Instagram just changed the rules

Your Weekly Short-Form Video Secrets: Instagram’s got new go-to metrics, plus, how one creator used a listicle and milk to rack up 20,000 saves.

Instagram’s Got a New Gold Standard

Instagram’s bigwig, Adam Mosseri, announced that "Views" are now the go-to metric across all content formats—whether it’s reels, live videos, photos, carousels, or stories. This move aims to streamline how you gauge your content’s performance, no matter the format. And here’s the kicker: repeat views will now be counted. So for those viewers who just can’t get enough of your content will finally boost your numbers even more!

Why the change? Mosseri’s been pushing creators to shift focus from follower counts to reach, and this update is all about that. With more than 50% of posts in users’ feeds now coming from accounts they don’t follow (thanks to AI-driven recommendations), it’s clear that reaching a wider audience is where it’s at. 

So, what does this mean for you?

If you’re aiming to turn content into conversions, the metrics to watch are "Views" and "Sends per Reach.” Meaning, it’s time to start prioritizing engagement over followers. You can reach and bat far outside your followership with ‘views’. And you do THAT by understanding the psychology of attention. (If you need help with this, come to our next bootcamp!) 

What’s Trending

This creator racked up over 50,000 likes and nearly 20,000 saves—no dancing or trending audio required. So, how’d she do it? By mastering a few key techniques to grab attention, keep it, and deliver real value to her audience.

She kicks things off with an eye-catching hook, standing in front of a table loaded with iced coffee ingredients. Repeating the on-screen text, she says, “These are 5 things I did at 18 to be financially stable at 23,” while shaking a milk jug for emphasis.

Right away, you know what’s coming: five actionable tips (and you’ll stick around to catch them all), plus a tasty recipe transformation. The milk jug shake? It adds an extra dash of curiosity, keeping viewers locked in.

As she creatively assembles her iced coffee, she continues to hold our attention, using her quirky process as the perfect visual companion to her five steps to financial stability.

Your takeaway: 

What’s a process or payoff you can break down into a short numbered list that your audience craves? And how can you keep them visually hooked while you deliver that info?

What do you want more of? 

We love talking about content as much as the next person, but we want to make sure we’re answering YOUR questions. What would you like to see more of in this content? Send us an email and let us know! 

Also….

We’re getting ready to turn our live ½-day virtual bootcamps into an on-demand course. If you want to receive live 1:1 coaching as part of our training, we’re down to our final bootcamp dates… so book your seat NOW! 

You can even use the code DEFLATE to get 20% off the standard ticket price. 

Happy posting!