Disclaimer:
These are all my guesses based on personal experience.
Instagram most likely knows the following parameters about your photos and videos:
- The date of „when“ the photo was taken.
Not the date of the upload to the feed, but the date of creation, when you took a picture of your sunset or selfie. What’s fresh is likely to get the most exposure.
2. The application through which you saved the file. Whether it’s a native camera app or some kind of editor, I think Instagram has a list of “good apps“ and „other apps“ that fall into the category of “dubious”.
The native iPhone camera is probably considered a “good” app, and an unknown free editor is “doubtful”.
- Geodata – Where the photo or video was taken.
If the photo was taken in France and posted in the UK, it’s likely that Instagram may remove your post from global recommendations. My advice: if you took a picture in Paris, of Paris, post it there.
4. Approximate scenario in the photo.
The algorithms probably understand that there‘s your face in the photo, a car, Big Ben, or a coffee mug. It will show the car more often to those who are interested in cars, and Big Ben to those who like photos from London.
Pro tip: add alt text to help the algorithm understand better what your photos are about.
5. Recognizes text.
It is unlikely that Instagram understands the text well in all languages, but it understands important keywords well. You know, when you write certain words on specific topics, Instagram shows a link at the bottom of the post and recommends you to read up-to-date information.
This suggests that big brother understands everything, and it‘s better not to go on a rampage if you want more attention drawn to your content.
And then, imagine an online store.
In order to find what you need, you add filters: „cheaper“ first, then „fast delivery“ and „good reviews“ and so on. This is how Instagram’s algorithms work (only they‘re much more complicated and wiser). They filter through what they need.
They focus on fresh photos saved through good apps, with a normal geolocation and without forbidden words and scenarios. This is how your homefeed is made. It‘s based on your interests and many other factors.
I don’t think anyone has ever talked about this before. Snobs (gurus?) are afraid to talk about this slippery topic so they don‘t ruin their reputation, and some SMM “specialists” either talk complete nonsense or make no assumptions about how algorithms work at all.