Instagram launches a new feature that will allow you to (partially) tame its untamed algorithm

«Your Algorithm» allows the user to select the topics they are interested in on Reels and equally deselect irrelevant topics.

It’s happened to all of us at some point. We’ve gone looking for a recipe on Instagram (just for the sake of it) and then been bombarded with more and more recipes on the platform (even if we’re not exactly «foodies» and don’t aspire to be).

Instagram seems to have realized that its algorithm’s behavior is often erratic (and irritating), and so it has launched a new feature that will allow users to have greater control over the content they see on the Meta-owned social network.

This new feature, called «Your Algorithm,» specifically affects Reels and allows users to select the topics they’re interested in and deselect those that aren’t (even if the Instagram algorithm mistakenly thinks they are).

«Your Algorithm» shows the user a series of topics that, in the opinion of the Instagram algorithm, are likely to be of interest. And the user has the option to modify the topics suggested by the algorithm.

Users also have the option to share their selected interests via Stories using «Your Algorithm,» so their followers can stay informed and even replicate them in their own feeds.

«Your Algorithm» will allow users to have greater control over what they see in Reels and simultaneously discover new content.

«We’ve always tried to show people the best Reels. And after 2020, we’ve been working hard to better predict users’ interests and show them Reels aligned with those interests,» explains Tessa Lyons, Instagram’s Vice President of Product. «I think we do a pretty good job in this regard, but we don’t always get it right, and we know that people’s interests change. What we really want is to give users more control over their Instagram experience,» she emphasizes.

When designing the new «Your Algorithm» tool, Instagram strived to strike a balance so that Reels would remain a tool focused on discovering new content, while simultaneously giving users greater control over the videos that appear there.

«The ideal Reels experience is one that allows you to delve deeper into your existing interests and simultaneously discover new ones you might not have known you had. Finding that balance is truly important,» Lyons emphasizes.

In this sense, the fact that a user selects certain interests in the «Your Algorithm» feature doesn’t mean they will see only content related to those interests in Reels.

According to Lyons, «Your Algorithm» can help Instagram’s algorithm better understand its users and provide them with relevant content more quickly. Furthermore, this new functionality will also result in a better advertising experience on Instagram, as its algorithm will have more clues when it comes to rewarding you with ads that are in tune with your true interests.

Source: www.marketingdirecto.com