Hypefactory Listed Top Three New Instagram Features That Can Improve Your Social Media Marketing Strategy in 2022

Although there have been several new features launched recently across all social media platforms, Instagram has been constantly in the spotlight due to its intensified competition with TikTok.

HypeFactory compiled feedback from influencer marketing experts and based on their insights identified three new social media features on Instagram that have already shifted the social media marketing landscape.

Feature #1: Story links

Being a visual-first platform, Instagram originally was built as an app for image sharing but as the variety of social media platforms is growing, so do users’ expectations. Now Instagram has more than one billion monthly active users and has to compete with new channels that are emerging on a regular basis.

For a long time, Instagram users have been limited in ways of sharing external links on the platform. Linktree, which was established in 2016, took the Instagram world by storm by allowing content creators and brands to use multiple links in their profile descriptions.

Although Linktree was a step forward in making Instagram link-friendly, only users with more than 10,000 followers were allowed to add links to their Stories. This policy excluded a large number of nano-influencers and small businesses that do not have large followership.

In the last quarter of 2021, Instagram released the Stories links feature to all users making it much easier to share not only images and videos on the platform but also to refer followers to different websites. For example, marketers are now able to promote their blog posts directly on Instagram without using Linktree.

Feature #2: Collabs

Instagram has also been embracing its social aspect.

Since influencer marketing is becoming more popular, there is an increasing number of partnerships and collaborations between influencers and brands. This rising interest in influencer marketing is an opportunity for social media platforms to become a facilitator between two parties.

Collabs is an Instagram feature that allows influencers/brands to co-author a Feed post or a Reel. A co-authored post appears on both profiles, and this opens many new doors to marketers.

For example, brands and influencers can now reach a higher number of Instagram users without paid promotion by leveraging the followership of both accounts. Collabs are also an easy way to announce a partnership or a new collaboration project with another brand or an influencer.

Feature #3: Add Yours sticker

Add Yours is a relatively new addition to the Instagram marketing toolkit.

It resembles a snowball effect: a user writes a prompt (e.g. “A fun fact I learned today”) and shares it to their Story together with an image or a video. If other users click on this prompt, they will see a list of everyone who contributed to this prompt with their fun facts.

This feature makes Instagram content more interactive and shareable. It also allows marketers to launch challenges and set new trends. For example, if this feature is incorporated into a marketing campaign, it can boost the brand’s visibility and also spark conversations.