With more than one billion (not a typo, BILLION) monthly active users on Instagram, there is lots of opportunity on the platform to grow your following. That said, competition for attention is fierce: according to Reuters, on average, Instagram users (including other businesses) share ‘more than 95 million photos and videos every single day’. Yep, that is a lot of noise.
Growing your Instagram account is not as easy as it once was but there are a few things you can do to help attract and engage the right people to your page to grow your following. Here are four of our tips:
1. Be consistent with posting ⌛️ If you’re trying to grow your platform, you have to be frequent and consistent; none of this one post-a-week business. We recommend three to four feed posts a week and stories everyday. Stories are a powerful way to engage with your audience and don’t need to be as polished as your feed posts. This content does not have to be perfect; incorporate fun little videos from behind the scenes, do a Q&A with a team member, or share user generated content. If you love it, save it in a highlight reel and it will be on your page forever.
2. Research and incorporate relevant hashtags #️⃣ Hashtags are the roadmaps of social media. When used correctly, they help people find you. There is so much content, and competition online so make it easy for users to find you! What hashtags are your competition using? What hashtags are trending in your industry? Do your research and find out, then add up to 30 to your Instagram posts but don’t worry about Facebook.
3. Create quality content 🙌🏼 When someone clicks on your page for the first time, what is going to make them stay? Quality content that is interesting, value adding and eye catching. Mix up your content, incorporate videos, GIFS and polls. Engage your users, ask them what they want to see. If you notice reoccurring questions in comments, do a post to address them. Start using IGTV, it’s perfect for longer form content up to one hour.
4. Work with micro-influencers 🧑🤝🧑 These guys help amplify your brand outside of your bubble. They have between 1,000 to 100,000 social followers and often a super engaged and loyal audience. Find accounts that naturally align with your brand and the reach out to collaborate. Host a competition or let them trial some of your products. We encourage you to have a conversation with them first about what they think will work best, they know their audience better than anyone. And definitely set metrics to measure the activity’s success.