Can you see who shared your instagram post?

Learn how one of Instagram's most valuable metrics works

Navigating Instagram can feel like walking a tightrope. In your efforts to produce engaging content and expand your reach, understanding how your posts are shared is crucial - sharing is one of the most valuable engagement metrics, but Instagram remains notoriously secretive about who exactly is spreading word of what.

This post serves as your comprehensive guide for understanding Instagram's sharing insights. We will explain exactly what information can and cannot be seen, how you can utilize that data to drive effective growth strategies, and provide all the knowledge necessary for accurately measuring content success with confidence.

Truth About Instagram Post Sharing 

Answer to "Can You View Who Shared Your Instagram Post?" is both yes and no, with major restrictions.

Instagram was designed with privacy in mind; therefore, most often you will not see a list of usernames who sent or shared your post via Direct Message (DM) or on other platforms; however, the platform offers helpful insights that provide insight into frequency and method of sharing.

What You CAN See (and How to Access It)

Instagram Insights provide the ideal way to measure performance when it comes to sharing, with access available only for Professional accounts (Creator or Business).

Cross Share Count: This refers to the total number of times your post has been shared through Direct Message (DM), Stories or other platforms. You can track this information by tapping "View Insights" below the post and looking for the paper airplane icon 1.

Teatrul Shares to Public Stories: If a public user shares your post to their Story, you may be notified and see it directly. A notification will arrive in your Direct Message as well as their username being visible in their Story.

Wikimedia/ThinkstockWhen users with private accounts share your post to their Story, Insights will reflect only an increase in shares; but not the user's username.

Shares via Direct Message (DM): This feature tracks how often your post was sent directly to another user using Direct Message, only increasing in Insights as more users read your DMs; its sender remains unknown and private.

Understanding What You CANNOT See

In order to manage expectations effectively, it's vitally important to recognize any limitations.

Usernames in DMs: If your post is sent via Direct Message to another individual, there's no indication as to who shared it - making this one of the most commonly-used methods of sharing 2.

Usernames in Private Stories: If an individual shares it there will only show an increase in share count rather than showing who shared it!

External Shares: If someone copies and shares your link on WhatsApp, Telegram, or another social network, the total count will increase but you won't see details such as source or username.

Deep Dive into the Share Metric: Understanding its Significance

Sharing metrics are among the most crucial to Instagram's algorithm and should never be disregarded.

Instagram understands that sharing signals that your post is so beneficial that users want to put it before their own network of contacts - this tells Instagram that it deserves greater exposure on its Explore page, leading to greater organic reach and exposure for your post.

Why Does Instagram Restrict Visibility?

Instagram strives to protect user privacy; encouraging people to post freely without the fear that content creators might track all of their private activities would decrease virality of its platform and hinder user sharing.

Strategies to Grow and Track Shares of Companies

As it's impossible to see everyone individually, the focus should be on developing content that encourages sharing while using tools available to you to measure its effect.

1. Produce Highly Shareable Content

Content that people share often fits into one of three categories:

Inspirational/Motivational Content: These include phrases, quotes or stories which strike an emotional chord with the reader.

Educational/Useful Content: Tips, tutorials, "hacks," or lists that people want to save and send along to others.

Kathartic Content: Memes or situations that make people laugh out loud, "This is so me!" and tag friends are relatable and entertaining.

Body Content: Posts that enable people to express who they are or support.

2. Employ Strategic Calls to Action (CTAs).

Include a clear Call-to-Action in both the caption and visual content itself. Instead of just asking people to like or "share", ask for more than that - encourage sharing!

Send this post along to anyone experiencing similar difficulties and share this Reel on your Story to spread awareness!

3. Monitor Referral Traffic

Monitor traffic coming from Instagram using tools like Google Analytics. A spike in visitors after posting with high share counts could indicate that content is spreading widely.

4. Enhance Reach Utilizing SMMExcellent Tools

Organic growth is essential, but using strategic marketing services to expand reach can increase engagement with your content and the chances of future organic shares. SMMExcellent can help increase initial reach while building the social proof necessary for Instagram to prioritize it as content that deserves to be prioritized by Instagram's algorithm.

Conquering the Share Metric

Due to user privacy considerations, it is impossible for you to see all the names that shared your post; however, Insights offers an invaluable share metric as an indicator of success.

By creating high-quality and shareable content and using tools to measure and expand its reach, you will master one of Instagram's key metrics: its share count. Use this metric as an indication that your posts are having an effect, then adjust your strategy to replicate that success.

Are you ready to leverage your insights into results? Begin crafting content people will want to share and utilize SMMExcellent services to ensure it reaches its audience.