We are just a few days into 2022 and it’s officially time to start identifying top trends for social media this year.
Luckily, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri recently created a video outlining Instagram’s main areas of focus for the app as it enters into 2022.
In 2021, we saw Instagram replicate many of competitor TikTok’s video features. According to Mosseri, we can expect to see much of the same continue into the new year as Instagram continues to push its video content.
In his clip, Mosseri names two main focuses for Instagram in 2022: “Video and Control.”
As expected, Instagram is continuing its trend of prioritizing and pushing their video content, specifically with Reels remaining the main focus. The rising pressure from video-giant TikTok led to Instagram dramatically shifting gears in 2021 and Instagram is now committing to “consolidate all of [their] video formats around Reels.”
While Instagram’s push in 2021 was met with mixed signals, from an engagement standpoint, their video push via Reels was successful. Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, commented earlier in 2021 that Reels became their largest contributor to engagement growth on the platform.
What will this push look like in 2022? Well, we’ve seen a lot of it already in our Instagram apps with Reels clips being integrated right into our Home feeds and shorter Instagram Videos being defaulted into Reels when posted.
Other priorities named by Mosseri in his clip include a focus on messaging in the app and increased monetization options for creators.
Finally, Instagram has pledged their last focus on the theme of “transparency,” specifically to provide more insight into “how Instagram works.”
This is most likely going to be seen in the return of the chronological feed option which users will be able to toggle on and off. While it won’t be a saveable option (meaning you will need to manually switch to the chronological feed each time you open the app), it does offer users a means at “beating” the dreaded Instagram algorithm that ever-changes.
Which focus(es) will you consider in your social strategy for 2022?
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