Social Scoop Unplugged #13
Want to stay ahead in the social media game? This week, Instagram’s making some major moves—Story Highlights now have their own tab, it’s easier than ever to clean up your follower list by removing inactive profiles, and the option to follow hashtags is officially gone. Is this the end of the hashtag era? Meanwhile, Facebook’s ditching public followers from personal profiles (don’t worry, just switch to Professional Mode if you want to keep them) and is now favouring Views as the go-to engagement metric. TikTok is rolling out AI-powered video creation tools for marketers, X introduces a ‘Pinch to Zoom’ feature for videos, LinkedIn video posts are now generating 3X more reach, and YouTube is testing TikTok’s swipe-up gesture for full-length videos. Learn how all of these updates can supercharge your strategies and keep you ahead of the curve!
Instagram Moves Story Highlights to a New Tab
Instagram’s making another tweak to your profile layout – this time, moving your Story Highlights to their very own tab. No more clutter above your profile grid; your highlights will now sit neatly in a separate section within your profile.
This change is rolling out soon, with a notification shared by social media expert Lindsey Gamble confirming the shift. Your Story Highlights will still show up on your main grid, but the exact placement there isn’t entirely clear yet – will they appear based on when the highlight was last updated, or by some other method? We’ll have to wait and see.
The update has been in testing for a while, and back in August, app researcher Alessandro Paluzzi shared an example of what the new grid would look like, featuring a dedicated Story Highlights tab marked by a cute rounded heart icon. Inside this tab, you’ll find your highlights displayed as vertically aligned thumbnails, each representing a different topic.
Adam Mosseri, Instagram’s chief, gave us a little insight into the thinking behind this change. He said,
“We’re trying to figure out a way to improve the profile and get more of the content above the fold, and simplify it.”
Essentially, they’re looking to make things tidier and easier to navigate. You’ll still have control over your highlights (including the ability to pin them), but they’re aiming for a cleaner layout, moving away from the current “pogs” (yes, apparently, the circular highlights are known as “pogs” in IG land).
This shift could make your profile a lot more streamlined, but there’s a downside – fewer people may actually tap on your highlights now that they’re tucked away in a separate tab. But let’s be real, how many of us are really tapping through past Stories anyway? Maybe Instagram’s just recognising that highlights, which are often more static, don’t carry the same weight as they once did. Or maybe it’s just about simplifying the experience. Either way, it’s clear this new format is now being rolled out and Instagram’s settled on it.
We’ve reached out to Instagram to clarify whether this will be a universal update and will update this post when we hear back. But for now, it looks like your Story Highlights will soon be getting a new home – one that’s just a little less in-your-face.
Instagram Makes It Easier to Remove Inactive Followers
Instagram has just made it easier to clean up your follower list by showing you exactly which accounts are inactive. If you’re looking to tidy up your audience and ensure that your stats reflect real engagement, you can now quickly remove these inactive profiles with just a few taps.
Here’s how it works: When you go to your “Followers” list, Instagram now highlights any “Deactivated accounts” at the top, along with any flagged or creator accounts. This makes it clear which profiles aren’t active or engaging with your content.
So, why is it worth cleaning up your followers?
Inactive followers can mess with your data. For one, they can skew your engagement and reach statistics, making it seem like your content is performing better or worse than it actually is. If you’re running ads or targeting a specific audience, these inactive accounts can also throw off your targeting, leading to wasted ad spend or inaccurate audience insights.
The good news is that this process is now a lot simpler. You can easily tap “Remove” next to each inactive account, clearing them from your list and giving you more accurate insights on your actual audience.
This update is live now, so you can start cleaning up your profile and refining your audience today!
Instagram Is Removing the Option to Follow Hashtags
Instagram is removing the option to follow hashtags, aiming to clean up feeds and reduce the amount of spam and irrelevant posts showing up in your content. If you’ve been following hashtags, you’ll notice you won’t see posts and Reels from those tags anymore. The reason for this change? Spammers have been hijacking popular hashtags to spread junk content, and despite Instagram’s efforts to control it, some of that spam still slipped through. Now, Instagram is cutting the option to follow hashtags entirely to make the platform experience cleaner.
