Inner Sircle

Confused about Instagram hashtags and whether you should still be using them? Let’s clear it up.In 2025, Adam Mosseri shared that Instagram was prioritizing SEO keywords over hashtags. Instead, keywords in captions, bios, and especially on-screen text started playing a much bigger role in discoverability.Fast forward to 2026, and Instagram made another update that’s important to understand.Hashtags are back — but with guardrails.You can now use up to five hashtags per post, and they’re meant to support SEO, not replace it. They only work if they’re highly intentional.Why this works is pretty simple.It guarantees keyword coverage, so you’re not relying only on captions.It reinforces SEO discipline without cluttering the actual caption.And it creates consistency across posts and across accounts.It is also important to note that Instagram content is now Google-searchable.Public posts from Business and Creator accounts can show up in Google Search. That includes static posts, carousels, Reels, and captions.This u

Many brands are too focused on current tactics, and they get too myopic and lose sight of the broader goal. It is not about chasing any type of en vogue content style. It is about understanding the bigger goal, and then banking wins that are in service of that goal.

Are you wondering why your Instagram views have suddenly dropped? Instagram recently updated how “views” are counted, and this shift is causing numbers to look lower across the board. So let’s break down what happened in a really simple way.Previously, Instagram was pretty generous with what counted as a view. If someone saw your Reel or post — even for a split second — Instagram counted that as a view.That included:Someone scrolling past your post on the Explore pageSomeone skimming your profileSomeone seeing a quick preview of your Reel in their feedAll of those moments were counted as views… even if the person didn’t actually tap the post or watch anything intentionally. This meant your view counts were inflated by a lot of passive impressions.Instagram has removed those “preview views.”Now, a view only counts if someone taps into your post and actually watches it.So if they scroll past it?If they see a two-second preview?If they skim your profile but don’t open the content?None of that counts anymore.This

Today I want to talk about a marketing window that most teams overlook — but absolutely shouldn’t: the week between Christmas and New Year’s, what a lot of marketers call “Q5.” Everyone thinks once the gifts are opened, the big sales moment is over. But across social platforms, that week is one of the most active periods of the entire year. People are off work, they’re scrolling more, and they’re still spending. Over half of weekly users on major platforms continue buying online from December 26th through the 31st, and a huge portion keep shopping in-store, too. It’s basically an extra sales window hiding in plain sight.What makes Q5 so interesting is how user behavior shifts. People aren’t searching for gifts anymore. Instead, they’re moving into two modes: “make my gatherings better” and “treat myself.” According to a recent Pinterest Study, there is a huge spike in searches and content engagement around food, drinks, outfits, and anything that elevates New Year’s plans — like “NYE cocktails” going up nearl

It’s been almost a year since that January TikTok ban was supposed to happen. Curious where things stand now? We’ve got you covered.Here’s the background starting in June of this year:In June, Trump once again delayed the TikTok ban deadline — giving it another 3-month extension, which meant TikTok should have been banned in September unless the app was sold by its Chinese owners. This marked the third time he chose not to enforce the ban, even though both political parties in Congress had agreed it was important for national security. Lawmakers once said TikTok was a huge national security threat and even passed a law forcing ByteDance to sell the app or get banned in the U.S. Today, as of November 2025, almost a year after the deadline, TikTok is still here — mostly because the Trump administration keeps extending the timeline and slowing down the process.Most of the politicians who pushed for the ban are now staying quiet. Only one responded, saying Congress still hasn’t been told how Trump’s proposed deal

On this episode, I talk about the importance of deploying a social media strategy that actually aligns with your greater business goals. Dont chase likes and viral moments. Remember what really matters, and then adjust your plan and lean into it.For CPG brands, the name of the game is retail velocity. So, make sure you are creating content, pushing out messaging, and driving awareness, consideration, and trial in-store.

