How To Track Instagram Insights and Analytics
Summary
Tracking Instagram insights and analytics is essential for anyone serious about growing their presence on the platform. Whether you're a business aiming to boost brand awareness, a content creator seeking to engage your audience, or a marketer looking to optimise campaigns, understanding your Instagram analytics can unlock actionable data for better decision-making. In this guide, we’ll explain what Instagram insights are, how to track them, tools to enhance your analytics game, and practical tips to optimise your content strategy.
Want to know more about content marketing and how it can be used before getting stuck into the analytics? Check out our blog on content marketing.
Why Tracking Instagram Insights Matters
Tracking Instagram insights is crucial because it allows you to:
Understand Audience Behavior: Learn who your followers are, when they are online, and what type of content resonates with them.
Measure Performance: Evaluate the success of individual posts, stories, reels, and campaigns.
Refine Strategies: Use data to optimise your posting schedule, content type, and messaging.
Prove ROI: If you’re managing Instagram for a business, analytics help demonstrate the return on investment (ROI) of your social media efforts.
How to Access Instagram Insights
Prerequisites to Access Insights
Professional Account: To access Instagram Insights, you must switch to a Business or Creator account. You can do this via Settings > Account > Switch Account Type.
Updated App: Ensure your Instagram app is up to date to access the latest features.
Steps to Access Insights
From the App:
Go to your profile and tap the three-line menu in the top-right corner.
Select Insights from the menu.
Per Post/Story/Video:
Tap on any individual post, story, or reel.
Click View Insights to see detailed metrics.
Key Metrics Available in Instagram Insights
1. Overview Metrics
Accounts Reached: Total unique accounts that viewed your content.
Engagement: Total interactions including likes, comments, shares, and saves.
Impressions: Total views of your content, including repeat views.
2. Audience Insights
Demographics: Learn about your audience's age, gender, and location.
Active Times: Identify when your followers are most active online.
3. Content Performance
Posts: Engagement rate, impressions, reach and saves.
Stories: Forward taps, backward taps, and exits.
Reels: Plays, likes, comments, and shares.
Live Videos: Peak viewers, comments, and shares.
Recommended Tools for Deeper Instagram Analytics
While Instagram’s built-in tools are robust, third-party platforms can provide additional insights and features.
Top Instagram Analytics Tools
Hootsuite: Monitor detailed analytics and schedule posts in one platform.
Later: Provides visual content scheduling and hashtag analytics.
Sprout Social: Offers comprehensive performance insights with customizable reports.
Iconosquare: A professional analytics platform ideal for businesses and agencies.
Keyhole: Tracks hashtags, keywords, and competitor analysis.
Best Practices for Tracking Instagram Insights
Set Goals: Determine KPIs (e.g., reach, engagement rate, or follower growth) to measure success.
Analyse Trends: Use historical data to spot patterns in audience behavior.
Test and Adjust: Experiment with content formats, captions, hashtags, and post times to see what works.
Monitor Competitors: Benchmark your performance against industry peers.
Additional Sections to Consider
1. How to Create Custom Reports
Export Instagram insights data and create personalised reports using tools like Google Sheets or analytics platforms.
Method 1: Manually Recording Data
Access Instagram Insights:
Go to your profile and tap the three-line menu.
Select Insights and navigate to the section (e.g., Overview, Content Performance) you want to export.
Record Key Metrics:
Write down metrics like reach, impressions, engagement, and audience demographics.
Alternatively, take screenshots for visual reference.
Input Data into Google Sheets:
Open Google Sheets and create columns for your metrics.
Enter your data manually or use the copy-paste method if pulling data from web tools.
Method 2: Using Third-Party Tools with Export Features
If you prefer a more automated approach, use third-party tools with built-in export options:
Hootsuite Analytics:
Navigate to the Analytics section.
Generate a report by selecting your desired metrics.
Export the data in formats like CSV or PDF.
Sprout Social:
Open the Reports tab and select the Instagram Profile Report.
Customise the report by choosing relevant date ranges and metrics.
Download the report for further analysis.
Iconosquare:
Use Iconosquare’s analytics dashboard to view detailed Instagram insights.
Click the export option to download performance data into an Excel or CSV file.
Creating Personalised Reports in Google Sheets
Organise Your Data:
Import your exported CSV file into Google Sheets or manually input data.
Structure your sheet with headers like:
Date
Post Type (Reel, Story, Image)
Reach
Engagement
Impressions
Saves/Comments/Share
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Analysing Instagram insights is essential for refining your strategy, but even the best marketers can make mistakes that lead to incorrect conclusions or missed opportunities. Here are the most common pitfalls to avoid:
1. Focusing Solely on Vanity Metrics
What it means: Metrics like likes, follower count, and views often look impressive but don’t necessarily indicate meaningful engagement or conversions.
