If you want to use only one marketing tool for your business, it has to be Instagram. It is that powerful. Since Facebook bought Instagram, it’s quickly evolved into more than just a photo-sharing app. And it has more than half a billion active users.
With all the noise on Facebook and other social media platforms, Instagram keeps it simple and elegant. This is also one of the reasons why Instagram is a good marketing platform.
Recommended: 18 Essential Instagram Tools Every Content Creator Needs
Amongst all its users, one in every two people follows at least one business page. Given its power, every business has a profile on Instagram, but the critical question is how to reach your audience. However, just having a page will not be enough, or just posting images with random hashtags will not help your business. You need to follow the trends.
Here are the top 12 Instagram trends for 2025 and beyond.
Instagram Reels has developed features unlike any other. Yes, Instagram stories have been an enormous success, but Reels is taking Instagram to a new level. It is one of the most popular Instagram trends, and users have widely adopted it. Now, users can monetize their Instagram, too.
Instagram Reels has vast similarities with TikTok, and the advantage of Instagram Reels is that users don’t have to create a separate account. They can do the same as they could do on TikTok without a different account.
Reels became popular in less than a year of launch, with efforts halved. The trend is expected to grow further. Many influencers regularly upload Instagram trending posts through reels.
Reels lets you create and discover short and entertaining videos on Instagram. You can record 15-second multi-clip videos with effects, audio, and creative tools. As to how long Instagram reels can be, you can make them 15 seconds long or 30 seconds long, depending on your content’s need. The best apps for Instagram reels are iMovie, Adobe Premiere Rush, and Quik, amongst others.
Individuals use Reels to their advantage, but businesses and organizations do. According to a recent report, two-thirds of the NBA’s franchises have posted at least one Reel since the feature launched in the United States on August 5, 2020. The NBA franchises have received 22% higher engagement than the average engagement from standard Instagram posts.
If you want to create professional videos for Instagram Reels, you can use tools like Inshot, Clips by Apple, and FilmoraGo.
If reels are really important and popular today, Instagram stories are the backbone of influential marketing on Instagram.
The Instagram Story feature was launched four years ago, and it quickly became a top Instagram trend, on par with the Reels.
Insta Stories has completely revolutionized how businesses use influencers to reach a wider audience with their products. Canva, Inshot, Unfold, and Mojo are some of the best apps for Instagram Stories.
Nearly eight out of ten brands have admitted that Instagram stories have positively impacted their business. The top influencers around the world are using Stories to publish content, and they will continue to be the hottest and most evergreen Instagram trend.
For instance, National Geographic uses stories perfectly and engagingly. It shares fascinating video clips and stays true to its mission of education.
In addition, they often invite their followers to participate in the learning. Instagram’s poll feature regularly quizzes its audience on relevant facts.
Instagram is about sharing beautiful pictures and short videos. The majority of users nowadays use filters to make Instagram trending posts.
One way to ensure you create eye-catching pictures and videos is to use augmented reality (AR) filters. These filters enhance your Instagram stories and posts with visual effects.
The best part about AR filters is building exclusive filters using the Spark AR Studio platform.
These filters are a great way to interact with the audience and boost engagement, and they have been trending recently. If you are thinking about how to get more likes on Instagram, using AR filters in your stories and reels might be the answer.
Using AR filters, you can streamline the aspect of your business or brand that makes you unique and special.
It is an excellent idea to use AR filters on Instagram to enhance your brand. AR filters promise to be the next popular Instagram trend among influencers in 2025.
Another Instagram trend that is growing very fast is Instagram Live. In the past year, many people have started spending more time at home (due to the pandemic, 2019).
As social animals, we like to interact with others, so Instagram Live has become popular. It allows you to interact with many others. According to a Business Insider report, Instagram Live usage increased by 70 percent in 2020.
The initial popularity of the feature was because of the lockdown. Still, even now, when the situation has improved in most parts of the world, the Live feature continues to be a popular Instagram trend in 2021 as well.
Moreover, brands and businesses use this feature to remotely reach a broader audience base.
For instance, Jay Shetty used the Instagram Live feature to market his newly released book, Think Like A Monk. He shared glimpses of his book signing events and thus interacted with his followers.
Crossposting is another very popular Instagram trend. When you create a post, and if you can share the same post/content across multiple platforms, you are crossposting, and this trend is increasing.
For example, Facebook Inc. lets you share your Instagram Stories with Facebook Stories. This allows users to reach a wider audience and increase engagement with the same content.
Users are using the content they post on Twitter throughout the day as a thread and posting it on Instagram Stories/Posts. Crossposting will continue as users find more innovative ways to get higher engagements from different platforms.
The popularity of Instagram and the number of active users are undisputed. In addition, online shopping has become very popular in the last decade, and as a result, the number of online buyers worldwide is continuously increasing.
Combining these factors, one of the popular Instagram trends in 2021 is shopping on Instagram. Instagram and Facebook have been platforms where users discover most of the products they buy.
Since users spend the most time on Instagram, it wouldn’t be surprising if in-app shopping continued to grow.
For instance, Lisa Says Gah is an independent boutique and blogger in San Francisco. It is devoted to connecting people with unique pieces. The brand soon became a massive Instagram-famous shop, with a massive following that stands out due to its fun prints and unique style.
Influencer Advertising is a big trend on Instagram right now. The platform has thousands of influencers, all of whom have many followers.
Instagram is working to ensure that influencers do not spread misinformation about a service or product to their followers.
