If you need to remind yourself that TikTok is the most downloaded app Over the past 18 months, and it’s still popular with younger audiences, it’s probably a good question.

As seen by app researcher Alessandro PaluzziIt looks like Instagram once again wants to destroy its video competitor with a new test of a TikTok-style vertical content feed for Explore, which, once entered, will allow you to sway through Instagram’s content recommendations and on multi-image over to delete postings.

As Paluzzi notes, within the test, the Explore section stays as normal until you tap a message. If you do, then expand the message to the new screen, Reels-like screen. You can then tap the back arrow at the top left of the screen to return to the regular exploration list, or instead swipe up to go to the next post in your Explore feed. You could also swipe on multi-image carousels, indicated by gray bars at the bottom of the screen.

Which, as noted, is very TikTok-like. But at the same time, it is actually very brilliant.

A big advantage that TikTok has over Instagram at this point is to discover content, and to highlight personally relevant, entertaining public posts for each user based on their engagement behavior, which is then fed to them via their ‘For You’ page, the default home feed in the app (as opposed to your ‘Next’ feed).

Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, even acknowledged TikTok’s lead in this area and noted that TikTok is currently better than Instagram at providing ‘reliable entertainment’.

As Mosseri said last month:

“You know you can tap TikTok and you will instantly smile and be entertained.”

Instagram is not that good at this, because Instagram is still largely limited by who you already follow and the content they create, which appears in your home stream and within Stories. It limits the amount of amazing, engaging content that the Instagram algorithm can show you, while also noting the design of Instagram as implicitly as TikTok, displaying each byte one on one screen.

This not only means that TikTok has a wider range of content to choose from for its ‘For You’ feed, which helps keep you busy, but it also means that every action you take in the app is relevant on each individual clip you ‘re shown, unlike for example Instagram or Facebook, which often display multiple posts simultaneously in the feed, as well as captions, ads, stories, etc.

Technical analyst Eugene Wei gave an in-depth overview of this element, and how it implements the TikTok algorithm this post, which basically boils down to its presentation style, and which TikTok can then derive from each user’s involvement in each clip.

Soos Wei notes:

Everything you do from the moment the video starts playing indicates your sentiment towards the video. Do you swipe to the next video before playing it? An implicit (though explicit boundary) signal of disinterest. Have you watched it more than once and run it a few times? Looks like something’s addressed you. Did you share the video through the built-in panel? Another strong indication of positive sentiment. If you tap on the rotating LP icon at the bottom right and watch more videos with the same soundtrack, it’s an extra signal to your liking. “

Instagram does not have the same indicators with general content, although it has tried to include it in Reels. But even then, Instagram’s main focus is on people and profiles you follow, not on broader exploration and exposure to content.

But if it can build a similar process in Explore, with a full screen presentation, focus and its algorithms more specifically help register similar engagement behaviors, Instagram might also respond more in the same way, allowing users to show more of what they are want, and less of what they do not want, and make Explore better aligned with each user.

It also aligns with the changing consumption behavior, of sweeping and seeing each post take on one screen. And if you do not like the presentation style, you could theoretically still go back to Explore as you know it, to keep disruption to a minimum.

This can actually be an excellent approach to the TikTok puzzle the app faces – and while it’s still open to your mainstream, it does show user posts you follow (although I do). previously speculated that it will change at some point), if it can make a more engaging, more relevant feed with a more engaging, engaging presentation style, it can be a big step.

It looks like a positive experiment, which also looks pretty well developed, based on Paluzzi’s example grip. We asked Instagram if it is being tested in the live environment, and what the plans might be, and we will update this post as / when we hear it.





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