Avoid These Tactics on Instagram

In a recent post, Instagram recommends you avoid certain tactics on the platform that could hurt your reach. I’ll share them all here below but you can also check out this post for a quick summary of this information:

1. Watermarks
Instagram is big AGAINST using 3rd party watermarks on your content. This is typically when you use a free service for video or photo editing, or the dreaded TikTok logo in your posts. If you leave these watermarks on your content, it will likely get less distribution on IG.

To avoid this, it’s better to use paid software where the logos are not included on the finished product. Or you can use watermark stripping tools as well – but if you’re paying for those, you may as well just pay for the original software!

Also, please note that this does not directly impact your own logo watermark. While these aren’t ideal on your content, they are not going to directly reduce your reach like a software logo.

2. Reposted content
Instagram’s intent is to honor the original creator, not the accounts reposting other people's content. Instead of grabbing someone else’s video or photo and reposting it as your own, use the Remix function to add your own take to the original Reel, or utilize collaborations with creators to distribute content across BOTH your profiles simultaneously.

To note on this one: this does NOT apply to sharing to Stories! You’re always welcome to share posts to your Stories, just not republishing other people’s content to your feed.

3. Long videos
Instagram has said that long videos (over 90 seconds) will NOT be actively distributed to non-followers. Yes, these longer videos will appear in the feeds of your followers but they are less likely to be recommended or show up in Explore results.

So, don’t stop using longer videos, just be aware of their reach and distribution to different audiences.

4. Content that violates guidelines
This is a no-brainer, but worth the reminder. If your content goes against their guidelines (violence, self-harm, nudity, etc.), it will not be recommended or widely distributed. Also, if your content is for products in regulated industries (firearms, tobacco, pharmaceuticals, adult products, etc.) it will likely face issues being distributed.

5. Engagement bait
This is a gray area of what constitutes “bait”. Instagram says it’s ok to include a call-to-action that says “share this with a friend”. But if your CTA is encouraging likes, comments, or shares that manipulate the user into inauthentic activity, it’s not ok. So tread lightly on those CTAs that ask someone to do something they wouldn’t normally be inclined to do.
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Do these tips really matter to you?
For the most part, yes. You definitely want to avoid doing these if Instagram is going to demote your content. Some of these have gray areas and Instagram isn’t always accurate with their flagging. So you may see an account “getting away” with things but that doesn’t mean you should count on it working for you. It’s always best to err on the side of caution and be more careful and strategic in your content than trying to push the boundaries of what’s acceptable on the platform.