Now, all social media platforms are shifting towards personal connections. Instagram is also learning that new features around messaging are a good idea to bring more and more engagement.
In this regard, the company is now testing to shift its messaging icon in the nav bar in the app. Some users have already started seeing this in the app.
In this example image posted by Jasmine Enberg, you can see that the messaging icon is now located in the nav bar where the post creation icon used to be housed.
It means that they are switching the post-creation icons and messaging icons in the main UI.
Post by @jasmine_enbergView on Threads
This clearly means that Instagram is putting more focus on DM sharing, as opposed to feed posting. This is another step toward the usage shift of Instagram toward private conversations.
Back in 2022, when the platform was criticized for not seeing the updates from the profiles that they follow in the app, here is what the Instagram chief said about it.
“Friends post a lot more to stories and send a lot more DMs than they post to Feed.”
Since then, Instagram chief, Adam Mosseri has underlined this vision multiple times. Here is how he explained it when launching new messaging features earlier this year.
“When you think of Instagram, you probably think of a feed of square photos. But how Instagram works has changed a lot over the years, and if you look at what people share, and how people express their creativity, the primary way they do so is actually DMs on Instagram. More photos and videos are shared in DMs than are to Stories or to feed on any given day.”
So, it looks like DMs are the primary channel for engagement among users and friends. The main feed is not becoming a TikTok-like entertainment service.