Today, I want to talk about something that sounds too simple to matter — but the data says otherwise. Replying to your comments.At Sircle, we always say that community management is the most important — though maybe the least sexy — part of any social media strategy.And now, the numbers back that up. According to Buffer’s latest engagement study, replying to comments can increase engagement anywhere from 5% to 42%, depending on the platform.I want to zero in on one of those platforms today: Instagram.Buffer analyzed over 700,000 Instagram posts from nearly 70,000 profiles, and the finding was crystal clear. When creators or brands reply to their comments, their posts perform better — by about 21% on average.The study controlled for things like account size, audience niche, and even whether a post had comments at all.When you engage back, your posts outperform your usual baseline.I think this is one of those moments where the data just reinforces what good social media managers already know: If you want engage

Today I’m here to talk about Instagram’s brand-new UI update — here’s what you need to knowInstagram is rolling out a new interface that rearranges the bottom navigation bar — with Reels now in the second tab and DMs in the third, allowing users to swipe between them. The goal is to make the app revolve around its most-used features: Reels and direct messages.Instagram chief Adam Mosseri confirmed this will roll out to all users soon, noting that usage data shows Reels and DMs dominate time spent on the app. In fact, Reels now make up 50% of all time on Instagram, and video watch time is up 20% year-over-year.This update signals Instagram’s continued shift toward a TikTok-style, video-first experience, and tests are already underway where users open directly to the Reels feed.The impact for marketers?Expect more emphasis on Reels and Stories as primary engagement drivers.The main feed may see less visibility, though it still serves as a valuable profile touchpoint.Brands should prioritize Reels and Stories fo

A strategic best practice that we preach here at Sircle — and one that’s often slept on — is proactive community management.Not to be confused with reactive community management (responding to comments and DMs), proactive community management is about intentionally engaging with like-minded brands, creators, and conversations that you want your brand to be associated with. This includes inserting your brand into trending or pop culture moments in a way that feels natural and relevant.Why it matters: this strategy helps humanize your brand, build relatability, and increase visibility in spaces where your audience is already active. Today, users are constantly scrolling the comment sections to see what’s happening — meaning your brand name and logo can earn easy, organic placement simply by showing up.For example, if your target demographic is Gen Z women who prioritize a healthy lifestyle, you shouldn’t just engage with other wellness brands — you should engage with the content they love. Think about what they

I was reading Lia Haberman’s Substack last week (highly recommended, by the way), and she shared where creativity stands right now — here are my takeaways.Takeaways: Design is emotional, not just aesthetic. “Well-designed” doesn’t mean polished or corporate — it means content that connects emotionally, feels human, and is easy to processStop chasing polish; prioritize connection and authenticityGen Z leads the shift. They embrace imperfection, experimentation, and co-creation. Their “creative maximalism” blends memes, layered visuals, and global cultural referencesIt’s not about the format, it’s about how it makes you feel. It’s about content that hits an emotional chord. It could be a scrappy TikTok or a graphic carousel Thoughts in regard to Sircle:There’s still room for stylized content, but the bar is different nowThere is still a time and place for photography, stop motion, and 3D animation, but they have to do more than “look pretty” Which we have always said at Sircle! Every piece of content needs to b

On this episode, I explain the idea behind curated content and marrying that with great created content, to build out your social calendar. It is important to find balance, offer your social media manager some flexibility and autonomy and use content from various sources. Dont ever get too binary, with just one style. Keep it open and fluid.

On thie episode, I provide an updated POV on Threads. Transcript below:Let’s talk about Threads.On the surface, Threads shows promising user growth. But when you look closer, the daily engagement numbers are still really low compared to its biggest competitor, X. Right now, the average active user spends only about three minutes a day on Threads — versus twenty-nine minutes on X. That’s a huge gap.So what does that mean for food and beverage brands? Honestly, maintaining a presence on Threads just doesn’t look like the best use of time or resources. We’ve seen many brands post consistently, but most of those posts get fewer than ten likes, and almost never spark comments or shares. In fact, some well-known brands like Ocean Spray, Aloha, Swoon, and Graza have stopped posting altogether.There is one exception: Poppi. Poppi’s posts do get solid engagement. But that has less to do with Threads as a platform and more to do with Poppi’s cult-like following and extremely loyal fan base. Unless your brand already ha

On this episode I reference a Socialmediatoday.com article about Edits App reach upside and a dispelled engagement myth. See notes below.Reach boost via Meta’s “Edits” appVideos created in Instagram’s new “Edits” app currently get a slight reach boost when postedThis boost is designed to promote awareness and use of the Edits appMosseri is warning people not to upload random or recycled videos into Meta’s new Edits app purely to get the small reach boost that Instagram is currently giving to content made with EditsInstagram can tell when you’re only using the app as a shortcut (e.g., uploading fully finished content into Edits without actually editing it there), so you won’t trick the algorithm into thinking it’s “fresh” content.Use Edits for genuine editing, not as a hack—Instagram can detect the difference.MO’s POV / Takeaways:Right now, Instagram is rewarding videos edited in its new “Edits” app with a small reach bump to encourage adoption. This is temporary and only works if you genuinely use the editin

