Descriptive captions, words in bio help social media platforms stand out

By Gabriella Vukelić

Newsday

Melville, New York, USA

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As social media companies like Meta continue to deprioritise news, it’s our role as journalists to continue sharing news and information on these platforms in a visual and attention-grabbing way.

But how?

Here are some tips to increase the chances of getting your content recognised and prioritised in the algorithm.

Post original content that is unique to your niche and brand

Reels and carousels are favoured in the Instagram algorithm, so the best way to grow an audience over time is to be consistent in the amount of times you are posting. As a news and information-sharing page, you should be posting a Reel or carousel at least once a day.

Over time, you’ll see which types of videos do better than others, and you can make adjustments to your strategy to focus more on those topics. Figuring out what makes your page unique is important.

Be descriptive in your captions

In addition to posting original content, make sure your captions are as descriptive as possible. Use keywords related to the video itself. This helps Instagram identify which audiences to distribute your content to based on that audiences’ searches.

Don’t be afraid of hashtags

No, hashtags aren’t a thing of the past. They are still helpful to the algorithm in identifying your content.

Use words that are descriptive to the topic of the video and only that video. Most importantly, use terms that would be highly searchable. For example, if your video is about apples, you’ll want to use keywords that have apples or dessert in them. It’s likely your audience would be searching for those types of desserts during the fall months.

Using descriptive words in a social media bio helps readers find your brand.
Using descriptive words in a social media bio helps readers find your brand.

Use descriptor words in your bio

What sets your page apart from others? What makes your content unique? This is a valuable tool for local news because you can specify where your coverage is happening.

When your audience is searching geographically, you’ll be a top ranked option.

Utilise trends that make sense for your brand

No, you don’t have to dance on camera but you do want to use the sounds and songs that are trending. It’s the easiest way to get your content discovered to larger and new audiences.

A piece of advice? Get creative in the way you use the sound. Finding a unique approach to something that is already trending is what will make your content stand out and the algorithm will favour that creativity.

About Gabriella Vukelić

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