Keep in touch with followers on Instagram using Channels and Notes

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In a bid to attract and retain users, Instagram has launched some attractive and well-designed features: broadcast channels and Notes. But how have these features evolved?

Broadcasts channels on the road to success✅🎯

Unveiled last February, Instagram’s broadcast channels (read our article on the subject) were first deployed in the United States and are now making their appearance in other European countries for certain influential accounts. Instagram is certainly looking to renew itself to compete more with TikTok and exploit the relationships between celebrities and their followers. Broadcast channels are already enjoying a certain amount of success on the app. How can this be explained?

• So, what’s the deal?🤔

These are broadcast channels powered by a one-way public messaging tool that allows creators to communicate directly with their subscribers on a large scale, with no time limit as with stories.

Source: Instagram

Creators can use them to keep their subscribers informed using text, photos, videos, voice notes and polls. Subscribers can react to content and take part in polls, with new features to come. Only creators can send messages.

An innovative idea? Not really… The messaging service Telegram has been proposing a similar idea for some time now, and WhatsApp has also recently launched channels for designers and businesses (Click here to read our article on the subject).

• How does it work?

Once a user has created a broadcast channel, their subscribers are notified after their first post is sent to the channel. As soon as the broadcast channel is active, creators can also encourage their subscribers to join it by using the « Join Channel » sticker in Stories.

To find out if a designer has a channel, simply go to their profile. You’ll see the link to their channel displayed under their biography. The only condition for accessing it is to be subscribed to the creator, another great way to increase the number of followers 👍🏾

• Already a success?

Several creators, such as Léna Mahfouf, a.k.a. Léna Situations, have already created their own broadcast channels and met with great success.

« It’s the worst idea to leave this functionality to a chatterbox, » says Léna Situations on her channel, which already has over 600,000 subscribers in less than 24 hours, proof of its success.

Source: Instagram

Other international stars have also created their own channels, including Chiara Ferragni, Jennifer Lopez, Angèle and Tiakola.

• A new opportunity for collabs on Instagram

If collaboration on a post was already possible between creators, a new opportunity opens up with channels. It will also be possible to invite other accounts to join your own channel. A win-win situation!

As previously mentioned, the channels are currently available to a very limited number of creators. As usual, Instagram is first testing the new feature with a limited group, then plans to roll it out to more accounts in the coming months. Please be patient!

Major update for Instagram Notes 🗒️📱

Instagram has just added a new feature to Notes, those short messages you can attach to your profile photo in the chat area. From now on, in addition to a text of up to 60 characters, often used to share a mood or a thought, you’ll be able to add a 30-second musical extract. The title and author will be linked to your profile photo, and will be visible to other users in Instagram’s messaging space. They can listen to the extract by opening the note.

New? not at all, since we’ve already seen this in WhatsApp statuses.

At the end of 2022, the social network had added a similar feature enabling music to be linked to a publication, and the same is now true of notes, which now feature another improvement. Indeed, it will be possible to automatically translate notes into a foreign language by pressing the « See translation » option in the note, as seen below with the post shared by Adam Mosseri.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Adam Mosseri (@mosseri)

These new features are currently being rolled out by Instagram.

• How to add music to Instagram Notes

To add a musical sample to your Note, follow the same procedure as for writing it. Here’s how:

• Go to the Instagram homepage via the house-shaped symbol at the bottom left of the screen,
• Press the paper airplane symbol at the top right of the screen,
• Click on your profile picture, above your discussions,
• Select the musical note symbol, and you’ll be able to search for a suitable title, add it and write a short text if you wish,
• Then choose how you’d like to share your Note, and press Share.

What do you think of these two features ?