35 Instagram Features All Marketers Should Know [2023 Guide]

Instagram is constantly pushing the boundaries of what a photo-sharing app can be. This social network is a multi-talented queen: Sure, you can throw a tomfool filter on a photo, but thanks to Instagram’s many native features, you can moreover edit videos, buy your mom’s birthday present, start an worrying group chat, see all of the posts you’ve liked (ever), video undeniability your coworker, start a flame war via quiz sticker, and more.

Here are the Instagram features that every marketer should know in 2023 — take notes. (Just kidding, bookmarking the page is good unbearable for us).

New Instagram features

Instagram Notes

Think of Instagram Notes like a message board: you can “pin” short phrases to the top of messenger, and they’ll stay there for 24 hours. Notes are a unconfined place to remind people well-nigh events, promotions, life updates and more.

Source: Meta

Want to learn increasingly well-nigh Instagram Notes (and what the heck they’re for)? Here’s a blog post for you.

Instagram Collabs

Collab posts indulge two separate finance to share the same content to both of their feeds. Both of the creator’s handles towards in the post, and the comments and likes are all in one place. This is a smart full-length to use when you’re partnering with an influencer or flipside merchantry for an telecast or sponsored content: It makes the partnership transparent and obvious for your audience.

Source: Instagram

IG collab posts instantly increase your reach, considering both your followers and your collaborator’s followers will have wangle to it. To learn increasingly well-nigh mastering the art of Instagam collab posts, here’s some reading for you.

Instagram merchantry features

Professional dashboard

The Professional Dashboard on Instagram is for Business and Creator accounts. Here, you can measure your performance on the app (more on Instagram Insights below) and moreover learn increasingly well-nigh how modernize those metrics—the “Grow Your Business” section has helpful tools for unconfined ‘gramming.

Source: Instagram

Interactive bio

The interactive bio features make it easier for your regulars to wangle information directly from your Instagram profile. Information like your business’s write and phone number are clickable, leading curious potential customers straight to the point.

Source: Instagram

And don’t forget well-nigh the link in bio—you can reprinting and paste your visitor website there, or craft your own linktree to maximize that space.

(Psst: if you’re looking for new IG bio ideas, we’ve got 10 hot ones).

Desktop publishing

In the days of yore (aka, pre-2021), you could only publish to Instagram via a mobile device. But in June 2021, Instagram introduced the desktop publishing feature. Now you can post from your computer’s desktop and stave neck cramping.

Source: Instagram

To publish directly from your desktop, log in to instagram.com and click Create on the left side of your screen. From there, you can stilt and waif content, use filters, add captions and more.

If you like desktop publishing, you’re going to have a major crush on Hootsuite. Hootsuite’s publishing tools are desktop-friendly and indulge you to plan and schedule your content, find the optimal time to post, and more.

Instagram Insights

Instagram’s Insights indulge you to track your success on the platform (they’re part of the Professional Dashboard, see above). Alimony track of important metrics like your engagement rate, likes, comments, followers and increasingly using this feature.

For a well-constructed rundown of how to use IG analytics for your merchantry account, we suggest taking a looksee at this blog post.

Instagram Live

Make serious connections (in real time) using Instagram Live. This full-length helps you engage your regulars and can requite you a major step up when it comes to trademark authenticity. Using Instagram Live, you can connect with viewers, invite them to join your live video, present shoppable products and more.

Source: Instagram

For increasingly on using Instagram live for business, trammels out this no-sweat, tear-free guide to IG Live.

Instagram Guides

The Instagram Guides full-length allows you to curate content virtually a particular theme or goal. For example, you could create an IG guide to a unrepealable product launch, sale or trademark information.

To create an Instagram Guide, you don’t need to make new content: think of a guide like a batch of already-published content that you’ve gathered together for a specific purpose.

Source: Instagram

Curious well-nigh Instagram guides? Here’s 13 ways to use this feature.

Pinned comments

Comments often show up either sorted by time posted or whatever scuttlebutt the viewer will be most interested in (thanks, algorithm!), but by pinning a comment, you can tenancy what your regulars sees first. Pinned comments show up directly unelevated the post’s caption, directing the viewer’s sustentation to a particular message.

Businesses can use pinned comments to overdraw positive messages, yank sustentation to commonly asked questions or simply put a funny scuttlebutt front and centre. (Pinning a scuttlebutt is easy: here’s how to do it.)

Instagram messaging features

Direct messages

Take it to the DMs: uncontrived messages are a private way to interact on Instagram. You can start up a DM with any Instagram worth to communicate directly. This is the weightier place to have a conversation that you don’t want the whole world to see.

