcasts rose by 70%. More than 800 million people now watch live video
daily across Instagram and Facebook.
As people search for ways
to exchange in-person activities, brands and creators have jumped on live, too.
In fact, 80% of live broadcasters have fewer than 1,000 followers.
Instagram Live sessions
include everything from cocktail and comedy hours to virtual protests, yoga
classes, and drawing tutorials. Desktop functionality, added in April, has made
tuning in a lot more practical.
Like Instagram Stories,
live videos tend to be more intimate and spontaneous than posts within the
feed. Hosts also can answer questions and comments in real-time, which is why live
videos tend to average six fold more interactions on Facebook.
2.
Creators can now make money directly on Instagram
Since its inception in
2010, Instagram creators have mostly monetized their audiences through
affiliate marketing and brand partnerships. New features introduced in May now
allow creators to form money directly.
Instagram is now testing
Badges with little group of creators and businesses. During a live broadcast,
viewers can spend 99 cents to $4.99 for heart badges to face call at the
comment stream and unlock features. During the test phase, creators will
receive 100% of revenue earned from these badges.
Tests for IGTV ads are
underway as well. These ads can last up to fifteen seconds and appear after
someone clicks to observe the complete IGTV video. On par with YouTube, 55% of
ad revenue is shared with the creator. In addition to ads, Live Shopping tools
now let creators and makes tag products during live videos.
3.
Instagram Shops set brands up to cash in on conversions
Instagram Shops promise to
form it easier for brands to form money, too. Shops let businesses create a
storefront directly within the app, so people can purchase without the
necessity to go to an internet site. By eliminating this friction, brands
should be ready to drive significantly higher conversions and sales.
To improve
discoverability, Instagram will soon have a dedicated Shopping tab, like the
Explore tab, which already features a shopping section. Accounts with shops
have a View Shop button on their profiles, also as a store tab.
Businesses can customize
how collections appear, connect loyalty programs, and benefit from the
platform’s built-in AI to create personalized experiences.
There are now more ways to
spend money in Stories, too. In addition to product tags, companies can share
gift card, food order and donation Stickers.
4.
Instagram Challenges
From #FliptheSwitch to
#TrickShot and #DontRush, 2020 has been the year of social media challenges —
and not just on Instagram! TikTok has also been hugely important in driving the
challenges trend.
But the most important
driver has been… well, quarantine life. As more and more people stay home to
flatten the curve, social media challenges have blown up as a way to stave off
boredom while having fun with friends and family.
In fact, challenges are so
popular that Instagram created its very own challenge sticker for stories to
streamline the method of giving and receiving nominations for challenges!
Now if you see a challenge
you would like to participate in while scrolling your friends’ stories, you'll
join instantly by tapping on the sticker.
This will bring you to the
Instagram Stories camera where you'll record your challenge then nominate a
couple of friends. And while challenges are best suited for regular users,
we’ve also seen a lot of brands take part in (and initiate their own) Instagram
challenges.
5.
IGTV Takes Center Stage
IGTV has been on the up
for a few times now, but 2020 is that the year the long-form video platform
takes center stage!
Part of this will be
linked to the improvements that Instagram made to IGTV last year, like allowing
users to cross-promote their IGTV videos on Instagram and providing support for
both vertical and horizontal videos.
This is big news for the
platform as it’s the first time creators will be able to make money directly
from IGTV since its launch in 2018. According to Instagram, the 15-second long
IGTV ads will begin exposure in IGTV from a get group of partners and
advertisers within the US with plans to continue expanding globally.
Look out for ads from
brands like IKEA, Puma, and Sephora in the week as they, alongside other test
partners, are going to be the primary to launch IGTV ads. But albeit you aren’t
a creator, IGTV may be a great channel to succeed in new audiences, grow your
engagement, and even capture leads!
6.
Memes are Taking Over
Memes are really popular
on Instagram — like really, really popular. But for an extended time, they were
reserved for meme accounts — accounts on Instagram that exist for the only
purpose of making and sharing memes like @fuckjerry, @ladbible, and
@mytherapistsays.
In the last year or so,
brands and businesses have also started jumping on the meme bandwagon, breaking
away from the highly curated feeds of 2018 in lieu of something a little more
authentic and a lot more fun.
It was really just a
matter of time. Memes are meant to be relatable, relevant, and highly-shareable
so they’re perfect for increasing engagement and even driving product interest.
7.
Values take center stage
Authenticity may be a big
buzzword within the influencer industry. But it’s not just an influencer trend.
Consumers increasingly demand authenticity from brands, too, especially within
the sort of transparency.
As brands and influencers
use their platforms to take a stand, promote values, and support causes,
transparency will be more necessary to retain authenticity. For example,
sustainable beauty brand Elate Cosmetics goes into great detail to elucidate
the eco-attributes of its products and practices.
Influencers will share
more about their deciding generally, and be more upfront about why they partner
with specific brands. To maintain trust, disclaimers and clear labeling between
spon-con and regular posts are going to be necessary, particularly in Stories.
8.
TikTok, Twitter, and Giphy invade Instagram
The days when Instagram
was only an area for filtered images are long gone. Instagram’s feed now
features everything from memes and Twitter takes to TikTok challenges, computer
graphics, music, and more.
To keep up with
competition from TikTok and Snapchat, Instagram’s been on a feature-adding
bonanza—especially in Stories. The recent acquisition of Giphy, which already
sourced 25% of its traffic from Instagram, will increase a set of interactive
features that already includes stickers, filters, and other special effects.
Written by – Umme Umara
Shaikh
Social