Ep 115: This is why Instagram Feels Harder in 2026 (And What You Can Do About it)

If Instagram has felt harder lately, you're not imagining it, and it's not the algorithm punishing you. User behaviour has fundamentally shifted, and in this episode, I break down exactly what's changed and what to do about it. You'll learn:Why Instagram now functions more like a search engine, and how people are using it to research businesses before they ever reach outHow the algorithm has evolved to prioritise saves and shares over likes, and why private sharing is one of the most powerful (and overlooked) trust signals for expanding your reach.Why descriptive captions matter more than ever now that Instagram's AI indexes keywords, and why hashtags have taken a backseat (with usage now capped at five).What the expansion of Reels up to 20 minutes means for service providers looking to build educational authority and boost watch time and completion ratesHow the buyer journey on Instagram has changed, most decisions are now made before someone slides into your DMsI also share what to focus on right now if you want to turn your Instagram presence into a consistent source of enquiries.Links & next steps→ Take my free Instagram AssessmentA quick diagnostic to see if your Instagram is actually positioned to generate enquiries→ Book a strategy callIf you’d like support turning Instagram into a consistent enquiry channel for your businessLet's Connect:Follow me on Instagram: @andreamareecreative