Instagram Algorithm in 2025: How to Boost Your Brand’s Engagement

September 4, 2025 | By Ilfusion Team

Instagram has evolved significantly over the years. In 2025, its algorithm has recently undergone significant changes due to the introduction of several new updates and features.

For brands and content creators, this means adapting social media and content marketing strategies to stay visible, connect with audiences, and drive meaningful interactions.

Instagram 2025: New Features and How to Make It Work for Your Brand

In mid-2025, Instagram launched a series of updates aimed at bringing users closer together while expanding ways for brands to spark engagement. Here’s a look at the latest features and how your brand can turn them into growth opportunities.

Reposts Tab

Among its most prominent new features is the Reposts tab. It organizes and highlights the Reels and feed posts you’ve reshared, making them easy to revisit on your profile.

This feature encourages more cross-promotion, community engagement, and visibility for both original creators and those who share their content.

How to make it work for your brand:

• Highlight user-generated content by reposting customer reviews, photos, or videos, showing appreciation and building trust with your audience.
• Support partnerships and collaborations by resharing posts from brand partners or event sponsors to amplify visibility and strengthen relationships.
• Curate relevant content from industry leaders, influencers, or community members to position your brand as an active participant in your niche.

Instagram Map

Instagram’s opt-in Map feature allows friends to share locations via Direct Messages. This makes it easier to recommend places, coordinate meet-ups, or highlight nearby businesses.

For brands, it opens up new ways to engage with local communities and drive foot traffic.

How to make it work for your brand:

• Promote your physical location by encouraging customers to share your store, restaurant, or venue through Instagram Map.
• Use location-based campaigns to highlight events, product launches, or special offers at specific spots.
• Encourage user check-ins to build organic visibility and boost your reputation as a community hub.

Friends Tab

The Friends Tab in Reels lets users see what content their friends are engaging with, such as likes, comments, and reposts.

This feature shifts discovery from algorithm-driven feeds to personal, social-driven recommendations.

How to make it work for your brand:

• Encourage share-worthy content that followers will naturally want to engage with, increasing chances of showing up in Friends Tabs.
• Run interactive campaigns (like polls, challenges, or contests) that spark reactions and shares among peer groups.
• Leverage micro-influencers whose activity in the Friends Tab can create a ripple effect in their networks.

More Carousel Insights

Instagram is testing Carousel Insights that reveal the like count for the specific photo or video visible when someone tapped like.

This gives creators deeper data to evaluate performance at the slide level.

How to make it work for your brand:

• Test different content types within carousels to see what resonates most—educational slides, infographics, testimonials, or product shots.
• Refine your storytelling sequence by analyzing which slide earns the most engagement and adjusting future carousels accordingly.
• Spot high-performing visuals to repurpose as standalone posts, ads, or featured content in other campaigns.

Trial Reels

Instagram’s Trial Reels, first introduced in late 2024, give creators a way to experiment with fresh ideas before rolling them out to their full audience.

By sharing a Reel with a smaller group of non-followers, brands can test how content performs and gather valuable engagement insights. If the Reel resonates, it can be published more widely, helping businesses refine their strategy with less risk.

How to make it work for your brand:

• Test new content formats—such as tutorials, product teasers, or behind-the-scenes clips—to add variety to your strategy and see other ways to engage with your audience.
• Let performance guide strategy by using trial engagement data to decide which themes, hooks, or visuals are worth scaling up.

Edits App

Launched in April 2025, Instagram’s standalone Edits App gives creators a simple way to produce polished, professional-quality videos. This gives smaller creators a free tool to use for creating Reels.

And from what we notice, Reels edited with the Edits App tend to perform better in the feed, giving brands both creative flexibility and a potential visibility boost.

How to make it work for your brand:

• Take advantage of the new tool to produce Reels that match your brand’s tone and style.
• Use Edits for high-priority campaigns where a stronger algorithmic reach can maximize results.

Instagram Marketing 2025: Key Takeaways

Instagram’s latest updates make one thing clear: the platform is rewarding originality, higher production quality, and content that sparks meaningful interaction.

For brands, this means shifting from quick-hit tactics to strategies that emphasize storytelling, community engagement, and measurable retention.

Adapting early to these changes will help your brand stay competitive, connect authentically with your audience, and maximize visibility in a fast-moving digital landscape.

If you want more information or for Ilfusion to help boost your marketing efforts give us a call at 888-420-5115, or send us an email at cr******@******on.com.