Understanding the algorithm which is common in all social media platforms!
Social media is what TV was at the beginning of the 21st century. Every brand and company is looking for ways to grow their reach on social media owing to the growing attention that these platforms are getting.
Social media is the future for businesses and especially digital marketers who are finding new ways to grow their business and career at the same time.
Social media is a struggle for many, whereas numerous accounts are multiplying their followers every single day.
Now, what is it that differentiates the growing accounts from the one which cannot surpass the first 10,000 followers for years?
The answer is a simple understanding of the algorithm of all these social media platforms. The best part of social media platforms is that their algorithm is built based on human psychology which is based on emotions. Most of the algorithms and rules of platforms are similar, and understanding the working of one them means understanding all of them.
● Wonder how come influencers have a similar presence on all of the platforms at the same time? Its because the underlying algorithm for these are similar
Mastering and understanding the algorithm can help you grow on every platform and make content which goes viral. Before I explain the details of the algorithm of different platforms, let's get the basic clear.
What are social media algorithms, and why are they important?
Social media algorithms are a set of mathematical rules that define the way content is displayed to every member. This algorithm is valid across all platforms and sections of the application, namely the feed, search section including advertisements and other things.
Now, why is this algorithm there in the first place?
You must be wondering why there is an algorithm in place rather than the random process of distribution. So the concept is that there are billions of people on social media platforms and every one of these on average follow hundreds of accounts while having thousands of interests.
Now if the social media platforms display the posts randomly or in order of time, you will be bombarded with promotional as well as low quantity content and would leave the platform in the first few minutes.
The platforms rate every piece of content on the amount of engagement they get, and those scores are what defines the spread of content to your followers and beyond.
There is no clear set of rules which talk about the exact algorithm, but there are many tested ways which have proved the prominence of some engagement rules, and we are going to talk about all of these.
Talking about some major algorithms and the difference
Let's see the significant broad outlook of algorithm rules for some of the leading social media platforms.
● Facebook - Facebook rates and ranks the content based on consumer engagement. Likes, comments and the time spent on a post are the major deciding factors of the quality of the content. Facebook gives preference to local, friendly and family-related posts and images
● Instagram - Instagram is owned by Facebook but still has a lot of differences than Facebook. The content is rewarded based on likes, comments, shares, saves and the time spent. Hashtags are then used to reward the post by spreading across people who don't follow you and giving a spot on the explore page
● LinkedIn - LinkedIn, on the other hand, hosts business professions and has an entirely different algorithm. The content is ranked on the amount of time spent on reading and insightful content rather than funny images. The content should be read-worthy and shared among the users
What is the standard part of the algorithm among all these platforms?
Although they might have different scoring and distribution systems, the basic fundamentals in all the platforms remain the same, which is engagement and attention.
The time spent on a post and the engagement done by the user will define the success of your post and account at the same time.
To understand this better, let's take an example of Instagram.
Instagram is among the top social media platforms in the world and has an algorithm which is looked and copied by thousands of companies.
Instagram has been able to attract users and grow usage by delivering the highest quality content. Let's see some of the rules which define the success of a post on Instagram.
● The first 30 mins of a post are crucial, and the engagement the post gets in the first 30 mins is what defines the amount of push that it will get from Instagram
● The number of likes the post gets
● The number of comments
● The number of shares
● The number of saves
● Time spent on a post
● Touching or zooming the post
Some pro tips to use for social media growth
Now that you are aware of the algorithms and how exactly these are used, it is time to understand some hacks which will give you an edge over others.
● Make sure to study and visualise the analytics of your account
● Study the response of content pieces in the first hour and A/B test designs so that you can get to know what performs better
● For platforms like Instagram, carousel posts are trending these days so write content divided into 10 posts and leverage the attention
Everything you post should be apart from what is generally published in your niche or business.
Another critical aspect of social media which is not taken care of is copywriting. Emotions like curiosity and fear of missing out can make you stop people from scrolling and read the content.
Focus more on the words and the message that they are conveying. After that, you can look for engaging graphics and always make sure to use complementary colours in your posts. The colour combination can also make a significant effect.
Conclusion
The main takeaway from this post is that social media platforms reward engagement and attention. No matter what the platform you are using, if you can hold the attention of the users, the platform will help you to grow by pushing your content.
Just follow the steps given in this post, and soon you will see constant growth, and suddenly your posts will rank on explore pages and will be shown to people who do not follow you.
Begin your journey of social media domination and become a benchmark in your Industry right NOW!!!