If you’re a social media manager, or even just fully running your own account, you definitely already know that the algorithm is constantly evolving. Recently, there has been quite a lot of buzz about some changes being done on Instagram.
Aside from Instagram officially ditching the ‘swipe up’ feature, #EDM is now a shadow-banned hashtag on the platform. Now, what does this essentially mean for you? We will let you know!
Instagram retiring the ‘Swipe Up’ feature.
It has been reported recently that some Instagram users have been receiving a notification highlighting that the ‘swipe up’ feature will no longer be available starting August 30th. Instead, Instagram will be adding a brand new ‘link sticker’ – similar to the ‘music’ and ‘location’ sticker. This begs the question, will everyone have the ability to use this feature that was once only available to those who had verified accounts or 10k+ followers?
Well, we’re not so sure. Instagram has not fully confirmed that this new feature will be available to all users. Some tech outlets have hypothesized that this new feature will still be reserved for those with verified accounts or 10k+ followers. Although that doesn’t necessarily mean that smaller creators and businesses won’t eventually get this feature.
In June, there was a small test group of users comprised of a mixture of people who already had the ‘swipe up’ feature, along with others that didn’t previously have it. In an article from The Verge, Instagram’s former head of product mentioned that their goal is to roll out this feature to more users. Another Instagram spokesperson mentioned that they are still evaluating this rollout and that this new update will help determine if they made the right decision before expanding to more users.
The possibility is there for future small artists, blogs, and creators to eventually gain this new feature in the future. While it might not be immediate, this is still a huge win for everyone on what is about to come.
#EDM is now shadow-banned.
One of the scariest things that can happen to an account is being “shadow-banned” from your platform. Photographer/Artist Ginger Wesson brought attention to this, via Twitter, that #EDM is now shadow-banned on Instagram. Meaning if you accidentally use #EDM, your potential announcement and hard work can go invisible in the Instagram sphere.
Shadow-ban: block (a user) from a social media site or online forum without their knowledge, typically by making their posts and comments no longer visible to other users.
Now, what does that mean for everyone? Basically, things just became a lot harder for social media managers and anyone trying to maximize their reach. Within the electronic music scene, #EDM was one of the collective hashtags that a majority of producers and blogs would use to gain attention from their specific niche. Therefore, to avoid losing engagement on a post, we now have to avoid using the hashtag altogether.
As a result of losing #EDM, the community is losing the most recognizable hashtag to potentially build their audience. If you aren’t someone who studies hashtags, or which macro/micro hashtags are better for your platform, this adds another level of difficulty with marketing. Meaning if you accidentally use #EDM, your potential announcement and hard work can go invisible in the Instagram sphere.
Things are constantly changing in EDM Instagram social media.
Surely, this will bring a lot of attention to how everyone changes their social media strategies in the future. Nevertheless, we are all constantly trying to stay up-to-date on the latest changes that come with social platforms. The battle of maximizing engagement continues for everyone. Despite the negative connotations of losing #EDM, we are all gaining a positive change too. The possibility of adding links to stories for smaller creators opens the floodgate of great potential for smaller artists to gain, and build, their platform. Electric Hawk is going to be keeping an eye on all the changes that are to come in the social media realm.
Looking for new music? Keep up with our weekly Spotify Playlist, Fresh Hunts. Updated every Friday with all the latest releases. Whether it’s the newest drops from all your favorite artists, some old-school, or underground…we just want you to hear it.
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