How To Build Your Instagram Following
Social media is very powerful these days. If you develop the right social media strategy, there are quite a number of benefits you will see. There are a whole lot of different social media platforms out there to become a part of. So, have a think about who your target audience is, and which platform they are most likely to use.
The great news is that social media and SEO services can go hand in hand. Having a dual strategy can reap even more rewards. So you should certainly think about running an SEO and social media campaign together, you’ll be able to capture an even wider audience.
One of the most common social media platforms these days is Instagram. Instagram has a whopping billion monthly users and over half log in every day. With the potential to reach so many people, you would be silly not to consider using Instagram to connect with potential customers.
No matter the type of website/ business you run, you should be able to make it work on Instagram. This social media platform is obviously very image and video heavy. So, you will need to think about how you can create engaging forms of this type of content.
There are also a lot of different businesses already on Instagram, so you’ll have a bit of competition, no matter what industry you are in. However, a lot of these businesses try Instagram for a little bit, it doesn’t work instantly, so they give up.
Being successful on Instagram (or any social media platform for that matter) is very difficult. You will need to develop a proper strategy and be flexible to changing and moulding your strategy as needed. Things change at a rapid pace in the world of social media, blink and you’ll probably miss something really important!
One of the major aspects that websites/businesses look for when measuring success of their Instagram account is how many followers they have. So, the question remains: how do you get more followers on Instagram? Well, have a read on below at some of the best ways you can get more followers to your Instagram account:
Optimise your Bio
Your Instagram bio is currently the one and only place where you can have an active hyperlink. You can include links in your posts, but they won’t be clickable. So, it is essential that your bio is optimised and includes a link to somewhere important.
Another way you can optimise your bio is by including a call to action. Think about what you want people who visit your profile to do, this will shape what type of call to action you include.
Branded hashtags are also a must! It helps show people there are others that are interested in your brand and also helps develop a sense of community. People will want to join and use your branded hashtag because the want to be apart of your community.
Cross Promotion on Other Social Media Platforms
As touched on in the introduction, Instagram is just one of many social media platforms. You will probably find that if a user is on Instagram, then they are probably also on other platforms like Facebook and Twitter. So make sure you look to cross promote between the platforms as regularly as possible.
You may find that some of your followers in Twitter aren’t even aware that you have an Instagram account. If they are following you on one social media platform, then they are certainly more likely to follow you on another. Easy new followers!
Don’t be afraid to share the love around your different social media accounts. It can also act as a little bit of a time saver, by posting the same thing on multiple different social media accounts. However, try not to do this too often, as these types of posts tend to not be as engaging.
Try Getting Your Account Verified
You will see verified accounts with the little blue tick next to the profile name. This little blue tick is very important as it shows your audience that you are authentic and can be trusted, i.e. you are a real business. Not all accounts are qualified to get this little blue tick, but it certainly doesn’t hurt to try!
Having your account verified is one of the great ways to help stand out from your competitors (if their account isn’t verified). One of the trickiest components that is required to have your account verified is that your brand must be highly searched and well known.
If you are a smaller business then it is probably unlikely that Instagram will verify your account. But that is all the more incentive to grow your business enough to make it popular and get your Instagram account verified!
Have a Sticky Beak at Competitors
Like in many other areas of business, it s always important to have a look and see what your competitors are doing and what you can learn from them. If you see some of your competitors have a large following, then try to understand the things they are doing/ what they have done to get that following.
You can pick and choose the best aspects of what all your different competitors are doing to create a more personalised approach to your Instagram strategy. For example, they may be using hashtags that you could also capitalise on. Or they may be trialing a new way of posting images that seems to be working well.
You should also have a look at the engagement levels of each of their posts. See what is doing well and what isn’t. If you are competitors then you are going to be targeting the same audience, so you would expect something that does well on their social media account would also do well on yours.
Showcase Instagram on Website
If people visit your website, you want them to know that you have an Instagram account. So, make sure that visitors are aware. It’s a good idea to include a link to your account on all relevant pages.
If possible, you should also consider getting an Instagram feed on your website as well. This means that people will be able to see what you are posting on Instagram right on your website. If they see something they like, they are more likely to click on and visit your Instagram profile.
You should also consider including your Instagram details in any email correspondence as well. Try to think of unique and funky ways you can ask your customers to follow you on Instagram. You should try to avoid the typical “Like us? Follow us on Instagram!”.
Have a Contest
People love winning stuff! So, running a contest is a pretty awesome way to increase the engagement with your profile and get your followers ticking in the positive direction. When running an Instagram contest the first thing you need to do is ensure the prize is actually worthy.
If your prize isn’t good enough then no one will want to participate. You also have to set out clear instructions and make several posts about the giveaway, to ensure people are aware that it is on. After the contest has finished make sure you announce the winner/s publically.
Things you could ask people to do in order to be in the running to win the prize includes:
- Liking the post (or a certain amount of posts)
- Tagging their friends
- Following your account
- Sharing the post
- Using a certain branded hashtag
Check out Instagram Analytics
If your business is on Instagram you’ll have access to the data behind all your posts and engagement, etc. It is important that you take a look at this data regularly to get an understanding of what is working and what isn’t.
Other important data is also included here and it should help shape the type of posts you create and when you post, among other things. You get to see the demographic aspects of your followers like their age, location and gender.
This data should hopefully match up with your website’s data and the audience you are looking to target. If the data doesn’t match, then you will have to seriously reconsider your strategy.
Don’t Post for the Sake of Posting
There should be a goal behind every single one of your posts. Think about what you want it to achieve, high number of likes, more followers, reach a high number of people? In order to do this, your images and videos need to be of a high quality.
People engage more with high quality posts. So, make sure your post isn’t blurry or is cropped in a way that cuts off some of the image or video. Try to think of interesting things to say. If you are not interested in what you are posting, then why should others be?
Ask Questions and Include CTAs
Looking to increase the amount of comments on your posts? Ask and you shall receive! Questions are a great instigator of getting more people to engage with your account. It might also show your audience that you care enough to ask for their opinion.
CTAs are also important to consider using in your Instagram posts. Just like in your bio, think about what action you want your audience to take. This will help guide the type of CTA you use. You can also change it up a bit and trial different CTAs and see which one your audience engages with the most.
Interact with Others
It’s not just about getting people to interact with you, but also interacting with others. By doing this, you will get your name out there a lot more and people may see your account popping up and be interested in what you do.
This means you should be liking and commenting on other posts. Show genuine interest in what they are posting, don’t just comment “cool post, follow my account”. That will literally get you nowhere and might even send you backwards!
When interacting it means that you show up in people feeds more. This, in turn, helps to shine more awareness on your brand. It also helps to bring authenticity and credibility as it shows others you are real and aren’t just on Instagram for self-promotion.
Final Thoughts
Instagram is an awesome social media platform that has a significant amount of daily users. You should certainly consider utilising this platform, if you haven’t already, as you have the ability to reach a lot more potential customers here.
One of the hardest things to do on any social media platform, including Instagram, is get followers. The good news is, however, there are a number of different little tactics that you can include in your social media Instagram strategy to boost your followers.
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