Big news: Instagram rolled out a new feature that lets users publish a post to multiple accounts with the click of a button.
When you open your IG app and go to publish a post, there’s a new section called “Post to Other Accounts.” Here it is! This feature is designed to simplify posting for users with multiple accounts.
According to Tech Crunch, “this ‘self regram’ could make it easier for businesses, influencers, and regular folks with Instas and Finstas to publish the same meme, promotional image, or other content across their profiles simultaneously instead of having to post on one at the time.”
It saves community managers, who may be running several business accounts at once, a lot of time. Instead of switching between accounts and posting content individually, social media managers can now seamlessly publish content from one account.
This tool is beneficial to influencers who are constantly partnering with brands and participating in takeovers. Now influencers can post to their channel and their brand partner’s channel simultaneously.
For brands like Nike who own several different IG accounts like @NikeRunning, @NikeSportswear, @NikeBasketball, this feature allows more opportunity for cross-promotional content, whether it be a CSR initiative or an overarching corporate project.
Social Media Today has shared their concerns, citing “while it may make things easier, and it may add more content to Instagram’s ecosystem, it will be repeated content, duplicated across multiple accounts.”
As a sea of repeated content, Instagram will stray from its purpose of originality.
Although this feature does save time, what does it solve? I control 5 social media accounts: personal, professional, travel photography blog, my Finsta, & the Socialfly account. I have 5 separate accounts because they each have a different purpose. I would never post the same content across my 5 platforms.
Problems may arise for brands as well. Consider a brand like NBC that controls different TV show accounts. The brand voice, content, narrative, and aesthetic are different across all of them.
The new Instagram feature brings new opportunities but also leaves room for hesitation. Will this feature make our lives easier, or will it clutter our Instagram feeds with redundant content? Right now, it’s too soon to tell. Let’s keep our eyes open!
