What Does “Forward” Mean on Instagram
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For many of us, “forward” usually means sending something you have received from someone to someone else, for instance, forwarding an email or a WhatsApp forward. For hardcore Instagrammers, on the other hand, the term takes on a whole new meaning. When an Insta user is talking about a forward IG story, they don’t mean that they want to send the story to someone else. So what exactly does the term mean on the platform?

What Is Forward on an Instagram Story?

“Forward” means tapping on the right side of an Insta story to move forward to the next story from the same user. It implies that the viewer hasn’t watched your story in full but has decided to skip it. But where did the term come from? It isn’t fan or user-generated. It is usually shown in the form of “taps forward” or “number of forwards” in Instagram Insights.gain followers on instagram free

  • What Are Instagram Insights?

Insights is an analytics feature by Instagram. It allows you to check certain exclusive, technical details about your stories or posts like the replies or profile views you received through the content. “Forward” is just one of the many details that Insights show to you.

  • How Can I See My Taps Forward?

This feature isn’t directly available on your dashboard. You need to follow a few steps before reaching it.

  1. Open your Insta profile and tap the three bars in the top right corner.
  2. Tap “Insights” to open the analytics section.
  3. Select the post or story about which you wish to view the insights.
  4. Locate the “Navigation” section and expand it.
  5. There you will find the number of taps forward that you have received for your story.

Is the number of forwards high? That is generally not considered to be a promising thing. Now that you know the Instagram forward meaning, you can figure out why it happens. A high number of taps forward implies that viewers aren’t bothering to watch your story in full. It probably means that it isn’t interesting enough for your audience. But at least they are still interested in your account since they aren’t skipping your entire story section. Or are they? How can you find that out?

Forward vs. Next Story on Instagram

“Forward” only shows the number of taps forward you have received for your story. The “Next Story” insight, which can be seen just below the button “Forward IG Story,” shows you the number of viewers who have swiped right, skipping your entire story section in favor of some other user’s stories. Now that’s a terrifying prospect! If the number alongside your “Next Story” analytic is high, then it is a cause for concern. It may imply that most of your audience is slowly losing interest in your account.

Other Instagram Story Insights

Other analytics in the Insights section are:

  • Impressions: Number of story viewers.
  • Follows: Number of followers gained after watching your story.
  • Back: Number of taps on the left side, going back from your story to a previous one.
  • Exited: Number of viewers who closed the story section after watching your story.

Final Thoughts

Now the next time that an Instagrammer talks about forward, you hopefully won’t feel lost, and you can easily navigate your way into the conversation armed with enough knowledge. It goes without saying that a high number of taps forward on an Instagram story is a wake-up call for your account. But at least it’s not as dire as a high number of “Next Story” insights. Either way, you can easily bring those numbers in check simply by posting high-quality content!

Mattie Schultz
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