Editor’s Weekly Wrap: next year, 75% of traffic will go here

This week, Instagram Australia users were given a respite from the school playground. 

 

Instead of clear indicators of social hierarchy, they were to rely on their own senses.

 

That is, Instagram removed the visibility of likes. 

 

What posts are popular?

 

Is the person posting popular?

 

*cue screams of terror*

 

Content from now, at least if the trial continues, will be produced on merit and not on popularity.

 

Removing influencers from the picture briefly, what does this mean for brands and their own content?

 

One clear and undeniable fact is the unrivalled popularity of video. 

 

By 2020 it has been estimated that 75% of mobile internet traffic is going to be video.

 

According to Instagram, the next shift in viewing behaviour will also be from horizontal to vertical. 

 

This has been driven by the popularity of formats such as stories and IGTV. 

 

There are now around 400 million monthly active people using stories.

 

About 50% of these stories are viewed as video.

 

60% are viewed with the sound on, which is contrary to the feed, with one in three stories on average receiving a direct message.

 

For fashion blog Twice Blessed, IGTV has also been a game changer in terms of engagement, visibility and total reach.

 

In the month of March, the handle grew 11,000 followers by filming just two ‘How to Style' IGTV video's. 

 

Both of these videos went viral (with over 100,000 views each) and the founders were exposed a larger audience of people than ever before.

 

So while likes might be a thing of the past, in terms of content format, your best bet is to keep the screen moving.