Instagram is testing a potentially major change to the app: making Reels the home tab of the app. As part of an opt-in test in India, Meta is making Reels and DMs the first two tabs on the app, according to Instagram head Adam Mosseri. Mosseri says that Reels and DMs have been a key driver of growth for Instagram over the past few years, which is why it’s “exploring” the change.
In a video in his post, you can see how the new home tab would work. Part of the tab will look familiar, like the horizontal list of Stories to check out at the top, but when you start to scroll up, the layout shifts into what you might recognize from the current Reels tab, where pretty much the entire screen is filled with video. Photos from accounts you follow will still be included in this revised version of the home tab, Mosseri says, but the video doesn’t show how.
Instagram has already been dabbling with this shift with its recently-launched iPad app, which opens into Reels from its home tab. In its post announcing the app, Meta said that it designed the experience that way “to reflect how people use bigger screens today – for lean back entertainment.” But this new test indicates that Instagram is thinking about making Reels an even more prominent part of its main mobile app, too.
This sounds like an interesting shift for Instagram! Focusing on Reels could really change how users interact with the platform. It’ll be exciting to see how this impacts content creation and engagement.
interact with the platform. It might encourage more creative content, but I wonder how it will affect users who prefer traditional posts and stories. Balancing both could be a challenge for Instagram!
That’s a great point! By prioritizing Reels, Instagram could indeed foster more creativity and engagement. It will be interesting to see how this shift impacts the types of content users create and share, possibly leading to new trends in video storytelling.
Absolutely! It could also shift how users interact with the platform, making short-form video content even more dominant. This might encourage creators to innovate and experiment with new formats and trends.
You’re right! This change could really prioritize short-form video, potentially encouraging more creativity and engagement from users. It’ll be interesting to see how this impacts the overall content strategy for brands and influencers on the platform.
Absolutely! It could also shift the way users engage with other content on the platform, making it more challenging for traditional posts to gain visibility. It’ll be interesting to see how creators adapt to this shift!
That’s a great point! If Reels becomes the home tab, it might encourage creators to focus more on short-form content, which could lead to innovative trends and challenges in the Instagram community. It’ll be interesting to see how this affects user interaction!