Instagram- Shadow Banned?

Instagram Shadowban is a phrase which is found thrown around a lot the internet these days. The fact of the matter is not many Instagram users have understood what it really means and how they have been impacted by it if they actually have been. So, what is Instagram shadowban and how does it affect the reach of your Instagram account?




Instagram shadowban is when “your hashtags become undiscoverable”. You may be able to use hashtags in your captions, but you will only be seen in the feeds of your current followers. Obviously, this means that your images and posts will not be visible in hashtag feeds of people who are not your followers, thereby reducing the reach of your Instagram account and making it much more difficult to reach new audiences.

How do you know the Instagram shadow ban has affected you?

If you notice a large reduction in the number of likes or comments on your posts then you may have been shadow banned. Also, if you go over your posts and notice comments only from people who follow you then also you could assume to be affected by the shadowban. One sure shot way of knowing whether the ban has affected you or not is to ask someone who does not follow you to see if your hashtags appear on their feed or gallery of Instagram.

Some reasons for Instagram Shadowban

Not being innovative with your hashtags- Using the same hashtags for months together might prompt Instagram to think you are behaving like a spammy. It is recommended to be fresh with your hashtag content and keep changing it every few weeks.

Making use of automated services, bots and buying followers- Instagram terms of services is very clear about not using any kind of automation. This includes both programs to make comments on your behalf or any kind of automatic posting services.

Lots of sudden activity- If you suddenly go on a race of following and unfollowing users and keep commenting on posts without a break, then it could raise a few eyebrows whip might result in shadow banning.

Broken hashtag- Sometimes the content inside a hashtag could be the trigger for the shadowban. Something as innocent as “black” within a hashtag could be overrun by the surge of comments an Instagram has become very aware of R18 material. Hence if you are using a hashtag that has after it a lot of these kinds of posts, then your whole post may be affected.

If you see yourself being shadow banned then the best thing for you to do is to change the content of your posts, images, and hashtags and see if this makes a difference and, in most cases, it does make an immediate difference.

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