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YOU ARE NOT SHADOWBANNED — EXPOSING THE REAL REASONS YOUR INSTAGRAM REACH HAS DROPPED SUDDENLY
Posted by on June 20, 2020 at 9:41 pmIt’s a good feeling when you’re implementing growth strategies and your account is growing a few hundreds daily, you also see your posts “blowing up” and reaching thousands or millions of people
BUT you wake up one day and notice your new posts are reaching just a few people, you try again and it’s the same problem and that’s when you realise your reach has dropped significantly, sad right?
A drop in reach on Instagram is common and is a problem everyone faces at some point, I’ve had people ask me questions like:
“What did I do wrong?”
“Am I shadowbanned?”
“What do I do if I’m shadowbanned?”
Well, it’s common to think you’re shadowbanned when your reach suddenly drops so let’s discuss the “shadowban”.
Are You Shadowbanned? ?
Instagram claims the “shadowban” doesn’t exist and this is true, because what people believe to be the shadowban isn’t what the shadowban is.
There are different types of bans on Instagram namely:
— The hashtag ban
— The caption ban
— Action blocks (liking or following ban)
— The IP ban
— The DM ban
❌ Hashtag Ban? What Is It?
The hashtag ban is a common one, this happens when your posts do not show up on any hashtags and this is usually as a result of using banned hashtags.
You can’t say “I am shadowbanned” when this happens, instead say “I am hashtag banned”
But what if your posts are appearing on hashtags but the reach isn’t much? Well, this is a common case of hashtag fatigue or hashtag spamming (hashtags lose their power as you use them) so you’re not shadowbanned.
? What Are Action Blocks?
Did you notice I’ve not discussed the “Caption Ban” yet? This is because it is an action block.
Action blocks are limits Instagram places on your account when the algorithm notices an abusive pattern in the way you engage with people and content.
Following too many people daily, liking too many pictures daily, and sending too many Direct-Messages are all “actions” that will result in an action block.
Doing over 200 actions daily will result in an action block as the algo will understand this pattern and mark it as abusive, here are a few limits to keep you in check:
Follow — 150/daily (less is recommended)
Unfollow — 150/daily (less is recommended)
Likes — 100 daily
Comments — 20 or less daily
DMs — 10 or less daily
Note: Your total actions should be under 200 daily which means if you follow 150 today, don’t unfollow 150 today (300 combined), and remember to keep actions random.
?The IP Address Ban
Your IP acts as a virtual address that tells Instagram your location, and account data.
Most action blocks are IP bans as changing your IP or refreshing it (by clearing your data and cache) can make the action block disappear.
IP bans are also associated with reduced reach, an IP ban can take your average reach from 100,000 to 700 (it’s that bad) and I believe this is what people have tagged the “shadowban”
Posting from another phone is a good way to test if you are IP banned, as a change in IP will make your post reach go back to normal.
Should you be bothered about IP bans? You shouldn’t because this is reserved for people who manage many accounts on one IP (one account can contaminate the others)
Aggressive and suspicious behavior like going in and out of “private” will also earn you an IP Ban.
♻ How To Get Rid Of Various Bans
1. Wait
This is the best course of action, a hashtag ban lasts just 14 days, action blocks can last a day or up to a month.
2. Stop
Stop all aggressive and suspicious activities and just focus on creating good content and interacting with your followers, you will begin to notice more post reach from the home feed.
Stop posting with hashtags if you’re on a hashtag ban.
3. Ads
There is no hard evidence that suggests running ads for a day or two will increase your engagement and make you get out of an IP ban.
It sometimes works, but it has no guarantee.
4. Delete Your App
Deleting and reinstalling your Instagram app will help you get rid of less severe action blocks.
5. Clear Data & Cache
All apps on your phone leave residual data and cache so it’s wise to clear data and cache before you re-login, failure to do this means your action block will be suspended instead of terminated.
6. Delete App & Change IP
This is guaranteed to get rid of your IP ban:
— Clear data
— Clear cache
— Delete your app
— Get a VPN (buy)
— Download new app with VPN
— Log in with VPN
— Use your account with the VPN
7. Get A New Device
If all the tricks you’ve tried to get rid of your IP Ban have failed then I suggest you just get a new device.
