If you need to be reminded that TikTok has been essentially the most downloaded app for the past 18 months, and is still growing in popularity and use with younger audiences, this is probably a good call.
As app researcher Alessandro Paluzzi discovered, Instagram seems to be trying again to neutralize its video rival with a new test of a TikTok-style vertical content feed for Explore that would allow you to browse through the content recommendations of Delete Instagram. and swipe over posts with multiple images.
#Instagram is working on a Reels-style Explore area ????
ℹ️ When opened, the Explore section stays the same as it is now, but when you select a post the view looks like a #reels clip.
ℹ️ Posts with multiple photos act like stories, so you can tap left and right to view them. pic.twitter.com/fkhlP2Y7Dq
– Alessandro Paluzzi (@ alex193a) July 26, 2021
As Paluzzi notes, the “Explore” section remains normal during the test until you tap on a post. When you do this, the post will then expand to the new role-like full screen ad. You can then either tap the back arrow in the top left of the screen to return to the regular Explore entry, or swipe up to go to the next post in your Explore feed. You can also swipe on multi-image carousels, indicated by gray bars at the bottom of the screen.
Which, as mentioned earlier, is very TikTok-like. But at the same time it’s really brilliant.
A big advantage that TikTok has over Instagram in this phase is the content recognition and the highlighting of personally relevant, entertaining public posts for each user based on their engagement behavior, which is then presented to them via their “For you” page, the default Home page, feeds are fed in the app (as opposed to your ‘Follow’ feed).
Instagram boss Adam Mosseri has even recognized TikTok’s leadership in this area, noting that TikTok is better than Instagram at the moment when it comes to “reliable entertainment”.
As Mosseri said last month:
“They know you can bet on TikTok and you’ll be smiling and entertained instantly.”
Instagram isn’t that good at this, as Instagram is still largely limited to who you already follow and what content they create that appears on your home feed and stories. That limits the amount of great, engaging content that Instagram’s algorithm can show you, while Instagram’s design isn’t as implicit either as it is with TikTok, which presents each clip individually in full screen mode.
Not only does this mean that TikTok has a wider variety of content available for its “For You” feed to keep you occupied, but it also means that every action you take on the app will focus on every single clip relates that you make. are displayed, in contrast to Instagram or Facebook, for example, where several posts are often displayed in the feed at the same time, as well as captions, ads, stories, etc.
Tech analyst Eugene Wei gave a detailed look at this element in this post and how it powers TikTok’s algorithm, largely due to its presentation style, and what TikTok can then glean from the engagement of each user with each clip.
As Wei notes:
“All you do as soon as the video starts playing is a signal of your attitude towards that video. Do you swipe to the next video before it stops playing? An implicit (if marginally explicit) signal of disinterest. Have you watched it more than once and repeated it a few times? Apparently something attracted you to it. Did you share the video using the built-in sharing area? Another strong indicator of a positive mood. If you tap the spinning LP icon in the lower right corner and watch more videos with the same soundtrack, that’s an extra signal for your taste. “
Instagram doesn’t have the same indicators with general content, although it has tried to incorporate them into reels. But even then, Instagram’s main focus is on people and profiles you follow, not wider content exploration and awareness.
But if it can build a similar process into Explore, with full-screen presentation, focus, and the help of its algorithms to more accurately register similar engagement behaviors, Instagram could potentially become more responsive in the same way, thereby enabling users to show more of themselves what they like and less what they dislike, making Explore more tailored to each user.
It also adapts to evolving consumer behavior by swiping up and seeing each post take all of your attention on a single screen. And if you don’t like this style of presentation, in theory you can always go back to Explore as you know it to minimize disruption.
That could actually be an excellent approach to the TikTok puzzle the app is facing – and while it’s still open to your main feed, it will show posts from users you follow (although I previously speculated that this is will change at some point). If it can make Explore a more engaging, relevant feed with a more engaging, engaging presentation style, it could be a big step.
It seems like a positive experiment that seems pretty mature too, based on Paluzzi’s sample clip. We asked Instagram if this is being tested in the live environment and what the plans might be, and we’ll update this post if we hear anything.
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