Videos have surpassed photos in popularity. In part, this is due to changes in content consumption habits, and partly because video is more understandable and easier to follow even for complex topics. As video has taken center stage on Instagram as well, new metrics, such as views have emerged to assess popularity and reach.
Creators, marketers, and brands alike measure views of their videos as an indicator of exposure and visibility on social media. Views are the first level of engagement. Apart from being a sign of initial interest, they show how discoverable your video is outside your followers and how well it delivers your message. Thus calculating average views on Instagram has become as crucial as average likes and comments.
This article consists of two parts. In the first part, we’ll explain what counts as a view on Instagram and share two methods on how to calculate average views on Instagram. In the second part, we’ll discuss what affects your views on Instagram and how you can improve this metric.
What Are Average Views on Instagram?
Average views represent the median number of times your Instagram video content has been watched within a specific period. If a user watches your video on Instagram for a minimum of 3 seconds that already counts as a view. You can measure views for video posts, reels, and video stories. Views help you understand your content’s reach and visibility. Although it is an important metric, views don’t provide any insight into users’ sentiments and ideas and whether they liked the piece or not.
The platform counts rewatching videos as unique views, so if a person watches a video four times, it is counted as a view each time. Nevertheless, to avoid users artificially inflating their view counts, Instagram has introduced measures. The platform’s algorithms closely monitor how many times the same user rewatches a video within a short time frame.
How to Calculate Average Views on Instagram?
Product launches, seasonal promotions, or campaigns aiming to raise brand awareness are some of the cases when you have to calculate the average views of an influencer's content on Instagram. Let’s see what option you have if you want to calculate your average views on Instagram.
Manual approach + formula
Define the time frame within which you want to measure the average views of Instagram videos. (30 days, 90 days, the last 10 posts, etc.)
Determine the content format whose average views you want to calculate. Is it video posts, reels, or stories?
List all the content that was created in the specified time frame and record how many views they generated.
Add the total views of all the selected content and sum the number of posts you include in your analysis.
Divide the total number of views by the number of posts.
Here’s the formula again:
Instagram average views = Total count of views/number of posts.
Example: Say, you counted 7 reels in the last 30 days, and their total views are 9,300. So you divide 9,300 by 7 and the average views of reels in the past 30 days is 1329.
Check average views on Instagram with tools
Tools spare you from collecting and calculating metrics and enable you to track your performance for a longer time frame. Instagram analytics tools and influencer marketing platforms can help you get a holistic view of your Instagram account’s progress. Also, they allow you to check for a longer period than 90 days, which is the standard in Instagram Insights.
With HypeAuditor you can check your creators’ accounts, and see their ER, audience demographics, and follower metrics. The platform breaks down average likes, comments, views, and ER by posts, videos, and reels so that you can compare various content formats to each other. Since you can analyze the performance of Instagram content for the past 180 days, it allows you to track how an influencer’s content progresses over time, including videos and reels.
Interpreting Instagram Average Views
Understanding creators’ or your average view count is crucial for improving your Instagram content strategy and reaching your campaign goals.
What is a good Instagram average view?
It is hard to tell what is a good view count because the numbers can vary depending on the influencer’s size, the industry, and the content type. Typically, bigger influencers have higher average views than smaller ones. Reels usually perform better than video posts, and some industries, such as beauty and travel attract more viewers than others.
Researching similar size accounts in the same niche can help you establish realistic benchmarks. Don’t forget about the engagement rate. A high ER can be an indicator of good view counts because these two metrics often correlate with each other.
Factors Affecting Instagram Average Views
Content type
Video views still perform better than static posts, but Instagram’s algorithm currently favors reels. They are more often displayed on the Explore page, hence garnering more views. Reels are short, engaging, and a favored content to do challenges.
Stories can also gather good view numbers. Due to their temporary nature, people feel the urge to watch them. However, they disappear from your feed after 24 hours unless you add them to highlights.
Posting time and frequency
To ensure the highest reach and engagement, you must figure out what days and hours your target audience is the most active and align your posting to those times. People use social media at different times on weekdays and weekends, so you must consider this before you plan your strategy. If you’re a brand that is present in more regions, watch out for time zones because they can affect peak times too. You may have to work out a varied schedule or post at a time when your primary audience is active.
Frequent posting will keep your audience engaged to return to your account for more. Not to mention, Instagram favors accounts that post consistently highly engaging content. Identify the optimal number of posts you should share each week. According to Instagram, post regular content around 3 times and reels 5-7 times a week. Be sure not to underpost or overpost. Both can result in losing followers, though for different reasons.
Hashtag usage
If your videos manage to generate high average view counts then they likely reach a wider audience. A low average view count can mean that your content is difficult to discover. You may use too many, too few, or irrelevant hashtags, so experiment with new tags and keywords and monitor the results.
Audience engagement
Nonetheless, the quality of your audience and their engagement can also affect your view numbers. The platform’s algorithms prefer posts and videos that trigger a lot of interaction, especially comments and shares. Shares can boost your exposure to a wider audience.
Tips for Increasing Your Average Views
As you figure out what resonates with your audience, you’ll be able to improve your average Instagram views by combining content optimization and various engagement techniques.
Content optimization tactics
Use professionally edited videos, and fine images and ensure sound is excellent.
Leverage storytelling in your captions and encourage users to interact with your content.
Diversify your content types and formats.
Use niche-specific and broader hashtags and make sure to use keywords to improve discoverability and searchability.
Experiment with viral topics and challenges.
Engagement techniques
Use interactive content, such as polls and quizzes, and host contests.
Engage with your followers, and respond to their comments.
Cross-promote your content on other platforms.
Team up with influencers or brands that can complement your services.
Apart from the above, align your posting schedule to your audience’s peak times. Mix content types and formats, to remain fresh and interesting and avoid automated services that inflate your followers and engagement.
Conclusion
This article shared with you how to calculate average views on Instagram, what insights they provide, and how you can increase your view counts by improving your content and posting consistency. Yet, average views are just one of several metrics and you shouldn’t solely rely on them when assessing your performance and making decisions.