While you’ll still be able to see hashtag results in the Explore section and through search, they won’t clutter up your main feed. Instagram is getting better at understanding content, so spammy posts should show up less often.
So, what does this mean for your content strategy?
• Less spam: You won’t see irrelevant posts filling up your feed anymore, which is a relief for users.
• Focus on quality: Instagram’s algorithm is improving, so you’ll likely see more of the content you actually care about, while spam gets filtered out.
• Creator followings: With hashtags becoming less central, more users may start following individual creators directly, rather than relying on hashtags to discover content.
• Hashtags losing power: While hashtags aren’t disappearing, they’re becoming less important for reach and engagement than before.
Ultimately, while this change seems to mark a decline in the power of hashtags, it’s a step in the right direction for a cleaner, more relevant Instagram experience.
Facebook Removing Public Followers from Personal Profiles
Facebook is making a change to personal profiles—soon, you won’t be able to let anyone follow your updates. Right now, you can allow public followers on your personal profile, but that option is being phased out. Meta is making this shift as it’s really a feature designed for business or creator accounts, not your regular personal profile.
So, what does this mean for you?
• No more random followers: People who aren’t friends won’t be able to follow your personal posts anymore.
• Switch to Professional Mode: If you still want to allow followers, you’ll need to convert your personal profile to a Professional profile (think of it like a Page mode).
• More ad options: Professional accounts will be able to boost posts, which could help you reach a wider audience and potentially grow your presence.
• It’s rolling out in stages: Not everyone will see the change immediately, but expect it to roll out sometime next year.
While this shift might feel like a bit of a hassle, it also gives you a great opportunity to separate your personal and professional lives on Facebook, while giving you more control over who’s seeing your content.
Facebook Moves to ‘Views’ as Its Primary Metric
Following Instagram’s shift to “Views” as the key metric back in August, Facebook’s doing the same. Here’s what this means for brands and content creators.
Key Points:
A simpler focus: Facebook’s moving away from varied metrics like “plays” or “impressions” and now focusing purely on Views—counting the number of times content is seen across all post types.
Consistency across platforms: Both Facebook and Instagram will now use Views as the universal metric for videos, photos, and text posts. This makes it easier to compare performance across both apps.
Changes to Stories & Photos: For Stories, photos, and text posts, Views will replace Impressions. So if someone views a photo multiple times, each view will count separately.
Updated Watch Metrics: “Watch Time” and “Average Watch Time” are being replaced with “Minutes Viewed” and “Average Minutes Viewed” for video content. These metrics are essentially the same but with a new name.
What it means for you:
You’ll likely see higher View counts than before (due to multiple views counting separately), but other metrics like reach and reactions won’t change. The update’s all about making content performance easier to track across both platforms.
TikTok Introduces Gen AI Video Tools for Marketers
TikTok’s new AI-powered video creation tool is here to make life easier for brands, especially those without video expertise.
Key Points:
AI-driven video creation: TikTok’s Symphony Creative Studio lets you generate videos from product descriptions or URLs. The tool creates TikTok-style clips based on trending formats, making it easier for brands to join the platform without video know-how.
Image & asset integration: You can import images from URLs, and the AI pulls in assets like videos, images, sounds, and avatars, all cleared for commercial use.
Digital avatars: A new AI feature lets you add a digital avatar to narrate your video scripts, with support for multiple languages to target new audiences.
Customisable outputs: Edit and adjust the generated videos before publishing them.
This latest addition to TikTok’s AI suite, alongside tools for script generation and image creation, could help brands tap into TikTok’s trends—if it works as promised, it’s definitely worth a try!
X adds ‘Pinch to Zoom’ for videos
X (formerly known as Twitter) has just rolled out a new feature designed to improve the way users engage with video content. The platform now allows users to “pinch to zoom” on video clips, offering the ability to zoom in on specific details in the frame. Whether it’s to get a closer look at an intriguing detail or perhaps to inspect that mysterious object moving in the background, this update gives users more control over their video viewing experience.