Specific community guidelines have been set for the influencers, and they must follow them. In addition, they must understand the difference between branded content and paid partnership.
Read the Influencer Advertising Regulations Guidelines here.
Instagram Guides is the latest addition to the Instagram feature and is already a popular trend. This feature allows users to share and consume helpful recommendations and tips in an easy-to-digest format.
Instead of leaving valuable content on the feed for followers to search through themselves, you can make it easy for them to consume by allowing them to combine your posts as a guide.
These are especially useful for businesses, as they can create a guide for each product or service and put all posts related to the product under a single guide.
This way, users do not have to scroll through hundreds of posts if they want something specific on your profile. The feature will continue to become popular as more and more people start creating Guides on their profiles.
Here’s UNICEF India’s Instagram guide on managing trauma and loss during COVID-19.
Another interesting place to gain visibility is the Explore tab. According to data, more than 50 percent of Instagram users use this tab once a month. Instagram frequently releases new designs to make it attractive and user-friendly. Hence, it continues to be a prevailing trend.
If you can strategically boost your brand’s or business’s presence on Instagram Explore, you can generate more engagement and visitors for your company. This will directly increase your opportunity to connect with a broader audience, acquire new customers, and boost sales.
The Explore Tab is deemed one of those Instagram trends that brands and businesses will most appreciate, as it directly promises a broader reach.
This feature was launched in 2021 only and is not available in all countries but is being rolled out slowly and gradually to all users.
Creators can monetize their video content using this feature. The ad appears when users click the IGTV video to watch the complete video from the preview button.
Given the success of YouTube ads between videos, IGTV ads will undoubtedly be highly successful and continue to be a trend in the coming years.
Although it is very new to the platform, it is a time-tested formula, so there will be no issues with its growth.
Also, the average CPC for Instagram Ads is consistently higher than that for Facebook, so many people shy away from them. However, Instagram engagement rates are through the roof, so this trend has high ad revenue and user engagement potential.
Digital Stickers are a design trend all over Instagram, which lets users add virtual stickers with extra information to the images. It is a promising Instagram trend, especially for the millennial generation.
It could be putting a price on a shopping item, a validity period of an offer, or an inspirational message.
These stickers provide eye-catching elements that stop thumbs from skipping to the next story in the users’ queue.
This allows businesses to brand content and enhance users’ experience on the platform. It also offers companies the chance to utilize pop culture and current events to create relevant and trending social media additions with their brand stamp.
As the trend picks up in the second half of 2021, you will see increasing stickers being used.
This feature was launched in 2017 and has become very popular since then. In the future, nearly one in every five posts is a Carousel Post, making it one of the most famous Instagram trends.
It is a post that allows users to post multiple videos or photos. Viewers can view them by clicking or swiping left.
Users can put up to 10 images or videos in a single post. This is a great way to give complete information to the user through pictures or videos in a single post.
Many businesses use it to inform users about their products and services. It is also used as an explainer post, where images explain something to users.
Given the higher engagement on such posts, the trend will continue for the coming years.
For instance, Prada features a series of parties, activations, and shows, each perfectly categorized during their legendary Prada Mode events.
Here’s another excellent example of Carousel posts by Mad Over Marketing regarding the alcohol brand Corona and how it tried to rebuild its brand in Mexico during the “Coronavirus pandemic:
If you want to use Instagram as your preferred marketing tool, you must start incorporating the above trends in the marketing plan. Another important thing you need to do is advertise with influencers.
Like any other platform, Influencer Marketing is trending on Instagram right now. It is the answer to many issues on the platform today, like not getting social proof and massive reach instantly. It is also a solution for businesses that don’t want to spend big on celebrities to market their products.
The big influencers with millions are very costly and may not fall into the marketing budget of most businesses. Hence, the nano and micro-influencers are currently viral.
You should explore the option of paying collaborations with nano influencers. If you have the question ‘How to see what someone likes on Instagram 2021,’ check what the influencers are marketing.
If you are struggling with your Instagram marketing plan and looking for quick ideas to improve, we’ve listed some for you:
Instagram is a good platform from a marketing point of view in 2025. Instagram provides many tools, but few users can gain sufficient momentum and visibility. This is one of the significant issues some users face today on Instagram.
However, it is confirmed that to grow an account, you do not need to set a high marketing budget. The cost of efficient Instagram marketing isn’t very high. All you need is the right strategy and the ability to capitalize on current trends.
Optimizing your Instagram shouldn’t mean you put more hours into it.
Apart from using the trend mentioned above, there are a couple of basics you might be doing wrong if you cannot get the engagement you desire on Instagram.
It is vital to remember that using correct and relevant hashtags and catchy and cute Instagram captions is very useful. Cute Instagram captions also attract a lot of engagement, but make sure these cute Instagram captions do not turn out to be borderline cringe.
You don’t need to worry about how many people will be turned off by the number of hashtags you use; relevant hashtags will help your post reach a larger audience.
In recent times, Instagram is one of the most potent tools for brands and businesses. Its massive audience base and multiple ways to target them make it one of the most profitable platforms for brands and companies.
Are you wondering how artificial intelligence (AI) is going to impact performance management and human…
MarTech platforms have played a key role in how businesses engage with customers and understand…
Say it’s your team’s busiest day. Leads are flowing in, deals are close to closing,…
With over 2.35 billion active users, Instagram has evolved from a simple selfie-sharing app to…
The digital landscape is undergoing a seismic shift driven by the rise of voice search.…
So, how do you find the right keywords, and what are the latest trends in…