To get the most out of your Instagram DMs, here’s an essential guide.

Group chats

Group chats are just like DMs, but they include three or increasingly accounts. Group chats are a unconfined way to share content or talk with a small group of people (and send memes, obvs).

Source: Instagram

Instagram group chats can unquestionably include up to 250 accounts, which feels a bit like having a turkey setting on a microwave. (Seriously, who needs that?)

Audio and video calls

Watch your back, Zoom. Via Instagram’s private messenger, you can make audio or video calls to up to eight people at once. Just select either the phone or video option in the top right corner of your DM to start a call—this works on both desktop and mobile versions of the platform.

Source: Instagram

Automatic replies

An will-less reply is like a voicemail for Instagram—it lets the person who DM’ed you know that you received their message, and can communicate a standard message to everyone who sends you a private chat. This is particularly helpful for businesses.

An will-less reply can be used to wordplay commonly asked questions, present timely information or plane let folks know that IG DM isn’t the weightier way to contact you. (If you’re looking to up your game when it comes to DMs, Hootsuite’s Inbox makes it easy to streamline communication).

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Saved replies

Saved replies are an incredible IG hack when you’re dealing with a large volume of DMs. A saved reply is a shortcut to a longer message. You can set up multiple saved replies in your IG settings.

Reply to comments

Instead of replying to comments with flipside comment, you can reply to to comments using a uncontrived message. This is a useful tool for transitioning a conversation from your scuttlebutt section to a private message.

Source: Instagram

To reply to a scuttlebutt with a uncontrived message, just tap Message instead of Reply when you’re commenting.

Polls, quizzes, GIFs and stickers

Using Instagram messenger, you can send GIFs or stickers in any uncontrived message. Plus, you can send interactive polls or quizzes to any group yack (any message with three or increasingly finance involved).

Source: Instagram

To wangle these features, go into the chosen yack and tap the sticker icon on the lower right side of the screen. From there you’ll be worldly-wise to pick stickers and GIFs and use the poll and quiz options—if what you’re looking for doesn’t pop up right away, use the search bar.

Unsend messages

If you’ve made a mistake in a uncontrived message or unwittingly sent a DM to the wrong account, you can unsend the message by tapping and holding it, then choosing Unsend.

Source: Instagram

Of course, if the person has once read the message, this won’t erase it from their memory (though it may make them think they’re losing it).

Vanish mode

This full-length isn’t particularly useful when it comes to merchantry (unless you’re in the merchantry of GOSSIP) but it is very fun. Open Instagram messenger and swipe up on the screen to turn on Vanish mode — your messenger screen will turn black, and once a message is seen on Vanish mode, it disappears.

Source: Instagram

Important note: Instagram notifies everyone in the yack if someone takes a screenshot. Better not.

Instagram Story features

Instagram Story captions

Captions are a archetype way to up your Instagram Story game — they indulge you to layer text, emojis and tags over the photo, Reel or post you’re sharing.

Source: Instagram

Instagram Story highlights

IG Stories disappear 24 hours without they’re posted — that is, unless they’re saved in a Story Highlight. Story Highlights indulge you to alimony notable or informative Stories “pinned” and hands wieldy at the top of your profile.

Source: Instagram

If you’re looking to customize your highlight covers, like in the example above, here’s how to do it.

Instagram Story links

Add a link to any website on your IG Story by using the “Link” sticker. Just reprinting and paste the web link into the towardly field. The sticker will automatically exhibit the name of the website, but if you want to personalize it, just hit Customize sticker text and type in whatever you want — for example, CLICK HERE, READ MORE or SHOP NOW.

Source: Instagram

Interactive Story stickers

Besides links, there’s moreover Story stickers that indulge users to interact with your content while staying in the Instagram app. Interactive stickers include pools, quizzes and questions: use these features to engage with your audience, source opinions or get ideas.

Source: Instagram

For increasingly Instagram Story ideas, here’s a blog post with over 30 examples.

Add yours

This is one of Instagram’s newer sticker options, and it has some very tomfool possibilities when it comes to sharing. The “Add yours” sticker allows anyone on Instagram to participate in a photo-sharing rencontre that follows a specific prompt. For example: “Your June so far,” “Family photo” or “Design inspo please.”

Source: Meta

These sticker prompts can wrack-up up, with hundreds of thousands of people using them as an excuse to share photos.

Instagram Story shopping

This is flipside kind of clickable sticker—add links directly to products in your Instagram Shop to make it simple for viewers to learn increasingly (and buy stuff, of course).