On this episode, I talk about how Shorter Video Ads on Facebook Get More Replays via LoopingToday, we’re diving into something pretty interesting about Facebook video ads and how their looping behavior can impact your brand’s exposure.So here’s the scoop: Facebook video ads that are 30 seconds or shorter actually loop automatically for about 90 seconds. That means if you have a 30-second ad, it could play three times in a row—assuming viewers don’t skip it. And if your ad is 16 seconds, it could loop up to six times within that same 90-second window. But it gets even more interesting. Meta sometimes adjusts this looping dynamically. So instead of just 90 seconds, your video might loop for anywhere between less than 90 seconds all the way up to 180 seconds. This helps improve the ad’s performance based on how people interact with it.Now, while this repetition can really boost your impressions and reinforce your brand messaging, there’s a catch. Too much looping can get annoying for viewers if the content feels

On this episode I talk about how Instagram is reportedly rolling out a new post analytics feature that shows how many likes each individual frame within a carousel receives. This could give creators and brands deeper insight into which specific pieces of content are resonating most with their audience.As Instagram head Adam Mosseri explained, carousels often get more reach than single-photo posts for two key reasons:They drive more interactions — more swipes, more time spent.If someone sees your post but doesn’t swipe, Instagram may resurface the carousel and automatically show them the second slide in a second round of impressions.Here’s where things get interesting: if your second slide ends up getting the most likes, it might not necessarily mean it's the most compelling — it could just be the first piece of content someone actually saw and engaged with. So, while a like on a specific frame doesn’t always mean it’s a viewer’s favorite, if one slide significantly outperforms the others, it could mean th

The recent shift from reporting Impressions to Views may be causing confusion and will likely prompt questions from clients.Historically, many of us considered views to be similar to impressions. But we're now seeing that views account for a wider range of interactions, including autoplay, looping, and multiple frames in a carousel. As a result, views can be up to 10 times higher than reach, whereas impressions typically hovered around 2 to 3 times reach. On Instagram specifically, research shows that views can be 25% higher than impressions, which is important to keep in mind.This shift may lead to a decline in engagement rate percentages, since the larger view count inflates the denominator. It’s something clients may notice and question. It's also worth noting that an article in The Verge cautions that “views” can be misleading vanity metrics, as platforms often define them in ways that boost perceived performance without necessarily reflecting deeper engagement. For example, the article states that on Ins

On this episode, I am once again advocating to not be so binary with your content. The hot content style of the moment is good to experiment with, but it should not be the only game in town. Experiment with disciplines, styles, etc. BUT be sure to balance that with great studio content that tells viewers who you are, why it matters, and where I can purchase your product. It is not any one style or message, it is a commitment to trying various styles and messages that works.

On this episode, I offer up the latest on the TikTok ban.Background: In June, Trump once again delayed the TikTok ban deadline—this 3-month extension now ends in September unless the app is sold by its Chinese owners. This is the third time he’s chosen not to enforce it, even though both political parties in Congress agreed it was important for national security. Current:TikTok is developing a U.S.-only version of the app, internally called “M2,” set to launch in early September.U.S. users will need to download this new version by March 2026 to continue using TikTok.The U.S. version may exclude TikTok’s current algorithm, which the Chinese government refuses to sell.However, President Trump claims he has a buyer lined up and appears intent on finalizing the deal before the law takes full effect.What’s to come:Sircle will monitor this closely in case any updates are released about the app ahead of September.By early August, we hoping to have more clarity to begin prepping clients for potential platform changes

On this episode, I am advocating for AI content creation...NOW! It really is no longer an OK posture to just be binary about AI content or not. I think brands need to be thinking more about how and where.

Fresh off of The Fancy Food show in NYC, just some tips for CPG brands considering attending shows.1- Have someone from marketing/brand there.2- Have a digital display of some kind with a brand video.3- Capture email and have a follow up plan.