Bad Instagram Trends You Should Not be Following in 2022

When you think of the most popular social media platform in the world, the first name that comes to mind is Instagram. According to a Statista report, the platform has amassed more than 1.4 billion monthly active users as of January 2022. This indicates the widespread reach of the platform and the amount of influence it has on people. It has emerged as the one-stop destination for people, whether it is for shopping, news, or entertainment.

Trends on Instagram have a way of defining what will work on the platform. Posts that are able to generate a lot of buzz from people usually set off a trend. This encourages other users to emulate the content trending on Instagram. Many Instagram trends also help influencers, brands, and businesses in marketing, as they have the potential to make the content viral and increase engagement.

In this article, we will provide you with information and tips for improving your game on Instagram. However, the focus of this article will not be on the things you should do. We will instead focus on the bad trends you should avoid following on the platform. They are not bad in the sense that they are distasteful. These trends are widely considered to be outdated, and including them in your content would not help you accomplish much in terms of increasing engagement. In the following sections, we will discuss some outdated Instagram trends that you should not be following in 2022. Let’s dive in.

Bad trends on Instagram

1. Photo collages

Posting a collage photo with several different shots is no longer a trend that will get you engagement. This trend, in fact, became outdated when Instagram introduced Carousel Posts in 2015, which allowed users to post multiple images and videos through a single post. Collage photos, no matter how high quality, cannot be viewed properly on the platform. Not to mention, collages can appear quite tacky.

2. ‘Follow me to” style photographs

This trend was first introduced by Russian photographer Murad Osmann, and it went viral sometime around 2012. The ‘Follow me to’ style photographs usually feature a person holding hands with the photographer in a manner that they are guiding the photographer. Over the years, this trend has been copied on multiple occasions and by many people. However, this trend can appear quite cheesy now.

3. Random food pictures

Photographic your food to put it on Instagram is no longer trendy unless you have a food-related channel. Most food-focused channels put a lot of effort into food photography and aim to show the same things in a new light. However, random and unappetizing food pictures will only make the users scroll through your post without giving a second look.

4. OOTD posts

The same goes for out-of-the-day (OOTD) posts. If you do not own a fashion-related account or brand, posting random OOTD pictures is considered quite tacky. You will not be able to generate the kind of engagement you want through these posts. If you are going to take OOTD photos, consider making them interesting by taking them from unconventional angles.

5. Inspirational quotes

Until a few years ago, inspirational quotes were all the rage on social media platforms. You would still find many posts with inspirational phrases and quotes from famous people. However, these posts are not great at generating engagement. If you do want to add inspirational quotes to your profile, consider looking for artistic ways to do that.

6. Extreme hashtagging

This is one of the most important don’t follow trends on Instagram. If you add any post on Instagram, you should try to refrain from adding too many hashtags in the caption. When you add too many hashtags, it has the potential to take the attention away from the post. What you should do instead is keep the hashtags minimal and relevant, and also try to be more creative and thoughtful in composing them.

7. TBT posts

Until 2017, Throwback Thursday (TBT) posts were quite popular on the platform. However, this trend was not only overused in the last few years but used incorrectly, as a result of which it has become outdated. Instead of posting random pictures and tagging them as #TBT, you should consider creating content that the audience would find more relevant.

8. Gym selfie

If you are passionate about working out, then it is an excellent hobby to have; however, posting gym selfies is not. Unless you are a fitness expert providing people advice on Instagram, posting pictures of yourself in the gym is no longer in fashion.

9. Fisheye shots

Fisheye shots help in giving a different perspective to an object, and they were quite popular until a few years ago. However, a lot of new Instagram trends have come since then, which makes random fisheye shots kind of boring. Instead of these, you can consider taking action shots and authentic photos.

What NOT to do on Instagram?

Now that we have covered the bad Instagram trends, you should also take note of certain practices that you should refrain from if you want to increase audience engagement. Let’s take a look at some of them –

1. Using an awkward username

Instagram’s search function is not as powerful as some of the other social media platforms, which makes it a little difficult for followers to find your account. If you use an obscure username that is difficult to remember, it will make it all the more difficult for your audience to search for you. What you should try doing instead is using your own name or the name of your business as your Instagram handle.

2. Setting the profile to private

If you want to build a network on Instagram, it is important to make your Instagram profile public. Setting your profile to private will prevent the new audience from interacting with your account, as they will not be able to see the kind of content you make. If you want to increase your Instagram followers, you need to make your account accessible to more people.

3. Posting without a caption

Every post you add to your page should always be accompanied by a caption. If you don’t include a caption with your post, you will not be able to get better engagement levels on the platform. Captions allow the users to connect with you and start a discussion around some topic. Try to include something about the photo, ask a question or share a quote in the caption that adds some relevancy to the post.

4. Ignoring the followers’ comments

If you want to increase your engagement levels on the platform, ignoring the followers’ comments will accomplish the opposite for you. If you receive likes, comments, and DMs from your followers, remember to engage back with them. You can also tag their username in the comments to answer their question or thank them for the comment. This will greatly help in improving your relationship with the audience.

5. Stealing content from other users

This practice is a strict ‘no no’ on the platform unless you are holding a user-generated content (UGC) campaign. If you like someone else’s content on the platform, reposting the same on your profile without their consent could lead to a violation. Even when you are adding UGC content, tag the user in the caption or comment to give them the proper attribution.

6. Using generic images

If you find yourself out of content ideas, you might be tempted to post generic images just for the sake of posting. This is usually in the form of an interesting post or a motivational quote. However, this can quickly bring down your engagement levels. If you do not use creativity in your account, the audience will eventually become disinterested.

7. Crowding the followers’ feed

If you think posting content one after the other will get you greater engagement, you are wrong. Posting back-to-back content will lead to crowding in your followers’ feeds, which can often leave them annoyed. If you have a number of posts planned for the day, you should consider posting them with a gap of some hours in between.

8. Auto-sharing content on Facebook

You can consider enabling the option of auto-sharing on Facebook. However, you should refrain from doing this for every post. Some kind of content would only be relevant on a particular platform, and sharing them on other sites will not help in accomplishing much. If you want to encourage cross-promotion, you can share a particular part of your Instagram post on Facebook and ask your followers to view the rest on Instagram.

9. Follow-for-Follow strategy

Follow-for-Follow is widely considered to be a tacky strategy these days. Asking people to follow you and then unfollowing them later is not only rude but also does not help with your engagement levels in the long run. Instagram is essentially a place to build personal relationships with your audience. Deceiving your followers is not a great way to establish your presence on the platform.

Conclusion

Now that you know the things you should refrain from doing on the platform, you will be able to build a better Instagram strategy for promoting your content and increasing engagement. Remember that the key to success on the platform is using innovative techniques rather than blindly following the trends. If you are looking for other ways to enhance your engagement in the form of more Instagram comments, followers, and likes, then Mr. Insta has the solutions for you. We have a range of premium Instagram services, like Buy Instagram Likes and Buy Instagram Impressions and Reach, which can help in boosting your growth on the platform. These services are designed to push you towards the viral effect, and they are also 100% private and safe. Contact us today to know more!