Instagram lexicon: all the words to understand your favorite social network
This gives you their advice and their best tips for a successful Instagram account in their Instalab book.
This little glossary will help you become more familiar with certain words to decipher captions and use the various tools of the social network.
Instagram has become THE social network where trends and desires are created. It is an essential tool when trying to make yourself known,
whether you are a multinational, a small company, or a young creative person. Find below the vocabulary you need to know to master this incredible communication tool.
ARCHIVE
An archived space to store photos already posted that you want to remove from your grid while keeping them preciously in a place that will only be visible to you.
BOOMERANG
A short video posted in the story repeats a gesture in a loop, like jumping in the air, turning a spoon in his coffee, turning the pages of a book, or blinking his eyes…
HOW? ‘OR’ WHAT
A “comment” is a message left under a photo as we do on a blog or on Facebook. They show the level of engagement, as well as the number of likes. Leaving comments is a great way to get noticed and interact with other Instagrammers.
DM
Direct message: otherwise, “private message” transmitted by the instant messenger of Instagram
TO EXPLORE
It’s Instagram’s search engine. It is indicated by the symbol of a magnifying glass.
FEED/WIRE
This is the news feed on which scroll the images posted by the accounts that we follow.
The order of appearance of the posts is defined by a secret algorithm which will determine, based on several parameters (interactions you have with these accounts, affinities with the theme of the photo, its location, etc.), which ones interest you the more.
FLATLAY
The photo was taken from above, being careful to be flat. This type of still life is particularly popular on Instagram, in various fields such as beauty, cooking, children, and fashion.
This makes it possible to highlight products carefully chosen for their harmony of color, theme, shape…
FOLLOW
Following an account allows their photos to appear in the News Feed, and being followed allows your photos to be seen. A follower is someone who has subscribed to your account.
GRID/GRID
Grid or “grid” in French. This is the square image tile that appears on your Instagram profile page. The photos are classified chronologically and by byline of three photos.
HANDLE@
This is what we call the Instagram identifier that allows people to find you when they write it in the search bar, call out to you in the comments, or even tag you in a photo. The one for Solar editions is @solar_editions.
HASHTAG #
As on other social networks, a keyword preceded by a hash makes it possible to appear in search engine queries. It is included in the caption of a photo.
HIGHLIGHTS
Stories are grouped in permanent folders on the homepage, under your bio.
HUB
Account on which it’s reposted (or reframed) photos with the same theme. For example, photos of cute dogs, interiors, trendy restaurants…
HYPERLAPSE
The time-lapse video focused on a fixed point.
HYPERZOOM
This is a feature that allows you to zoom in on stages on a specific point in your video or story.
IGTV
Instagram TV channel network. Each user has their own and can thus post video content that is too long for the feed or the stories.
PRINTS
A number of times Instagram has shown your photo.
INFLUENCE
The very active person on Instagram, whose relay is a marketing tool for brands. A product posted on an influencer’s account gives them high visibility. Some influencers make a living by creating photo content or talking about products with their followers.
#LATERGRAM
A photo was posted afterward.
LIKE
By double-clicking on the photo or by clicking on the heart emoticon, you drop alike. The number of likes is a measure of the popularity of the photo and the performance of a post.
LIVE
Live broadcast video content. It is visible for 24 hours.
#OTT
Outfit of the day literally means “Outfit of the day”. Fashionistas often use it when posting their look of the day.
POST/RELEASE
A photo posted in the grid.
REACH/COMMITMENT
Level of popularity of an Instagram account. This is an essential number to assess the reach and popularity of an account.
This is the number of likes and comments related to the number of subscribers.
The greater the engagement, the more active and attentive the Instagrammer’s community is to their posts.
REWIND
This is a filter that allows your videos to play in reverse like a rewind.
SELFIE
Self-portrait, generally taken with your smartphone in selfie mode, but which can also be taken in front of a mirror, alone or with others
SEO
Acronym for Search Engine Optimization which means “query optimization”.
This is all the data (#, location, caption, but also the alternative text) that allows a photo to be better identified to stand out when a keyword search is launched on Instagram.
SHADOWBANNING
The fact of no longer seeing his photos appear in the thread of his subscribers.
Instagram has implemented shadow banning, in particular, to hide certain unwanted content or accounts that use robots to artificially increase their audience.
STORY
Ephemeral photos or videos that disappear after 24 hours.
FEATURED STORIES
Stories are grouped in permanent folders visible on the account home page, under the bio.
SWIPER
Swipe the screen with your finger to move from one image to another in a carousel, go from one store to another, or access the link associated with the story.
TAG
Tag someone on content posted on Instagram.
THROWBACK THURSDAY #TT
Souvenir photo posted on a Thursday.
Do you already see it more clearly? Whatever your passion or your business, whether you want to become an influencer or launch a new product, Instalab is a real guide with all the keys to success on this platform:
create a harmonious grid, use filters, take a good photo, plan your posts and stories, federate a community, increase your reach…
