Instagram Shadowban 2023 : What It Is (And How to FIX IT)

If you post regularly on Instagram, chances are you'll see similar amounts of traffic and engagement each month. And if you consistently post valuable content, you're pretty unlikely to see any huge spikes or falls in those numbers. Yet out of the blue, your engagement can suddenly fall for what seems like no reason. People stop coming to your page, they stop commenting, liking, sharing. It all just kind of grinds to this big halt. What gives if this happens, it's possible you've been shadowbanned. Why does this even a real thing? And how can you get out of being shadowbanned? Or better yet, avoid it altogether? Okay, so what exactly happens when you're shadowbanned? The term's actually kind of misleading. Your posts aren't really banned per se. People can still find them on your profile. Instead, they're a bit deprioritized. When your followers scroll through their feeds, your content won't be front and center. It may not be there at all. Unless someone heads directly to your profile, they they probably won't see your latest content, which of course leads to less followers and general engagement. Okay, so that's the nuts and bolts of what actually happens when you're shadowbanned. But why does it happen? All right, first off, to be clear, Instagram denies that shadow banning actually exists. It isn't referred to anywhere on their site or in their regulations, which is a pain because it also means there's no clear direction on how to get yourself unshadow banned. But we'll get into that a little later. However, Instagram does have clear preferences and clear no nos when it comes to posting content. And the people who lean into these preferences will see their posts reach more people and boost your ability to get more followers and engagement falling. Follow these means. The reverse is true too. Ultimately, Instagram's algorithm decides what content does and doesn't meet these standards. Let's take a closer look at some of the things that could lead to a shadow ban. One, breaching copyright. If you're sharing clips from a film, TV show, or content from a licensed provide without their explicit permission, then you risk a shadow ban. Number two, post removal. If you've posted content that's deemed offensive, defamatory, misleading or hateful, there's a good chance it'll get reported and the post will be removed. If that happens, your future content reach could suffer. Number three, topical no nos. There are some topics that the Instagram algorithm just doesn't like. Avoid ultra contentious issues like politics, race, and violence. Even if you're posting with the best intentions, you run the real risk of being penalized. Number four Piggybacking off trending hashtags. A few times a year stuff goes viral. The same keywords are punched into search engines. If you're a content creator, it can be more than a little tempting to drop one or two of those keywords into your own content creating just to capitalize on some of the buzz. But if your content has nothing to do with that trend, and you're not adding value for people who are genuinely interested in that keyword, guess what Instagram's probably going to notice. Number five Activity overload. Look, I get it. Sometimes the thumbs get a little twitchy. You're dropping likes left and right and center. That's okay. It's completely fine to a degree. But huge increases in liking commenting, following and unfollowing can lead to Instagram giving your content a bit of a timeout. Because you know what else likes, comments, follows and unfollows all the time? Bots. And you know what Instagram and actually everyone really hates? Yep. Bots. Don't be like a bot, just be like you. Number six Account impersonation. Imitation may be the highest form of flattery, but it's a fast track to all kinds of pain online. Every now and then people will attempt to hack into your account. They may post negative content, ramp up activity, and even reach out to your followers. Again, this can lead to a shadow ban, lost followers and privacy leaks. So keep your security tight. Not just password type, but like two way authentication type. If you want to get a sense of whether your content is eligible for Instagram, there's a simple way to check. Go into your Instagram settings, then account account status and recommendation guidelines. Here you'll see if your content is flouting any of Instagram's best practices. Now let's pause for a moment because this, this is important. If you're getting consistently low engagement, it doesn't necessarily mean you've been shadow banned. For example, you could be posting at times when engagement on the platform is just naturally low. When people are working, sleeping, you're not going to reach the most eyeballs. Or you may just be using the wrong hashtags. When this happens, your content isn't optimized for the people you care about and your organic reach will suffer. So before you jump on the shadowbann bandwagon, geez, thanks a lot scriptwriter for that lovely tongue twister. You want to make sure you're sharing your content at the right time and with the right tags. All right, so now back to you people who really have been shadowbanned and how you can get back into Instagram's good books. Here's a quick fire list of things that people have found that have worked for them. Also, the time it takes to get your shadow ban lifted can vary. You'll need to be patient. First, make sure you don't violate community guidelines. Delete any offending posts, comments or messages. Remove automation tools. Instagram hates these Trust in your ability to build audiences organically. So lose the bots. Take a social media break for a couple of days. Let everything kind of settle and frankly, it's good for you. Go get some sunk it can take 5 to 10 days for your shadow ban to disappear, and the more times you get shadowbanned, the longer they last. So don't make it a habit. Oh, and you can also challenge your ban if you think you've been unfairly or incorrectly targeted. Go into your Instagram settings, then help and report a problem. Just like with health, prevention is better than the cure. The best way to not get shadowbanned is to focus on the things that make up all good content. Namely, focus on quality content that delivers value and sell products and services you believe in and actually use. Plus, keep an eye out for Instagram preferences. Right now, reels are really being prioritized. The Instagram shadow ban isn't a specific program or overlord. Instead, it's just the result. Result of a series of algorithms working behind the scenes. You should absolutely keep up to date with Instagram's community guidelines. They make the rules, so make sure you play by them. But most importantly, keep that burning. Focus on what's valuable for your audience. Be authentic and passionate. If you do, your engagement will only trend in one direction. Can't wait to see what you do. What are your best practices on Instagram? How do you decide what to share and what not to? Let us know in the comments. And as always, don't forget to subscribe to the channel. Until next time, I can't find this client info. Have you heard of HubSpot? HubSpot is a CRM platform so it shares its data across every application. Every team can stay aligned. No out of sync spreadsheets or dueling databases. HubSpot grow better.