instagram predictions
Image via Fredrick Kearney Jr under CC0

Instagram’s user base grew by a third in 2017. It won’t be long before it hits a billion users. And with a slew of exciting changes and new features, it’s only getting better with age.

But even brands with the strongest Instagram strategy need to be looking ahead. User expectations will evolve with the platform, which means that today’s strategy can’t guarantee results in the future.

To help you stay ahead of the curve, we’ve rounded up some expert-informed predictions for Instagram in 2018 and beyond.

Bonus: Download a free checklist that reveals the exact steps an adventure photographer used to grow from 0 to 110,000 followers on Instagram with no budget and no expensive gear.

Prediction 1: More users of all ages will join Instagram

Instagram has over 800 million monthly active users and is showing no signs of slowing down. Many of those new users belong to Generation Z, so marketers would be wise to get to know this important demographic.

Instagram is also growing in popularity with older adults: there are currently more 45- to 54-year-olds on Instagram than 13- to 17-year-olds.

As Instagram succeeds Facebook to become the new home for brands, it will become an essential part of every company’s social strategy. Regardless of who your customers are, it’s likely that they’ll be on Instagram in the years to come. There are already 25 million companies using Instagram, but that number is likely to grow dramatically in the next few years.

Want to bring your business to Instagram? Here’s everything you need to get started.

Prediction 2: Augmented reality will explode on Instagram

Augmented reality (AR) was a hot topic at the Facebook F8 developers’ conference. Mark Zuckerberg announced that the Facebook AR effects studio would debut on Instagram in 2018.

This feature will allow anyone to create custom filters, face effects, and other visual elements. These elements will interact with users and their surroundings in Stories.

Instagram also plans to customize effects offered to users, based on the accounts that they follow. Compared to a platform like Snapchat, this will offer a more tailored experience. Users will be able to try out effects and filters they see on their Stories feed, adding a sharable element.

Interactive content is a growing trend, and AR/VR is going to play a big part in it. By 2020, revenues will likely exceed $162 billion and 135 million people will be users. For Instagram’s Gen Z users, 22 percent of whom are already using geofilters each month, the addition of this familiar feature will be especially welcome.

The possibilities with AR are endless: allow customers to virtually try out a product or service, or get a 360-degree view of a store or event. Companies that capitalize on this emerging technology to create fun, immersive content will reap big benefits.

Prediction 3: Your hashtag strategy will be more important than ever

In late 2017, Instagram added the option to follow hashtags as well as accounts. This change allows users to see more of the content they’re interested in, and curate their feeds by topic. And at the F8 developers’ conference, they announced changes for the “Explore” section, which will soon be grouped by topics.

Topics will be populated by relevant hashtags, making it easy for users to dive deep into niche categories and interests.

Hashtags have always been a valuable tool for boosting the visibility of your posts, and these updates make them even more important. A targeted approach is key: you can’t just max out the 30 hashtag limit and hope for the best. Instead, research the hashtags your target audiences are following,…