How to grow on instagram? How to beat the algorithm? How to get more likes, comments? How to reach to a wider audience. These are definitely the questions of the decades. Bellow, we are going to share 10 tricks/suggestions on how to exactly answering these questions based on Sirio’s advice, who’s a visual artist and instagram influencer.
I’ve seen a lot of youtubers claiming that in order to grow on instagram, you have to beat the algorithm. Well for me, that is not the case. To be able to grow, you need to understand what instagram algorithm is, what and who does it look for and how to make it look for you. I’ve heard a lot from you guys that your post most of the times get lost in who knows where and that only 10% of your followers are able to get their hands on it, literally.
Well, essentially, instagram algorithm seeks engagement. The most engagement your post has, the most likely it is to be noticed by Instagram algorithm and get featured on the top of your followers feed. However, you might have 12K followers and only 100 engaging with your content. If this is what constantly happens, people who are choosing to skip your posts for weeks and months are not going to get updated with your recent ones, since they never engage. Therefore, your posts are going to get featured on those accounts who constantly take the effort to engage with you, be it 5,50 or 5000. But what does engagement really consists of?
Engagement is much more than simply likes and comments. Engagement is genuinely about interaction. How many people shared your post, how many people saved it, how many of them re shared it on your story, how many people followed you from that very specific post, how many people liked and commented on your post, how many mentioned you on their stories. If you’re post is able to attract your followers and generate this may actions in a very short amount of time, sometimes 45 minutes to 1h, it tells instagram and it’s algorithm that the post is important, therefore it gets featured on other people’s feed and if you’re lucky enough, it goes to the explore page.
Okay, well we understand the theory behind, but how to make sure we get engagement?
1. Be reciprocal. Get engaged!!
In order to get engagement, you must get engaged, which means that you have to put your own effort to engage with others in order to get some of it back. Like your friends posts, comment on their pictures, share their most epic update on your story. This definitely helps on creating a small community within instagram who at some point is going to interact with you back. Meet people out there that enjoy your content, shoot them a dm saying that you support what they do. Built genuine relationships and be kind.
Instagram nowadays is not about who you are “unless you are a celebrity of some sort” but again, it’s about what you offer. Some people offer entertainment, hilarious memes, some deliver art, some love sharing their great taste in fashion while others teach you how to cook delicious recipes, DIYs or even hold world records concerning eggs. It’s your call, which leads me to my second point
2. Establish and follow a niche
Establishing and following a niche is super important if you want to get noticed out there. If you are a photographer, make sure to specify your offerings, are you a portrait photographer, a landscape photographer or are you a digital artist? Choose the area you explore and belong to and stick to it! Show your followers that you are coherent and consistent in what you do. People who enjoy your style and are part of the same niche are 80% likely to engage with your content, since you share similar preferences. And how do you find these people? Which is my third point
3. Use appropriate hashtags
If you want to get genuine and active followers, specially with the same preferences as yours, part of the same niche, make sure you use hashtags that would make these people easy to find you and would make you able to get easily noticed. If you are a beat maker, specifically producing r&b music, use hashtags like rnb type beat, rnb beat which tag your post under this specific niche. Don’t use hashtags like #instagood or #follow4follow, it is not helpfully and if people search those kinds of hashtags, im most certainly sure that they are not really looking for your content. Use hashtags that follow the theme or the idea behind your post. If you’re advertising or posting a picture of a flying monkey, use #monkey and #fly. It makes everything coherent.
4. Separate your hashtags
I usually separate my hashtags into 3 categories:
The ones that have huge following, average and considerable. When you use a hashtag, it either goes to the recent section or the top one. Following this strategy will help you achieve both. Think about it this way:
You post a picture under a huge hashtag with 6M followers. If your post doesn’t get enough engagement, it will never top the hashtag. Also, since it its a huge hashtag with so many followers, most likely your post won’t even make it to top the recents since every so seconds there would be newer pictures and again, your post will get lost. However, if you get a nice engagement, hardly, but chances are you get featured in a huge hashtag where 6M people might interact with your post and so forth follow you. That’s not usually the case. If you post a picture under an average followed hashtag it’s more likely you’ll top the hashtag with not as much engagement and if you use a considerable followed hashtags, for certain you will be up there! If you separate your hashtags this way, you’ll always get something out of it. I used to have only 11 impressions from my hashtags months ago because i was using huge hashtags only, while now, following this strategy I have almost 6k.
5. Engage with your hashtags.
You really are using hashtags and waiting for the magic to happen, but think about it, if everyone used hashtags and just sat back, there would be no magic, meaning no one would interact with another. Which means, when you post under a specific hashtag, make sure that you as well explore it, find new people, like their content, comment on their pictures and so on. However, only it you like to do so and only if it is genuine or long term. You cannot really trick the system. People know whether it’s just another comment and are able to distinguish what comment really shows that one is interested.
6. Try to get featured by feature pages.
Getting featured by feature pages will definitely increase your reach, especially your work is constantly being reposted. Target feature pages that follow your niche and follow their requirements. Easy as that. If they like your work, they’ll feature you. This is what happened to me that gave me that boost to 10k.
7. Use Instagram promotions once per month.
Nothing comes for free, so if you really want to reach to other people without following all the steps mentioned, the most simple thing is let instagram do it job by promoting your content. I have used instagram promotion feature, and I can say that most of the times it helps. However, u need to get really specific when you choose your promotion audience.
8. Post exciting and quality content
You might not even need any of the above. Quality content is the key! If you post your best works, everything will run its course. Be unique. There are a lot of quality accounts out there. You have to make a difference. No one is going to scroll through your feed if you’re work is simply another picture, another post from thousands out there.
9. Be patient and enjoy
You can’t expect to grow genuinely in a matter of days. If your work is impressive, it will happen. Just give it time. It took me 3 years to get to 5k and only 6 months to 20K. It can happen to everyone.
10. Don’t use boots, apps for fake likes or neither buy followers.
I know a lot of people doing that nowadays. One thing is that today, everyone can tell whether you are growing genuinely or not. No one can grow 3000 followers overnight, i mean some can, but u know what i mean. Fake likes will only make u look like a fool. It takes no more than 10 seconds to determine wether you are using such services or not. Save yourself the time.
Here you have it! 10 tips that will DEFINITELY help you out. You can find Sirio Berati’s youtube video on: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDlj6F3Ivs8
Blurb: Sirio Berati is an emerging Albanian artist living in Montreal, Canada. His work is primarily focused on video production and portrait photography but not limited to. Sirio explores the concept of identity establishing narratives behind his work.
Read Also : Will Saudi Prince, PAK sponsored terrorism reach India today on a two-day tour?
