How to use Instagram analytics?

Instagram analytics are the bedrock of every effective Instagram marketing campaign. All effective marketing decisions are based on excellent data, and there’s plenty of data accessible to inform you what’s working and what’s not on Instagram, as well as inspire some new techniques you might want to explore.

Instagram has 1.39 billion users who spend an average of 11.7 hours per month on the platform. Almost two-thirds (62.3%) use the app to follow or investigate businesses and goods. However, there is a lot of stuff competing for their attention at that moment.

What exactly is Instagram analytics?

Instagram analytics are tools that display crucial metrics and statistics about your Instagram success. This information might range from the most basic such as how many people viewed or liked a given post, to extremely detailed such as when your account’s followers are most likely to be online.

The only way to develop a successful Instagram strategy is to track the data available through Instagram analytics. You can only assume what works if you don’t track data.

You could get lucky and have some success based on your intuition, but you’ll never be able to test, develop, or grow if you don’t have the data to back it up. You will never be able to demonstrate the value of your job to your employer, team, customer, or other stakeholders if you do not have data.

15 Important Instagram analytics metrics

Instagram analytics may deliver a wealth of information. So, where do you begin? 

Here are our selections for the top 15 metrics to monitor using Instagram analytics tools in 2023.

Tracking Instagram account analytics

• Engagement rate: The number of engagements as a percentage of followers or reach is referred to as the engagement rate. This is a starting point for determining how well your content is connecting with your audience and driving action.
• Follower growth rate: The pace at which you earn or lose followers. There is no other Instagram indicator that influences organic reach. To give you some idea- the average monthly follower growth rate is 0.98%.
• Website referral traffic: The number of visits brought to your website by Instagram. This is critical to boost your Instagram ROI and link your Instagram activities to off-platform goals.
• Most effective posting times: Which posting times generate the most interest?
• Demographics of the audience: This isn’t a measure per se but rather a collection of critical data factors that might help you identify what forms of content are most likely to be effective.

Tracking Instagram feed post metrics

The number of engagements as a percentage of followers or reach is the post-engagement rate. This can be done manually, but decent Instagram analytics programs will do it for you.

• Comment rate on a post: The number of comments as a percentage of followers or reach. If your goals include fostering connections or establishing loyalty, tally comments’ separately from overall interactions and aim to increase that number explicitly.
• Impressions: The total number of times a person saw your content.

This might reflect how effectively you promote your account and content.

• The number of people that saw your post. Because of the Instagram algorithm, the more interesting your material is, the more people will view it.

Instagram metrics to monitor

The number of engagements as a percentage of followers or reach is referred to as the story engagement rate.

Completion rate: The number of people who watch your story all the way through. People viewing your whole story imply that your material is resonating with your audience.

Instagram Reels metrics to monitor

• Reel shares: The number of people who shared your reel.
• Reels Interaction: A total number of likes, comments, shares, and saves on the reel.
• Drop-off rate: The percentage of persons who quit viewing before the finish.
• Views vs. TikTok: How many people watch a reel versus a TikTok equivalent?

Check out our entire blog article on Instagram metrics for additional information on all the Instagram metrics you should measure based on your platform goals, as well as how to track and calculate them.

How to View Instagram Statistics

Now that you’ve decided what to monitor, here’s how to view Instagram analytics data on your phone or PC.

On the go (using Instagram Insights)

If you need fast information on the fly, Instagram Insights provides basic Instagram statistics for free within the Instagram app. There is no way to convert the data into a report, but it provides a general picture of your Instagram performance.

• Go to your profile on Instagram, then tap Professional dashboard.
• Tap See all next to Account insights.
• View a summary of your material, including accounts reached, engagements, total followers, and content shared. You may select a timeline to see from the top menu.
• Tap the right arrow next to the relevant category to go further into any of these indicators.

On the desktop

Navigating statistics on your phone is fantastic for rapid, on-the-go tracking of your Instagram numbers. It’s not ideal for analyzing your data and progress over time comparing outcomes to your efforts on other social networks or creating a social media report. Here’s how to view your Instagram metrics on a desktop computer.

Utilizing Instagram

The main Instagram Insights tool isn’t available on desktop, but you can obtain some basic individual post data from your Instagram feed straight on the web.

When you click View insights under a post on your feed, a pop-up screen appears with the overall number of likes, comments, saves, direct message shares, profile visits, and reach.

Other technologies will be required for additional Instagram analytics on the web.

Making Use of Meta Business Suite

You’ll need to upgrade to Meta’s Business Suite to get a native analytics solution on your desktop.

• Launch Meta Business Suite and choose Insights. 
• The overview page displays top-level insights for Facebook on the left and Instagram on the right.
• To get additional information about your Instagram and Facebook stats, select a category from the left menu.
• Click on Content in the left menu under the Content header to view Instagram content stats without being distracted by Facebook statistics. Uncheck the Facebook choices in the Ads, Posts, and Stories drop-down menu.

What metrics are available in Instagram analytics?

Your metrics are essentially critical performance indicators (KPIs). Whether you wanted to get your audience more interested in your brand, you’d look at your engagement numbers to see if it’s working. But before we go any further, let’s quickly go through their definitions.

• Audience demographics: – The characteristics of your followers, such as their age range, gender, top locations, and app language options. You may also see followers’ time and days to see when they are online.
• Call and email clicks: – The number of times someone tried to contact you via your profile by clicking the “call” or “email” options.
• Comment count: – The number of comments left on one of your posts.
• Discovery: – The number of accounts reached by a certain post that did not follow you at the time.
• Engagement/Interactions: – The number of users who interact with your material, how they interact, and the frequency with which they interact.
• Exits: – The number of times your Instagram Story was skipped by people.
• Follows: – The number of followers obtained because of a particular post. The number of times your material was seen or displayed (not to be confused with reach).
• Mentions: – The number of times your account was mentioned in someone else’s postings.
• Reach: –The number of times someone has seen your profile. Reach is the number of followers that saw your post in their feed.
• Replies: – The total number of story responses you got.
• Saves: – The number of individuals who have saved a certain post.
• Website clicks: – The number of times someone has clicked on a link on your profile that takes them to your website.

These are all the analytics you may look at for your Instagram posts, profile, and stories. You can access Instagram statistics through three different channels: Instagram Insights via the mobile app, Creator Studio, or an external application. 

Conclusion

You should have a better understanding of Instagram statistics and how to examine your profile by this point. If you want to beat your competitors and stay relevant to your audience, you can’t afford to ignore your Instagram statistics.

There are several Instagram tools accessible, but it is ultimately up to you to determine which ones will meet your needs. When users begin their analytics journey, they frequently start with Instagram Insights. However, as your profile grows in popularity and your expectations rise, you’ll want more information.