Instagram recently announced on its press site that it will be testing out ways to improve the user experience via new profile layouts.
“Your profile is where you share who you are on Instagram, so starting today we’re testing ways you can better express yourself and more easily connect with the people you care about on your profile,” the post explained.
“Over the next several weeks, you may see features re-arranged at the top of your profile, including changes to icons, buttons and the way you navigate between tabs, which we hope will make profiles easier and cleaner to use. The photos and videos you’ve shared on your grid won’t change.”
The company also released several screenshots showing the changes. Most notably, follower counts will be de-emphasised, as they’re no longer at the top of user profiles and are in a much smaller font. The ‘follow’ and ‘message’ buttons are now next to each other, and users can easily see mutual followers.
Additionally, the grid, posts, and tagged photos icons have been removed, and IGTV appears to be getting its own tab. For business accounts, there’s a Shop tab, as well as buttons such as ‘Directions,’ ‘Call,’ and ‘Start Order.’
“We’ve been working on these changes and will test them in phases and different combinations with our community over the next several weeks. We’ll continue to experiment and update the experience as we learn from your feedback.”
