Repost, reshare and re-engage! Have you ever wanted to share an influencer’s post on your feed because of the content that resonated with you? Although many users do it, they just never had the direct option from Instagram to make it possible. Snags and difficult loopholes to download images, or find them on the internet and post it on feeds were never a new thing; users have been doing it for ages to better curate their pages, but now you can do it by simply just pushing a button on the app itself.
In an official statement, Instagram confirmed that the Meta-backed company is testing a new post option, on selected users, that will allow reposting other users’ content directly onto their timeline. The platform has been working on a repost feature since May 2022, according to app researcher Alessandro Paluzzi. Although we can’t help but wonder if this new repost option looks a lot like one of Twitter’s most popular features.
Why is Instagram introducing repost options?
Reposting has always been a very popular feature of Instagram as it allows users to share other users’ content (when tagged) or influential news of public accounts but is only limited to Stories. As Stories are temporary quick views available only for 24 hours the intention to share other people’s content is mainly because it resonates with similar likes, tastes, and interests.
The difference with Stories is that the original content creator’s name or username credentials are always available to see and if clicked on, the platform will re-direct you automatically to the original post’s page. Unlike downloading content to make it part of your personal feed, original creators did not gain any credit for their content leading to a loss in a bigger audience reach that could’ve potentially been credited for if Instagram had the repost option.
“We’re exploring the ability to reshare posts in Feed — similar to how you can reshare in Stories — so people can share what resonates with them, and so original creators are credited for their work,” a Meta spokesperson explained.
Instagram Reposts Tab on profiles?!
— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) September 7, 2022
What’s dis Adam? pic.twitter.com/WayWCJGBfx
Reposts will also have their own tab on Instagram profiles, as seen in the screenshot shared by social media consultant Matt Navarra.
This latest update is an interesting move, especially considering the public outcry following Instagram’s most recent attempts to fill feeds with unwanted content.
However, we wonder if people will actually use it or continue posting content they like to Instagram stories instead of their carefully curated main feeds.
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