Is Instagram Growth Linear?
Most people suddenly believe they’re shadowbanned when they stop growing, I suggest you check to see if your account has any of the bans I’ve mentioned
BUT what do you do when you have no bans but your reach keeps dipping ?
This is when you should understand that growth on Instagram isn’t linear, because you grow by 3,000 this month doesn’t mean you’ll grow over 36,000 this year
BUT why?
All accounts grow in a rise and fall pattern, today you’re gaining 3k/daily and tomorrow you start losing 500 followers daily, this is completely normal.
All accounts have a time when they gain momentum, “blow up” and gain a lot of followers, they also have a point in which they begin to lose followers like a reptile shedding its skin.
This up and down growth curve is regulated by the algorithm, but you can also be the cause of this growth curve.
Here are a few ways you may be causing the curve:
— Lack of consistency
— Poor content
— Hashtag spamming/over dependence
— Not engaging with followers
— Not engaging on ads
— Not engaging on explore feed
Remember: Instagram starts to suspect you the moment you start acting like a robot ?
Do you still think the shadowban is a real thing? ?
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16 Replies
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Of course it’s a real thing. They’ve admitted it without admitting it [here ](https://blog.hubspot.com/hubfs/Everything%20You%20Need%20to%20Know%20About%20Instagrams%20Secret%20Shadowban.png)
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How long did it take you to write this nonsense?
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Good post! Very informative and helpful. Thank you!
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Using your Instagram account while using a vpn is a sure way to get your account banned.
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Getting a new device will not get rid of your account blocks. You still need to sign into that same account on Instagram. This list is such bullshit ?
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So you decided that what people call being shadowbanned shouldn’t be called shadowbanned but should be called something else for 5 different reasons just to make things super complicated.
There’s no need for this. If you’re whatever banned without knowing it, it’s a shadow ban. Got it?
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I really need a post like this but for Facebook
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V helpful. Thanks
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woo
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Let’s try to be a little more civil here shall we? None of us are engineers at Facebook or in charge of the Account Security department for Instagram. Experiences might vary and if you see claims that you disagree with, please do tell. But let’s not be a dick about it. Thanks.
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I’ve been giving one on one instagram consultation for 2 years now. I charge a lot per session but also have free tips and tricks on my instagram profile. I grew to 10k in 10 weeks and now I tell everyone else how to do it
What you’re saying makes so much sense!! Thank you so much for putting this out there. Don’t listen to others who are saying negative things. Most people who shower me with hate on my IG have 100 followers
I’ve already got some posts out about how shadow ban is a myth but I would love to remake as video based on your numbers here – want to collab?
DM me @mr.asadshah
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Great thread
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Sorry you’re getting so much hate in the comments, this was a helpful post to me.
Instagram uses machine learning to back its moderation tools. The data set those ML algorithms train on changes constantly. There is no “right answer” in such an environment.
But there are helpful observations like OP’s, backed by experience on the platform.
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No idea why people are bashing OP when we rarely get actual good content here. All of what OP is saying is true or at least well-intentioned in the fact that, these sort of bans exist, but in the SM climate today, metas shift and things change a bit faster than they used to.
This is not Instagram from 2013, this is not instagram from 2017. Both of which, you could put in minimal effort and automate almost everything because nobody cared. Today, IG is not growing new users like it was in the other years mentioned above. IG has a vested interest now to ensure that activity on the site is “genuine” because at the end of the day, it all leads back to ad revenue and advertisers all want genuine clicks.
Ive been caught in multiple ban waves over the years. Remember when they banned all those 1m+ meme accounts? Well they also banned tons of OGs and with that, came IP bans. It’s actually an IP/Device ban. You need a new phone, in addition to new network settings because IG will recognize your old device regardless of VPN or not.
Either way, thanks for the informative post OP. Sorry that this sub functions as a witch hunt because so much of what IG does behind the scenes is undisclosed.
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If me and my friend share an account, I’m in Taiwan and she’s in London that means it’s 2 IP for one account, would it be a big problem?
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