The Instagram algorithm has become notorious for its mystifying methodology, which can make or break user success with every invisible whim. What does it take to get it right?

Anyone who uses Instagram as a business tool has likely come up against the same foe: the algorithm. In a short time, it has come to dominate discussions
of social media—confounding even the most astute users and sparking an entire cottage industry of experts dedicated to helping them decipher the system.

Is the algorithm really as mysterious as it seems? Julie Lancia thought so, until she got an invitation to take a peek inside the machinery. Alongside her twin sister, Jodie, Lancia had been creating design content on social media for years; at some point, the pair’s content expanded to include audience growth and engagement tips too. Then came the message: Administrators from Instagram reached out, asking if she wanted to hop on a call—part of the company’s efforts to offer more hands-on customer service to the platform’s creators. “It was like talking to the Wizard of Oz—the curtains were pulled back,” says Lancia.