7 Instagram Trends To Watch In 2019

Instagram was launched as a photo sharing app exclusively in IOS in 2010. When Facebook purchased the photo-sharing platform in 2012 it had just 30 million users. As of June 2018, it has become the world’s second largest social media platform with one billion monthly active users.

The platform is constantly evolving with new functions such as Instagram Stories and IGTV. Today, it isn’t just the young people who are on Instagram though.  The older generation has also embraced Instagram in recent years, even if they don’t post to the platform as actively, they are engaging with the content. *

Instagram users are much more engaged compared to Facebook and Twitter ** and they love brands. Instagram states that 80% of people are following a business account on the platform.

Brands love Instagram as well because it is cost-effective: The Instagram app noted 20% as many ad impressions as Facebook and 9% as many clicks.***

Instagram trends are changing fast and we need to keep a close eye to determine the best practices. Here are my expectations for Instagram in 2019.

1. Instagram Stories saw a massive growth in 2018, it has almost become a second platform within the platform. 400 million people are watching Stories every day.**** I expect Instagram to invest more in Stories for different monetization options. Many brands are already using Stories for short yet effective ads. I expect Story advertising to grow in 2019.
2. Instagram launched IGTV in 2018. It has grown at a slow pace and we haven’t seen a massive push from Instagram but it’s expected to grow in 2019. Therefore brands need ​to embrace vertical video.
3. Inviting followers to interact with your brand trough comments and interactions will be key to success. To drive this engagement, brands need to ask questions in the captions. The Story features such as poll/ ask a question/emoji slider etc are great for this.
4. Brands who embrace storytelling will perform better on Instagram. To stand out from the crowd, brands need quality images and engaging videos.
5. With shoppable tags both on the feed and Stories and the swipe up feature, brands have different options to sell their products. Instagram is expected to add to these monetization options.
6. Influencer marketing will continue to be important. Brands who work with authentic and creative influencers will win. It will not be all about influencers who have thousands of followers. Nano-influencers (influencers with a small number of followers) usually have a very engaged community and brands will want to work with them as well.
7. User-generated content will be instrumental to accelerate Instagram growth as users love to see relatable, authentic content.  Brands that encourage their audiences to share their content will gain from this.
   
   2019 will surely be an exciting year for Instagram! What are your expectations from Instagram? I would love to know. 
   
   As always if you have any questions or need any help, check out my services here and get in touch.

​*https://blog.hootsuite.com/instagram-demographics/
**https://www.rivaliq.com/blog/breaking-down-2018-social-media-benchmark-report/
***https://www.fourthsource.com/news/ad-spend-on-instagram-grew-177-report-says-23056
****https://blog.iconosquare.com/instagram-trends-2019/