Instagram remains one of the most relevant apps and tools to promote your brand in 2021. However, people tend to misuse it and stultify the growth of their accounts. Whatever social medium you want to employ to reach your goal, you must be fluent in its "language" and ready for any novelties. This includes being always on your toes to spot the newest features and the most viral trends. There's much more you should know on how to grow your Instagram account, so delve into our article for some much-needed know-how.
How to grow your Instagram account TIP #1: Know your goal
Sometimes, although that's not a rule, accounts are trending for no apparent reason. This leads people to belive you can just jumble random ideas up, throw them into your account, and expect great results. Nevertheless, there is no real analytic data to support this claim, so you shouldn't waste your time on anomalies. Analogously, do not bother yourself with dissecting the accounts of people that achieved fame outside of social media, e.g. through their music or films. They simply have cheat codes to the insta game.
Consider this: if you don't know the goal you want to work towards with your Instagram, how should others find out? If there's nothing consistent and clear about the account's brand image or theme, why should a wandering user bother to click to check out anything? This is particularly important for business accounts or those who plan to switch over to a professional account.
Set marketing objectives
What are some of the most common objectives for businesses on SoMe?
- Building brand awareness: Familiarize social media users with your company, your creations, and build positive associations with your brand.
- Driving traffic to your website: There are numerous ways to capitalize on people's curiosity or competitiveness e.g. posting eye-catching photos with enticing captions with links in bio, or organizing contests where one requirement is signing up for the newsletter.
- Attracting new customers: Partnering with influencers, promoting your product organically or with paid posts, utilizing organic customer reviews are all viable ways to influence followers to make a purchase.
The goals will evolve overtime and interchange periodically, which is perfectly normal and natural. What's important is adjusting the strategy accordingly to optimize the posts in order to attain the desired conversions. To put it simply, having a plan for your feed will show users that your profile is worth following.
How to grow your Instagram account TIP #2: Use the right hashtags
Hashtags are metadata tags with the hash symbol # at the beginning. It's a user-generated tagging system that enables people to cross-reference and find a photo in a certain category. By employing hashtags, you join a broader conversation that they are a part of. This can help you advertise your account or your product. See the post below to learn how it can be done.
The Dancing Cat art account frequently puts hashtags at the end of the caption. In this way, the artist advertises their product in a more organic way. This particular instance draws the attention of people researching the hashtags for cards and Father's Day.
Utilize brand hashtags
Not only existing hashtags can be used to the brand's advantage. Many bigger brands have created their own hashtag(s) that let them gather metadata. Moreover, it lets them know the general public's attitude towards the company and its products. Below, you will find a very well-known brand's successful hashtag campaign.
Not every brand can create a hashtag that will go viral, but in this instance, the additional appeal of voting for a new flavor did the trick. Another aspect of a hashtag campaign is that it allows people to share their views. Naturally, users love joining in on a trend and that is why such a marketing strategy is successful. What do you have to take into account when making a new hashtag from scratch? First of all, it must be original and relate to the brand or the idea for the advertisement. However, it cannot be overtly self-promotional. It can't hurt if it is humorous and utilizes wordplay as well. Secondly, it should not be longer than 3-4 words. Finally, it cannot be offensive in any way, and should not relate to another existing hashtag.
How to grow your Instagram account TIP #3: Leverage organic advertising
If you're a really small account, you will not be approached by companies to partner or make a Story about a product. Therefore, you are on your own when it comes to spreading the word about your work. If you have considered all the possible outcomes and paid ads on Instagram are financially feasible, they may be just worth the trouble. However, for the majority of small businesses this is a distant dream. It takes some creativity and patience to really capitalize on organic ads, but if you want to know more, read on.
Schedule giveaways
One of the greatest and easiest ways to attract new followers is doing a giveaway. There is nothing more attractive than a free gift... but is it exactly free? Well, the creator is able to showcase their product and get numerous new followers with barely any effort. See an example below:
As you can see, the giveaway was a joint effort of several small brands. The genius is in the simplicity of the rules: liking the post and following the accounts. The users are happy to click the "Follow" button in exchange for a chance to win some freebies, and the poster gets the attention they need. You probably want to ask: but can't they unfollow after the account announces the winners? Well, they can, but they usually forget or can't bother to do it anyway. Now, the Remedy Organics Instagram has 13,2k followers. So, who's the real winner here?
How to grow your Instagram account TIP #4: Join trends
It's no secret that humans like engaging in activities that make them feel connected. Trends happen when there is one event or one cause that unites all people across a platform or across all social media. The most well-known example of that sort of charity trend is Ice Bucket Challenge from 2014. Famous entrepreneurs all over the globe joined in and helped make a long-lasting change in the ALS research.
While charitable trends are definitely the most important, they do not gain traction that often. Most recently, TikTok has been the platform to dictate what is cool on other social media. TikTok's appeal are ingenious or humorous ideas played out before the audience to the rhythm or the words of songs and music tracks.
Harness the power of TikTok
One trend that grabbed the attention of users was #imjustakidchallenge that started out as family content. TikTokers fell in love with the trend because of its catchy music and relatable theme. The gist of the challenge was to show a childhood photo and then try to recreate it live in front of the camera. As a businessperson, you could show your growth over the years and how you started your own company.
Also, companies can start TikTok trends that reach Instagram and other SoMe platforms. While you're at it, remember to show your sense of humor, or capitalize on the values shared by everyone. See the example of a trend started by the makeup company e.l.f.
How to grow your Instagram account TIP #5: Plan your posts
All creators are just people, and life tends to happen to them every day, sometimes out of the blue. Therefore it is crucial to schedule posts in advance and have ready-to-use drafts at your disposal. Consistent posting keeps the followers interested in your brand. When a post shows up on their feed while they're scrolling down, and they find it interesting, they may leave a heart or maybe even write a comment.
The post needs to be engaging, that is contain a call-to-action (CTA) phrase that will subliminally influence the users to interact. Make your posts brief and to-the-point if you want to include a CTA question, so it is clearly visible on the feed. What is more, you can plan posts for important dates that will tell an interesting story or entice discussion (those you may keep a bit longer).
If you are on a budget, the most cost-effective scheduling tool on the market is Postfity, with plans starting at $14.99. It comes with a Social Tips Calendar with ready-made posts that you can tailor to your needs. It's available for Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and more. There is a new feature in the Postfity app that is perfect for Instagram bios. You can easily add more clickable links and drive traffic to your site. Learn all about it here.
Make planning easy with Postfity, whether you are on your own or work with a team.
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