If traveling is your passion, Instagram is one of the best platforms for you. But location sharing isn’t just for world travelers and adventurers. Many Instagram users love geotagging in their daily routine and this functionality is becoming more and more important for businesses as well.
On the other hand, there is an increasing demand for data privacy. If you don’t like the thought of people seeing your location, can you use Instagram freely? This article provides an overview of the most important information about geotagging.
A quick guide to tagging your location on Instagram posts.
1. Create a Post
Upload your photo or video. Add your favorite filter and edit the image as you like. Tap Next.
2. Choose a Location
Instagram will present you with a set of location tags. These include:
- Your address or important addresses near your current location
- your current neighborhood
- your current city
- The country you ship to.
It’s up to you to decide what information you want to share. You can also tap on Add location. From here, you can search for your location instead of relying on your phone’s data.
This search need not correspond to your current location. For example, if you’re uploading a vacation photo, you can select the exact location of the photo even if you’re currently on a different continent.
It is okay to leave the Add Location field blank. If you choose this option, your followers won’t be able to see your post’s location.
But what if the address you want to tag is not an available option? If this happens, you need to create a custom location. This is especially important if you are trying to promote your business.
You can only create custom locations via Facebook. You need to create a check-in status update using your Facebook profile and then add the custom location. After that, you will be able to select it on Instagram.
When you share your post, the location tag will be just below your name.
4. What If You Change Your Mind?
You never know what the future will bring. At some point you may decide to remove the location tag. You may also want to replace it with something less specific, or even use a completely different location.
Fortunately, this arrangement is easy to make.
- Tap the More Icon in your post
Look for three dots on the right side of your screen.
- Choose Edit
- Select Location
The location label has turned blue, which means you can select it. You can now search for the location tag you want. You can also delete the location.
What does Location Tagging do?
When people tap Explore, they can search for posts by location tag. Discover shows both top posts and most recent posts tagged with that location.
Tagging your location can give your posts more visibility.
If you’re using Instagram to promote your business, it’s a good idea to tag each post. Your posts get 79% more engagement if they’re geotagged.
Private labeling is also helpful because it makes your business feel more noteworthy. Your customers can also start using the location tag.
Does Instagram Have a Chance to Show Your Location If You Haven’t Tagged it?
Although geotagging is very useful, many users choose not to provide such information. Using Instagram can be daunting if you don’t like sharing your location data. So, is there a chance of data leakage when you decide not to tag your post?
Currently, your location is only visible if you request it. If you don’t tag it or mention it in your captions, no one will know where you shared it. However, this was not always true.
If you’ve been on Instagram for a while, you might remember the Photo Map option. This map was visible on your profile page. It was showing your location even if your posts were not tagged.
Since the function was not widely used, Instagram quietly got rid of it. However, it left an impression on Instagram users. There may be more changes in the future.
What Can You Do to Protect Your Location Data?
If you care deeply about keeping your location private, you can revoke the Instagram app’s access to your location data.
Here are the steps to take if you have an iPhone:
- Go to Settings
- Tap on Privacy
- Tap on Location Settings
You can now browse the installed apps list.
- choose Instagram
- Tap on Never
Instead of While Using the App, location access should be set to Never.
If you’re an Android user, you need a slightly different approach. You will need to turn off location access for all apps to prevent Instagram from accessing your data. You can do this like this:
- Go to Settings
- Under Personal, find Location
- Change the toggle to Off
When location access is turned off, you won’t be able to use geotagging in your posts, even if you want to.
One Last Thought
When you’re in control, geotagging can be useful. Using hashtags is another good way to get engagement based on your location. You can add hashtags to the captions in your post that tell the world where you are.
Remember that topical hashtags can increase engagement. For example, you can use #parisarchitecture to attract an audience with a particular interest. This might be a better marketing strategy than just tagging #paris.
Finding your favorite approach to tagging locations may take some experimentation. Fortunately, all your posts are editable. You shouldn’t worry too much about making everything perfect right away.
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