You might have wondered why a particular post on your instagram has suddenly dropped likes and engagement. Or if not, you are just doing things right. This could be a grave anxiety for content creators, marketers and influencers when they realise that their posts have not reached the average engagement. For quite a while, users who faced such baffling behaviour from instagram cannot understand what had happened to their account. Then, a few explanations have been delivered for such behaviour that it could be caused by an Instagram Shadowban.
Find out more about Instagram Shadowban in this article and how you can remove or avoid it.
What Is an Instagram Shadowban?!
You might be still wondering what exactly is Instagram shadowban. Well, it is an unofficial ban that blocks the visibility of a user’s account, post, feeds, stories, and explore pages critically affecting reach. The reason could be that the post contains sensitive content or has entered the Community Guidelines Platform’s gray part. The unusual difference from other bans is that a user is not notified that their account has been shadowbanned..
Although Instagram claims that shadowbanning is not practiced on the platform, many users witness strange restrictions on their accounts that the rumors carry on.
Ways To Avoid Shadowban
Here are 6 ways to avoid Instagram Shadowban.
Avoid violating the Community Guidelines
Like most of us, we ignore reading the long content that pops up on the screen telling us the do’s and don’ts when we visit a particular app or website. The same does go for Instagram Community Guidelines. But we are talking about avoiding a shadowban so you have to sit up, grab something to eat, and go through the guidelines and terms of service.
Creating a positive environment is certainly the most effective way to avoid shadowban. Use respectful language, be it in DMs, posts, and other content. A simple tip for companies that you own or ensure the copyright for everything you post. Be always mindful of what you post.
Act like a human, not a bot
Although you might have done it: follow 600 people in an hour, that is too much for Instagram to think that you are a human. Or interacting with the app at an inhuman speed can trigger Instagram to think that you are a bot and eventually shadowbans you. Meta advises users not to post, share, or engage – either manually or automatically at very high frequency on its spam policy that includes Instagram.
Be in line
Sometimes, the abnormal up-and-down engagement metrics on your account can be due to an inconsistent posting schedule instead of a shadowban. Dropping posts often on your account can keep you away from losing engagement and being shadowbanned. This can keep your present followers seeing your content in their feeds and bring more new followers.
Avoid using banned hashtags
Instagram banned certain hashtags that do not meet its regulation or were found suspicious of inappropriateness. Such hashtags likely to be used from search or from other areas are either hidden or limited the content by Instagram. To know that a hashtag is banned, search for it and if a message pops up on the hashtag page, it definitely is a banned hashtag.
Create a content warning for sensitive posts
If your post is covering a sensitive news story or vicious event, Instagram can unmindfully assume you are promoting violence as its guidelines are against it. This can go as an exceptional case if your post intentions are for raising awareness and for the community’s benefit sake.
Instagram recommends blocking or blurring sensitive and violent images that include warning content. Make sure you state yourself clearly to not make Instagram think you are pro-violence. Also if you feel sharing the original image is helpful to promote awareness, link an external site with a full article about the image.
Avoid using third-party or sketchy apps and don’t buy followers
You will be easily shadowbanned by using unapproved third-party apps to auto-like your posts. Do not use sketchy apps to build your followers “organically”.
Also Read: How To Wrap Text In Google Sheets
How to Remove Shadowban
Seeing your post declining a huge amount of engagement could be a horrifying experience on Instagram. If you feel that you are being shadowbanned, let’s find out and fix it with the following advice.
Fix your feed by deleting the shadowbanned post
Try deleting the last post you think the shadowban happened after you posted it and see if the engagement comes racing back to normal on your next new posts.
Remove or edit all hashtags from the recent posts
The other way to fix the shadowban is deleting the hashtags from the last 3-7 days posts. Or you can edit your hashtags and see if it helps.
Refrain from putting up new posts for a few days
Take a break from putting up new posts and content for a couple of days. Most users claimed this effective as it sort of ‘reset and clear shadowbans in their account.
Inspect every hashtag you make
This is a lot of work to do but you gotta do it. Check each hashtag on your recent post to see if they have been restricted or banned. Delete them if they are banned.
Make Reels
Reels are nowadays the most engaging trend to bring followers on Instagram. Start switching your posts to making reels if you haven’t done it yet. It will eventually make you creative.
Deactivate and reactivate your Instagram account
Another possible solution is to deactivate and activate your Instagram account although it is not fully sure if it will fix it or not. Try with the deactivate feature which is reversible.
Boost a post
Boost your post but not the ones that got you shadowbanned. This can help your post instantly get out of shadowban.
Last Resort, Help Centre
If none of the above isn’t helping you to resolve your shadowban issue, the last resort for you is to go to the Instagram Help service. Follow the steps to get the help you need:
- Go to your profile page on Instagram
- Tap the menu icon in the top right corner of the screen, then go to Settings
- Tap help, then Report a problem
- Follow the prompts to best describe your issue
Get Out of The Shadows
Hope all the frustrations and worriedness you faced are now calmed down. Ensure you follow the magic rules of do’s and don’ts to avoid shadowbanning the next time you feel like posting.