Recent Low-Engagement and Slow Growth Explained

Anderson1990 said:

An Instagram proxy is a sort of middleman between you and Instagram. It tricks Instagram into thinking you are using their app from a different location than your current one. Most people who use more than 4 accounts on FL (or any other bot), need proxies to help disguise their location -- because if Instagram detects a certain, similar flow coming from more than one account, all from one IP address, they become suspicious and sometimes temporarily/permanently disable your accounts. If you are only using one account, you will not need a proxy. Let me know if you have any other questions.

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Anderson1990 said:

A while ago, '@TonyTheFotographer' posted this thread (http://www.blackhatworld.com/blackh...stagram-algorithms-low-likes-interaction.html) about Instagram's newly-updated, low-engagement algorithm. There were over 70 replies, with users sharing their two cents on how this is happening and what it could mean -- only one person assumed right: @Alukard13mm confidently stated that Instagram hasn't been displaying his posts on the 'Explore' page, and that could be the direct cause for the drop in engagement.

I have a Fashion-niche account with over 230K followers. My engagement in the past month dropped drastically from 7.5K likes on avergae to 5K. My followers went from 1k to about 500 a day. So, I decided to experiment a little and see what the problem was. I created a new account: @JohnDoe, for example. I followed @JaneDoe, who is already following @MyFashion account. @JohnDoe did not follow @MyFashion and is only following one account -- @JaneDoe. I signed in with @JaneDoe and liked about 10 photos from @MyFashion account. I then Signed in with @JohnDoe and clicked on the explore page. I found nothing from @MyFashion (normally, they should appear there 'Based on people you're following'). I refreshed the explore page over 10 times, still nothing. I signed in again with @JaneDoe and liked 5 photos from another @CompetitorFashionAccount. Signed in with @JohnDoe, clicked explore, and three of those five photos were on the explore page. I refreshed five times, and each time, at least three photos from @CompetitorFashionAccount were still there. I experimented with several accounts and got the same results. Either Instagram may have flagged @MyFashion account, or the recent updates with the explore page changes need some bug fixes. I have also tried this method with other accounts on my ISP IP and all of them make it to the explore page, so this isn't a case of flagged IP.

It is worth mentioning that I used FL for at least a year on @MyFashion account, and had quit doing so five months ago. I was still receiving over 1k followers per day from posting only three photos a day, and up to 7.5K likes per pic. The past month was tough. I now gain around 500 followers a day from posting up to 6 posts within 24 hours.

I am considering emailing [email protected] to ask whether this is a bug (as I have heard some other users who grew their accounts organically were also affected) or, to find out once and for all if this is a permanent/temporary punishment for using automation. I am also aware that emailing them would draw attention to my account, but it's becoming frustrating and I'd rather get banned now than waste my time on something that is inevitably getting banned in the future.

What are your thoughts? Could this be temporary punishment? Should I email Instagram? Or has Instagram really flagged automated accounts and are just pending deletion? Because it could also be that they automatically flagged thousands of suspicious accounts and instead of mass deletion, they have set them for review -- you know, so that they are absolutely positive that the account was indeed automated and should be removed.

I'd be grateful if someone with an organically grown IG account (that has noticed low engagement recently), could try a similar experiment just so we can be certain on whether this is happening to bot-related accounts only.

Thanks!

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alukard13mm said:

Hi Anderson, thanks for referencing me ;-)

Great post btw! Really straight to the point, and I have the same feeling as you.

Actually, I have contacted Instagram, and telling them. What's going on with my account? I prefer to get banned, than keep working hard for nothing...

I think, they still want us, cause we (some of us) maybe aren't the typicall 100% Spam acc. but they labeled us as "non-ideal account" or something, and they don't promote us on explorer tab, now we know that means 50% of the engagement... :_(

I'm starting to think on create a new acc without bot, cause I did the mistake of using bot with my main account, of Unique Original Fashion Content (Instablogger) now with 50K but 600 avrg/likes pic ... but kinda lazy...

I'm trying something different for the next month or so... If it works let you guys know, but honestly don't think will make a huge difference

Out of explorer tab means out of lots of reach :_(

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Anderson1990 said:

I notice I've developed a knack for writing long-ass essays. Sorry! I really just wanted to make this as illustrious as possible for quicker diagnosis.

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alukard13mm said:

Hi Anderson, thanks for referencing me ;-)

Great post btw! Really straight to the point, and I have the same feeling as you.

Actually, I have contacted Instagram, and telling them. What's going on with my account? I prefer to get banned, than keep working hard for nothing...

I think, they still want us, cause we (some of us) maybe aren't the typicall 100% Spam acc. but they labeled us as "non-ideal account" or something, and they don't promote us on explorer tab, now we know that means 50% of the engagement... :_(

I'm starting to think on create a new acc without bot, cause I did the mistake of using bot with my main account, of Unique Original Fashion Content (Instablogger) now with 50K but 600 avrg/likes pic ... but kinda lazy...

I'm trying something different for the next month or so... If it works let you guys know, but honestly don't think will make a huge difference

Out of explorer tab means out of lots of reach :_(

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coitza said:

not long at all and perfectly explained, really curious if you do ask IG what they respond



interesting, they actually said that or that's what you deducted from what they responded. Also not sure that starting a new account without botting would help, i don't think the bot is the problem here but the tactic used to get those followers, if you do it manually but still follow unfollow hundreds of users per day it will be the same tactic, that leaves a trace and so it's easily recognizable and penalized.

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radis said:

So if massing(whether its bot or manual) gets you on the non-ideal list, I'm wondering if there is anyone way to get off the list

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Globalization said:

There isn't any confirmation that such a list exists.

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