10 Valuable Instagram hacks and features

Contributed by Harikrishna Kundariya, CEO at eSparkbiz Technologies, a SaaS development company that provides world-class solutions to help clients grow digitally.

Instagram, with its massive audience, is still growing day by day. People feel incredibly engaged by and spend so much time on this social media platform because of its unique and ultracool features that allow users to share stories with the world in a creative way.

Is your company maximizing its Instagram presence to grow and scale? There are features available on Instagram that are yet undiscovered by most users.

Here are 10 Instagram hacks and features you probably haven’t used yet.

1. Shortcuts for common responses

Responding with the same reply to everyone becomes annoying and time-consuming. A better strategy is to save pre-written responses so that you can quickly respond without wasting a second.

How it’s done:  Go to your IG profile and click on the three-line icon. Then go to settings, tap “creators,” and then click “saved replies.” Add your common response and save it along with a shortcut to identify the message when you need it. You can use pre-existing replies by typing the shortcut into the direct messages (DM) of any user.

2. Receive notifications for other account posts

One reason to follow someone on Instagram is to view their content and updates. Sometimes your feed misses posts from those creators. Instagram has the solution: You can set notifications so that you won’t miss any updates from your favourite influencers and creators.

How it’s done: Go to that specific account, click on the bell-shaped notification icon on the top bar. Then, choose the type of notification you want to receive–ie, stories, posts or reels.

3. Limit your screen time

While both businesses and users love Instagram, its reputation as a time-killer is warranted, as it lets you scroll the feed endlessly. If you want to limit your time on the app, then this feature is for you. It allows you to limit your screen time on Instagram by sending a reminder after a predetermined amount of time on the platform.

How it’s done: Go to the three-line icon on your profile, click “Your Activity,” then “Time” to set a reminder as per your preference for time spent on Instagram.

4. Hone your bio to appear on search results

To get noticed, you need to understand what your audience is searching for. Slip a keyword in your bio to pop up in the list of search results.

How it’s done: Tap “Edit Profile,” mention the relevant keyword in your bio, and save it.

5. Mute annoying accounts

Some Instagram posts may irritate or disturb you. But unfortunately, you may not be in a position to unfollow the person if they are a close friend or relative. The solution? You can mute their accounts.

How it’s done: Go to the account you want to mute, click on the three dots after the “following” button, hit “mute,” and choose whether you want to mute stories, posts–or both. 

6. Remove old posts without deleting them

If you want to remove older posts without deleting them permanently, Instagram’s “Archive” feature allows you to archive your posts by hiding them from others.

How it’s done: Click on the top of the post that you want to hide, then click “Archive.” You can access and restore archived posts from the Archive section anytime you choose.

7. See all posts you have liked

You can view every post that you have liked in the past quickly with a few clicks on Instagram.

How it’s done: Hit the three-line icon at the top of your profile, click “Settings,” then “Account.” Now tap “Posts You’ve Liked” to see all the posts you’ve liked in the past.

8. Find top hashtags for your posts

Use effective hashtags in your posts to get your content in front of the right audience.

How it’s done: Tap the magnifying glass icon at the bottom of your screen, then search the keyword. Tap the “Tags” column to see relevant hashtags.

9. Write story text in multiple colours

Writing story text in multiple colour letters helps your stories stand out, and is a unique feature that most people don’t know about. You can also use this feature on videos created in Instagram’s video editor.

How it’s done: Type phrases while creating your story, then select the text that you would like to colour. Next, use the cursor to choose the colour for that particular phrase or letter, and repeat the same process for other letters and phrases.

10. Hide tagged photos

If you don’t want photos in which you are tagged to show and want them removed, you can easily do that.

How it’s done: Go to the tag section in your profile, then open the post photo that you want to hide. Tap the three dots above the post, then tap “Tag Options.” Now, select from the two available options, “Remove Me From Post” or “Hide from My Profile.”

Now that you have the inside scoop on accessing valuable features that most people don’t know about, you can use these hacks to enhance your Instagram presence and grow your business.

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