Instagram is at the top of its game. Every celebrity can be found there. And stories are the features people use to highlight their current status. These features are fun and engaging. But what does the order of Instagram story viewers mean? Today we’ll explore exactly that.
Quick Answer:
Many factors play a supporting role in giving a certain order to your Instagram story views. So it is Instagram’s algorithm that decides the order. For example, your close friends, people you interact with the most, and those whose content is relevant to yours will appear at the top in your story viewer order.
The order is chronological if the viewers are more than 50, and if below 50 then it's reverse chronological. So there you have the answer.
Key Sections:
- What Does the Order of Instagram Story Viewers Mean?
- Who Actually Appears At the Top of the Story?
- Shall We Care About the Instagram Story Order?
- Can Someone View Your Instagram Story Anonymously?
- How does the Instagram Algorithm Work?
- Why Timing of Stories and Posts Matter in Your Feed? And How They are Sorted?
- What Other Factors Influence the Order of Instagram Story Viewers?
- Top 7 Tips to Get Large Number of Views on Your Story
You may have seen many people viewing your story. And there is always an order of people. Certain people appear at the top while some appear at the end when you look at your story. So what is that big mystery about a list of story viewers who appear in a certain order?
What Does the Order of Instagram Story Viewers Mean?
The order is influenced by Instagram’s algorithm. Many factors play an important role in this randomness. The first 50 viewers’ order is created chronologically. Some users have reported this yes in chronological order.
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For example, anyone who viewed your story recently will appear first, and so on. However, there is no one solid answer to this. Since Instagram’s algorithm sometimes works in mysterious ways. But we’ll get to the root cause of this order.
Who Actually Appears At the Top of the Story?
At the top of the order of the Instagram story, only those appear, whom you interact with the most. And then appear those people who view your story first. In other words, if some people are regularly liking and commenting on your posts then they will appear first.
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However, if you have less than 50 views then the story viewers will appear in a reverse chronological order. And the moment you hit the 50 viewers mark on your story, the viewers list will shuffle and you will now have people at the top who you interact with the most.
Shall We Care About the Instagram Story Order?
So does the order really matter? It depends from person to person. If you are an Instagram enthusiast. Then you should care. Because the people who are in your favorites and are important to you will appear at the top.
So anytime you see whoever is in your top list of viewers then know that that person is your secret admirer or a close friend.
It’s good to know who has viewed your profile. But for some people, it may not add any value to their time. In whatever order people appear in the story, you will be able to see all of them.
However, if you are a celebrity, then you must acknowledge the top viewers. Since they could be other celebrities or a friend. So you don’t want to get lost in the endless sea of viewers.
It is better to know who viewed your Instagram story as an influencer who has no time at hand. Because I could also be a previous collaborator.
It is better to keep track of that, to learn who is enthusiastic about your stories and Instagram itself.
Can Someone View Your Instagram Story Anonymously?
Yes, some people can use a third-party app to view your story anonymously. It could be your stalker or your ex. However, if you have a private account, then there is no possible way someone can view your profile anonymously.
That person needs to be your follower in order to view your story if you have a private account. There are several third-party apps found on the Google Play Store so it is no secret that it’s possible.
How does the Instagram Algorithm Work?
Instagram’s algorithm checks your liked posts and saves posts and search history to recommend the same sort of posts on your Explore page. And also affects the story, reel, and video viewers as we discussed above.
The algorithm works to offer people a more personalized experience. This way people stay engaged on Insta. The algorithm also has the ability to evolve according to user behavior.
Why Timing of Stories and Posts Matter in Your Feed? And How They are Sorted?
Timing of the posted story is important when it comes to sorting it for your followers by the algorithm. For example, if your story is recently posted, it will show up first in your friends and followers’ feeds.
As your story becomes older, it will move to the back of other recent stories. But this does not happen if someone has you listed as their close friend. Also, Instagram’s algorithm makes sure that there is a balance between the relevancy of the content and recency.
In other words, if the story is old but matches your interest and is considered relevant it will appear first. The same thing goes for the story viewers.
What Other Factors Influence the Order of Instagram Story Viewers?
There are some other significant factors that heavily influence the order of the Instagram story. Let’s discuss them in more detail:
The Effect of Direct Messages on View Order
Direct messages do have an impact on your story order. If you interact with someone in the DMs, that person will appear first or somewhere in that top 10 viewers list who viewed your story.
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Engaging with others on Instagram does play a big part in all of it. So if guys are good buddies or have girlfriends or boyfriends who have a lot of conversations in the DMs, it will directly influence the Story view order. Since Instagram takes that as a “Yes” for a strong connection.
Mutual Content Engagement
If two people constantly interact with each other’s posts, it will also influence the story viewer order.
Instagram will make those best friends and supporters of yours appear at the top and somewhere in at least the top 10.
Your Search History
More of the content you see is also influenced by your search history. And that also impacts your viewer order too. It adds up to the fact that the things you search for the most will count as relevant to you.
So Instagram will also add those people into your viewer order who you have recently followed and whose content was relevant.
Debunking Myth About “Top Instagram Story Viewer”
The myth is that your top Instagram story viewers are those who view your profile a lot. However, this is not the case. Instagram does not let anyone know whether someone viewed your profile or not.
Even if they do view it, they won’t appear in the top IG story viewer list order. So there we debunked the old myth.
Top 7 Tips to Get Large Number of Views on Your Story
So here are the best tips to get views on your story:
Work on Creating Higher Quality Content
High-quality and creative story content will always increase your reach on Instagram. There is a lot of competition in the social media marketplace. Every person is posting unique content. So you must go for original and quality as well to stand out among your peers.
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Engaging story content always thrives in the social media space. It also needs to be relevant for it to go viral. So choose your audience before making quality content for them.
Create Story Highlights
Highlights don’t go away like a story after 24 hours. They are forever there on your profile. You can create a highlight out of an Instagram story. These highlights appear at the front of your IG profile.
So each time someone visits your profile, they’ll be able to see the highlights right there on your page, under your bio.
Consistently Post Stories
Posting your story consistently can be a great way to increase your engagement. Stories disappear after 24 hours. You can post one or two stories each day. Some people also post multiple stories at once.
Posting multiple stories could work but it is not suggested if you are a beginner. So don’t forget to post a story to stay in your fans’ eyes.
Use Stickers and Add Music to your IG Story
There are all sorts of stickers found in your Instagram story feature and also a music feature. These stickers are a great way to enhance the experience. You can use location stickers, and poll stickers, and even add your favorite music to your story.
To increase your visibility to your target audience and have more than 50 viewers in your story order. So do take advantage of all these amazing features.
Post Your Stories At the Best Time
The timing of your Story post also plays a big part in increasing your viewership rate. Experience a little, try posting at different times.
People are usually asleep in the early morning, and in the afternoon they work. So posting in the late evening is the best way to grab your audience.
Also, make sure to post at the same time you posted previously. So that your audience can keep track of your activities. They could afterward remember your timing, and the most loyal ones will show up when you post and will also react first. Best of luck!
I work at Likes Geek as a marketing researcher and journalist with over 5 years of experience in media and content marketing. With a demonstrated history of working in the international news and financial technology publishing industries. I manage content and the editorial team at Likes Geek.