Why it’s a mistake: These metrics don’t show how well your audience is connecting with your content or if they’re taking desired actions.
What to do instead: Prioritise actionable metrics like engagement rate, saves, shares, and website clicks, which reflect deeper audience interest and potential ROI.
2. Ignoring Audience Demographics
What it means: Failing to analyse who your audience is, including their age, gender, location, and active times.
Why it’s a mistake: Without understanding your audience, you might create content that doesn’t resonate with them or post at suboptimal times.
What to do instead: Regularly review your Audience Insights and tailor content to match the preferences and habits of your followers.
3. Analysing Data in Isolation
What it means: Looking at metrics like reach, impressions, or clicks without considering them in context.
Why it’s a mistake: Metrics are interrelated, and focusing on one without the others can lead to an incomplete understanding of performance.
What to do instead: Cross-analyse metrics. For example:
High reach + low engagement = your content isn’t resonating.
Low reach + high engagement = your posts are connecting well with a smaller audience.
4. Neglecting Timeframes and Trends
What it means: Failing to compare performance over different timeframes or seasons.
Why it’s a mistake: Short-term snapshots might not reveal consistent trends or anomalies caused by specific events or campaigns.
What to do instead:
Use a mix of short-term (weekly) and long-term (monthly, quarterly) comparisons.
Look for patterns, such as seasonal spikes or declines.
5. Overlooking Reels and Stories Analytics
What it means: Focusing only on static post performance and ignoring other formats.
Why it’s a mistake: Instagram’s algorithm prioritises Reels and Stories, making them vital for reach and engagement.
What to do instead: Regularly analyse:
Reels: Plays, comments, shares, and likes.
Stories: Forward taps, backward taps, and exits.
6. Failing to Segment Content Types
What it means: Analysing overall performance without separating post types like photos, videos, Reels, or carousel posts.
Why it’s a mistake: Different content formats perform differently, and lumping them together hides valuable insights.
What to do instead:
Compare performance by format to identify what resonates most with your audience.
For example, if carousel posts consistently perform better, incorporate more of them into your strategy.
7. Ignoring Hashtag Performance
What it means: Using hashtags without reviewing their effectiveness.
Why it’s a mistake: Poor-performing hashtags waste your efforts and limit reach.
What to do instead:
Track hashtag performance in your Insights or with tools like Hashtagify.
Experiment with different hashtags to find the ones that drive more reach and engagement.
8. Not Accounting for External Factors
What it means: Failing to consider events, trends, or industry changes that could impact your metrics.
Why it’s a mistake: External factors, like holidays or trending topics, often influence performance, skewing your analysis.
What to do instead:
Keep a record of key dates, campaigns, and trends that might impact your metrics.
Use these as context when interpreting data spikes or drops.
9. Overreacting to One-Off Results
What it means: Making strategy changes based on a single post or campaign’s performance.
Why it’s a mistake: One-off success or failure might be due to random factors, not a meaningful trend.
What to do instead:
Look at data averages or trends across several posts before making decisions.
Use A/B testing to validate any new strategies.
10. Forgetting to Set Goals
What it means: Analysing data without a clear objective in mind.
Why it’s a mistake: Without goals, it’s hard to determine if your content is succeeding or identify areas for improvement.
What to do instead:
Define KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) based on your goals, such as boosting website traffic, increasing engagement, or growing followers.
Align your analysis with these goals to measure meaningful success.
By avoiding these common mistakes, you can gain clearer, more actionable insights from your Instagram analytics and make smarter decisions for your content strategy.
Examples of Metrics in Action
A fashion brand notices peak engagement at 7 PM on weekdays. They schedule their promotional posts at this time, resulting in a 30% higher engagement rate.
A travel blogger tracks story exits and realizes followers skip overly long videos. They shorten their stories and see a significant drop in exit rates.
Conclusion
Tracking Instagram insights and analytics empowers you to make data-driven decisions, improve your content strategy, and ultimately achieve your goals on the platform. By combining Instagram’s native tools with third-party platforms, you can unlock deeper insights and maximise your impact. Start tracking today, and watch your Instagram presence grow! Unsure about what content to post? Check out our helpful tips for content to post on Instagram for your business.
Ready to Supercharge Your Instagram Strategy?
Understanding Instagram insights is just the beginning—creating a content marketing strategy that leverages these insights is where the real growth happens. At PRINTFOLD, we specialise in crafting data-driven content strategies that engage your audience, amplify your reach, and drive results.
Whether you need help analysing your analytics, creating standout visuals, or crafting scroll-stopping captions, our team of experts has you covered.
Let’s turn your Instagram presence into a powerful marketing tool.
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