The Evolution of Social Media Algorithms: A Practical Guide for Brands to Thrive in 2025

By Emmchel Dudu

A good number of brands leveraging Instagram as one of their main social media platforms could find themselves at a crossroads in 2025. What do I mean? You might ask. For years, Instagram strategies have relied heavily on visually stunning posts, engaging stories, and carefully curated hashtags. After all, with over 200 million businesses globally, Instagram is the go-to platform for brands to showcase products and services creatively, whether through their own voice, influencers, or loyal customers.

However, the recent changes on Instagram, such as the portrait format grid, new bio layout, and recent updates on the dynamics of the hashtags feature, signify a new era for content discovery and audience engagement. While hashtags remain valuable for categorising content and improving discoverability, their role has shifted. Instagram now emphasises personalised content, suggested posts, keyword-based searches, and interaction metrics (comments, saves, and shares). This change, coupled with increasingly complex algorithms, means brands need a new playbook to stay connected with their audiences.  Businesses are thus in a pivotal year where agility, creativity, and community engagement will define social media success.

What Stays the Same:

- Hashtags still help categorise content.

- Users can still search for hashtags manually.

- Users can still follow hashtags.

What Changes:

- Hashtags are no longer a passive audience discovery tool using the “follow hashtag” feature; they are now keywords.

- The algorithm now prioritises relevance, interaction, and high-quality content over static trends.

The Rise of Personalisation and AI

Artificial Intelligence (AI) now powers Instagram’s algorithm, focusing on hyper-personalisation. This allows you to present your audience with content tailored to their browsing habits, search queries, and interactions. Platforms like TikTok have set a precedent with hyper-personalized feeds, and we can see Instagram closely following suit.

Actionable Strategies:

1. Invest in Analytics Tools: Use insights and data to uncover your audience's preferences, behaviours, and peak activity times. Tools such as Instagram Insights, Facebook Analytics, BuzzSumo, and Hootsuite are key to aligning your brand's social media strategy with platform-specific algorithms and audience behaviours, ensuring your content is both relevant and impactful.

2. Create Persona-Driven Content: Tailor your posts to specific audience segments by developing detailed personas based on age, interests, preferences, and behaviours. This ensures your content resonates deeply with your target audience. For example, a fitness brand can create specific posts for beginners, advanced athletes, and wellness enthusiasts, each addressing their unique needs and challenges.

3. Keyword Optimisation: Optimise captions and post descriptions with relevant keywords that align with what your audience is searching for. This enhances your discoverability in Instagram’s algorithm-driven Suggested Posts and search features. For instance, a beauty brand targeting eco-conscious consumers can incorporate terms like “sustainable skincare” or “eco-friendly makeup” into their captions.

The Decline of Organic Reach and What to Do About It

Organic reach on Instagram is also becoming increasingly elusive as algorithms prioritise paid content and user-generated posts over brand-created content. Brands can counter this decline by shifting to paid and boosted posts to increase visibility, encourage User-Generated Content (UGC), and collaborate creatively through strategic partnerships with micro-influencers whose content performs well organically due to their authenticity.

Instagram’s Hashtag Regulation: Practical Alternatives

Although the dynamics of hashtags have shifted to be more keyword-focused, they remain a powerful tool for categorising and surfacing your content. To stay ahead, brands must adopt smarter hashtag strategies that align with Instagram’s updated approach to content discovery.

1. Hashtags as Keywords: Since Instagram now treats hashtags as keywords in search, focus on creating SEO-friendly captions and hashtags highly relevant to your content and audience.

2. Identify the Right Hashtags: Build hashtag sets based on your content pillars, such as niche, location, target audience, and special events. Further, avoid using generic hashtags, as these are oversaturated - rather, use specific hashtags unique to your brand messaging.

3. Focus on Content Quality: High-quality visuals and relatable, valuable captions are critical for standing out.

4. Leverage Reels: Instagram’s algorithm favours short, engaging videos as they often reach wider audiences. Basically, strategically include reels as part, if not your main content.

5. Build Interactive Communities:

- Host Q&A sessions on Instagram stories.

- Reply promptly to comments and DMs.

- Use collaborative features like the “Collaborative Post.”.

6. Encourage Saves and Shares: Add clear CTAs (e.g., “Save this for later” or “Share with a friend”) to boost interactions the algorithm loves.

The Human-Centric Strategy

As algorithms filter out brand-heavy content, community-building is crucial to declining organic reach. By creating an emotional connection with your audience, you foster loyalty that goes beyond algorithm changes. 

Start conversations using polls, quizzes, and open-ended questions in stories to engage followers directly. Prioritise consistency by regularly posting to keep your audience engaged and aware of your brand. Most importantly, show authenticity in every piece of content you put out there.

Top Tips to Navigate 2025’s Algorithm Changes

1. Craft SEO-Friendly Captions: Optimise captions with keywords your audience is likely to search. For example, instead of simply using “#CozyWinterFashion” as your hashtag, include “Our warm, stylish winter collection is perfect for any occasion” in your caption.

2. Highlight Engagement over Vanity Metrics: Focus on meaningful interactions - comments, shares, and saves matter more than likes.

3. Diversify Content Formats: Include videos, carousel posts, and infographics to keep your content dynamic and appealing.

4. Explore Emerging Trends: Stay updated with platform changes, such as Instagram’s new focus on Suggested Posts and AI-driven feeds.

The digital marketing landscape in 2025 is one of rapid growth, where Instagram’s algorithm changes signal a broader shift across platforms. Hashtags may no longer be the “It-girl” they once were, but brands that prioritise relevance, engagement, and authenticity can still thrive. By embracing these changes as opportunities for innovation, brands can build stronger, more resilient connections with their audiences.

So, as social media platforms evolve, is your content strategy keeping up?

Although this article mainly focuses on Instagram, the insights apply to other social media platforms. Start adapting today by auditing your current content strategy. Identify which posts have the highest interaction rates and double down on that style. Remember, the algorithm rewards human connection and authenticity over static trends.