Source: Instagram

Instagram Reel features

Edit Reels

Instagram’s native tools for editing Reels are quite comprehensive. You can prune videos together, crop, add text and music, put in fun transitions and more.

Source: Instagram

Remix

The Remix full-length gives Instagram users the opportunity to make a Reel that includes a photo or video posted by flipside user. This is a unconfined way to shoot reaction videos, make an engaging scuttlebutt on flipside post or support flipside user of the app. (Also, sing duets!)

Reel templates

Editing Instagram Reels can be a pain (especially if you’re using IG’s in-app program — here are some self-ruling volitional solutions), and Reel templates are a user-friendly strategy for creating spanking-new videos. Templates will automatically prune your chosen videos into a unrepealable time frame, usually to the write-up of a particular song–providing you with a perfectly edited video in just a few seconds.

Source: Instagram

To use a Reel’s template, just hit Use template, which appears whilom the worth name on the Reel.

Reply to a scuttlebutt with a Reel

When someone comments on your Reel, you can reply with a Reel that includes that comment—it’s an superstitious way to engage with your regulars and to capitalize off of content that you’ve once created.

To reply to a scuttlebutt with a Reel, segregate the scuttlebutt that you want to reply to and hit Reply. Then, instead of typing your reply as you normally would, hit the camera icon. That will bring you to the Reels megacosm page, and the scuttlebutt you’re replying to will towards like a sticker on your Reel.

Captions

In order to make your Reel as wieldy as possible, use captions. Captioning the audio on your Reels is helpful to folks who might not be worldly-wise to hear (and moreover helpful for people who watch Reels silently, for example, for hours on end while their partner sleeps soundly next to them).

Instagram will create will-less captions for you (Hallelujah)—just tap the sticker sawed-off and segregate Captions. IG won’t unchangingly transcribe the audio perfectly, but you can edit each word yourself by tapping on the text. You can moreover transpiration the font of the captions using the options at the marrow of your screen.

 

 

Instagram shopping features

Product tags

Product tags are an superstitious tool for retailers using the platform (and an plane increasingly superstitious tool for online shopaholics). The shopping full-length gives businesses the opportunity to showcase their products online, and consumers the opportunity to buy those products directly within the app.

Source: Instagram

Instagram shopping is an art — here are the top tricks of the trade.

Instagram Checkout

Speaking of ownership directly within the app: that’s what Instagram Checkout is all about. This in-app full-length makes shopping criminally easy.

Source: Instagram

Instagram Wishlist

If impulse ownership isn’t your thing (brag alert) you can add products to your Instagram Wishlist. To do this, just tap the little ribbon icon next to the product.

To wangle your saved products, tap the three horizontal lines in the top right corner of the IG shopping screen and then go to Saved Products.

Knowing well-nigh the wish list full-length is moreover helpful if you’re a merchantry selling products: this can be a call to action in your posts (“Save this to your summer wishlist”).

Hidden Instagram features

See archived Stories

Instagram Stories disappear 24 hours without they’re posted. It’s a manna and a curse. Once those 24 hours are up, the post is gone forever. Or is it?

Source: Instagram

You can wangle your own Instagram Story gazetteer through your profile — just hit the three horizontal lines at the top right of your screen, then Archive. This full-length is expressly helpful if you’ve conducted a quiz or poll and can no longer see the results: that’s all wieldy via the Stories archive.

See all the posts you’ve liked on Instagram

To see all the posts you’ve liked on Instagram in one place, go to your profile page, hit the three horizontal lines in the top right corner, then hit Your activity.

Source: Instagram

From there, you’ll be worldly-wise to see all the posts that you’ve liked, commented on, been tagged in, and plane your sticker responses on IG Stories. You can plane sort these by stage — so if you want to know whether you voted “yes” or “no” to the whipped coffee trend in April 2020, this is where to trammels it out.

Instagram Story tags (after posting)

Have you overly posted an Instagram Story and realized you forgot to tag someone? Now, you can retroactively mention someone in your IG Story. That ways that they can share it to their followers, instantly expanding the reach of your content.

Source: Instagram

To tag someone in an Instagram Story without the Story has once been posted, go into the Story, tap the three dots in the right marrow corner, then tap Add Mentions. Type in the handles of the account(s) you’d like to tag, and you’re golden.

Create, schedule, and publish Instagram posts and Stories (and all your other social content), interact with your audience, and measure your success from one dashboard using Hootsuite. Start your self-ruling 30-day trial today.

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