One of the things I’ve always complained about on Instagram was its search tool. It’s been rudimentary at best and offered little value in what it produced for search results. And while it’s still far from perfect, Instagram’s new search feature updates are a big improvement and may just change how you use Instagram.

For the sake of argument, I have to point out that at first launch, this new feature is only available to US Instagram users. It will get rolled out to international users in the future so hang tight. Also, it was released for both iOS and Android users! Surprising but much appreciated  I got the new Explore feature right away on my Android but the search feature delayed about 24 hours before appearing in my app. If your Instagram app doesn’t automatically update, you will have to update it to see these new features.

And, this feature is still only available on mobile devices. You cannot search on the desktop website.

You will still access the Explore and Search functions from the magnifying glass icon to the left of the camera button when you’re in Instagram.

OK, so what’s so exciting about Instagram’s new search tool?

Well, it’s completely redesigned and offers some added new features – some of which are a close rival to Twitter for real time information and updates.

When you go to the search button now, this is what you will see:

The top image actually scrolls and you can swipe it left or right to get right to the category you prefer.

The idea is that Instagram wants to show you what’s trending right now. If you want to know, you can tap on “Trending Places” and see a list of places around the world that are currently trending on Instagram. These are likely to be places that are hosting live events, concerts, political events, or other gatherings.

But where this really starts to rival Twitter is with the introduction of “Trending Tags”. Now, when breaking news is happening or significant events are going on, their trending hashtag will appear in the list. Think about stories related to natural disasters (Hurricane Sandy), or global movements, or political changes, or major television broadcasts (Oscars, Emmys, etc.).

When you tap on one of those trending tags, a whole gallery opens up – for Top Posts and for Most Recent Posts. This will show you the thumbnail size images for that category. Tapping on one of the images in either category will take you to the full feed for that category where you can scroll through to view images and read captions and comments about what is happening right now.

Now, instead of turning to Twitter for updates on a trending event, people can use Instagram and see what is happening. In real-time.

Sure, I realize that these trending tags won’t likely affect you directly as a business owner. But they will affect how people use Instagram. And how they interact, and how they search for life experiences. And if they’re on Instagram more, and turning to it for more of a news outlet, you can see how this is growing into a more dominant presence a la Facebook. It’s only going to attract more users and more time on Instagram so you need to be there too!

Ok, so let’s talk more about Instagram’s new search features as it relates to you as a business or brand.

First, you can Discover New People. Technically, this isn’t really “new” as you could find new people before. But I want to highlight this because I think, all too often, we get complacent in who we follow and don’t branch out to expand our network.

Instagram is about connecting and building your community and sometimes you need to be the one to actually initiate new relationships!

So, scroll or wait until the “Discover New People” image comes across the top of the search page.

Tap on this and a whole long list of people Instagram recommends for you will appear. While I don’t know how this has specifically been updated, it does seem to be a more appropriate list of suggestions. Yes, there will be some “popular” accounts and brands in there but there are also a lot of “normal” people related to you and the others you follow.

True story, I totally found a few people who I am connected with on other sites but didn’t know they were on Instagram using this tool. So now I’m following them and can better stay connected – since we all know I spend more time on Instagram than anywhere else 

This is a great way to expand your audience and build your community.

Now let’s talk about the actual Search tool. Up at the very top of the screen is the little search tool bar. When you tap on the search tool line, you’ll automatically open up a new screen with four tabs: Top, People, Tags, and Places.

If you don’t type anything in, it defaults to “Top” and all your most recent searches will appear in the list.

When it comes to searching for People, technically, not much has changed. Instagram will still only look at the name and username for whatever words or spelling you’re using. It won’t search bios or photos so this function is still pretty limited. I know. We deal.

Hashtag searches aren’t all that different. Now when you search a hashtag, you’ll get the “Top Post” results at the top and the “Most Recent” posts a little ways down, much like how the pages look on the other Explore and Search pages now. Tapping on any image will again take you to that place in the feed of all those posts.

The BIG change – and one that WILL affect local businesses – is the introduction of “Places” in the search options.

You can now search for places by their actual name, not just a hashtag or hoping you have the right spelling of their username.

Everyone is talking about how you can search for cities or countries and places to plan to visit. But I want to get even more granular.

Let’s say you want to go out for pizza for dinner. Maybe you check Yelp or Facebook for what’s around you. But now, Instagram has you covered. And it does it pretty darn well!

Type in what you’re looking for. This could be any type of local business and Instagram will pull up a list of local businesses near you.

You can scroll through the list of businesses to see what interests you. Maybe you want the one closest to you. Maybe you just couldn’t remember the name of the place. Or maybe you’re feeling lucky and just want to try something new.

Tap on the business name to open up details about the business right within Instagram.

You can see where they are on the map and, again, see the top posts and recent posts related to that restaurant.

How does the food look? What do the patrons look like? How’s the atmosphere? Is this something you’re interested in trying?

Read the comments. Best meal ever or just ok? Loud and busy or quiet and relaxing? All real-time thoughts that you aren’t going to find on Yelp or other review sites.

But let’s go one step further…. look at the most recent posts and see how busy the restaurant is (is there a line around the block? You know it’s gonna get Instagrammed if there is!). Or get an up to date look at the inventory on the shelves of your favorite retail store. See what’s happening now and how it affects you.

Are you starting to see how this will affect local businesses?

First of all, if you’re a local business, make sure your business is coming up as a location on Instagram! You need to be there. But furthermore, take the time to share those real-time images of your business. Get the updates out there so that people who are looking have the ability to see first-hand what’s going on in your business.

Sure, if you’re a B2B or online company, this specific feature may not affect you right away. But we go back to the pending world domination (insert evil laugh  ) of Instagram and how it will affect users – and therefore why you should be taking more advantage of this platform.

There’s also some value in looking at market research and target audiences in your area or specific areas. As a marketer or business owner, you can be looking for other companies to partner with, users in a certain area, or activities within a certain region that will allow you to better target your message and audience on Instagram. How you use this will depend on your strategy and your Instagram goals, but you could definitely get creative with searching your target audience.

Have you been experimenting with Instagram’s new search function? What are your likes and dislikes? Join in the conversation in the comments below!