This update is part of X’s broader strategy to enhance its video content and better align with the growing trend of video consumption across social platforms. Video has long been the most engaging form of content, and X’s addition of this pinch-to-zoom function is a clear move to make the platform more interactive and user-friendly. It also complements the app’s shift towards a greater focus on video, a strategy that aims to keep up with the current trend in social media.
Although X has faced challenges with its exclusive content deals and the overall evolution of its platform, this new feature could be just the boost it needs to encourage more engagement. It’s another step towards ensuring that users stay interested and connected with the content they’re viewing, helping to maintain the platform’s relevance in an increasingly competitive social media landscape.
LinkedIn video posts generate 3X more reach, according to new research.
A recent study has revealed that LinkedIn video posts generate three times more reach than text-based content, providing valuable insights for marketers looking to maximise their LinkedIn strategy.
Caroline Giegerich, a marketing expert, conducted a 90-day analysis to assess LinkedIn’s claim that video posts drive five times the engagement of text posts. The results were clear: video consistently outperformed written content in terms of reach. Even her lowest-performing video posts garnered almost three times as many impressions as her top-performing text posts. The most successful video reached an impressive 774,000 impressions, with the average number of views per video sitting around 250,000.
So, what factors contributed to these strong results? Giegerich found that videos under 5 minutes, posted between 9–11 AM EST, and featuring a direct-to-camera approach worked best. Personal touches, such as adding fun sound effects and captions, also seemed to boost engagement and make the content more relatable to viewers.
While videos are excellent for building brand awareness and reaching a broader audience, Giegerich’s research also highlighted the value of text posts when it comes to engaging with your existing network. Despite generating fewer impressions overall, text posts were far more effective at sparking targeted engagement with her direct connections. In other words, video content excels at visibility, whereas text posts help deepen relationships with those who are already familiar with your brand.
For marketers, the key takeaway is clear: use video for visibility and reach, and rely on text posts to nurture and engage your core audience. This balanced approach allows you to leverage both formats effectively, making the most of LinkedIn’s algorithm while still connecting with your established community.
YouTube is testing TikTok’s swipe-up gesture for full-length videos.
YouTube is testing a new feature that brings TikTok’s swipe-up gesture to full-length videos. Traditionally, the swipe-up action was reserved for short vertical videos, like those on TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels. Now, YouTube is experimenting with allowing users to swipe up on full-screen videos to move straight to a new one.
Currently, the swipe-up gesture in YouTube’s full screen video player is used to exit full screen mode, but this new test would allow users to swipe up to seamlessly jump to the next video. At the moment, this change appears to be limited to Android users, and it’s still unclear whether YouTube plans to roll it out more widely.
It’s still early days, and YouTube has yet to comment on the test, so user feedback will likely influence whether this feature becomes a permanent addition.
Instagram will let you hit reset on your recommendations and start fresh
Instagram’s testing a feature that lets you clear the slate on what pops up in your Feed, Explore, and Reels. According to Meta, this “recommendations reset” will roll out globally soon, making it easier to ditch content you’ve outgrown.
Here’s the best part: it’s quick and simple. A few taps, and your recommendations are wiped clean. From there, the algorithm starts personalising again based on what you actually engage with. You can even review and unfollow accounts during the reset to fully reshape your feed.
Meta’s goal? To give everyone—especially teens—a safer, more positive, and personalised experience on Instagram that keeps up with their evolving interests.
That wraps up this week’s Social Scoop Unplugged! 🚀 Remember, the world of social media never stops evolving, and neither should your strategy. Stay curious, keep experimenting, and don’t forget to adapt to these exciting updates as they unfold.
If you’ve found this helpful, share it with your network or drop me a message with your thoughts and feedback. Until next time, keep shining and be creative online!
Natty Bernasconi | Instagram Expert & Educator
Social Media Strategy for Lifestyle Businesses & Creators
Empowering brands with tailored Instagram strategies and aesthetic-driven insights. Follow for weekly tips, industry updates, and coaching designed to elevate your brand’s online presence—making it as captivating as it is strategic.