Growing your Instagram page can seem tough, especially when you first start out. But there are some useful tips you can use to help grow your engagement and followers FOR FREE.
When we first had to go into lockdown in March 2020 due to the pandemic, we suddenly found ourselves with extra time on our hands. That's when we started Techy Ape's Instagram page. In a short span of 4-5 months, we managed to grow our audience to close to 2,500 followers organically.
Here's how we did it.
Tip #1 - Complete your profile
Ensure that your profile picture (logo), brand name, description, and link is updated so that new visitors will always know what your brand is about, what products or services you provide, where you're located, and so on.
A visitor that clicks on your profile and doesn't get the information he or she needs in seconds is going to leave, and an incomplete profile will appear less credible.
Tip #2 - Give your audience value
What value can you give your audience on Instagram? Can they get inspired by your content? Will they learn something new? Will your content entertain them or bring a smile to their face?
When it comes to developing your content strategy, it's important to consider what your content can offer your audience. For Techy Apes, we focused on creating educational content where our audience could learn about branding and digital marketing. This strategy has allowed our content to be featured on multiple pages, but let's talk more about this in Tip #7.
"Posting on Instagram isn't just a matter of putting what you want out there. It's about what your audience wants.
Don't limit yourself to offer just one thing - try a mix of content and see what works for you and your audience, as long as you create highly-shareable content (even if it's memes, if that's what matches your brand identity).
Tip #3 - Post consistently
While you don't have to post multiple times a day, it's good to maintain a consistency of posting daily (if possible) or 2-3 times a week. By posting consistently, the algorithm will favour your content and more people will see them.
Remember that you're always competing for your audience's attention online, and the more your audience interacts with a page, the more the algorithm will show them the page's content.
Tip #4 - Use a mix of relevant hashtags
Use a mix of hashtags based on their popularity. While using hashtags that have millions of posts are great to give you more visibility, using lesser used hashtags will make it easier to you to rank at the top which signals the algorithm that you have quality content. You can use up to 30 hashtags per post, so maximize your opportunity by using up all 30.
Learn more about choosing the right hashtag mix for your post here, with more details about the popularity and category mix to help you choose the best ones.
Tip #5 - Engage with your audience
Having a conversation with your audience signals the algorithm that your audience enjoy engaging with you and your content. This means that your posts will appear more frequently on your audiences' feed.
You can do this by replying to all comments and messages, asking simple questions in your captions or comments to encourage responses, or posting engaging Instagram Stories where your audience can vote in polls.
Tip #6 - Use Instagram Reels
Reels are short, full-screen vertical format videos on Instagram. Reels tend to get more reach than other formats on the platform as Instagram's algorithm prioritizes it, especially Reels that receive high views and engagement. So the more people you reach with your Reels, the higher chance your followers and engagement will grow.
Tip #7 - Collaborate
Get partners or brand advocates to post your content. You can do this by tagging relevant pages on your post if you think they might share it, or reaching out to them in advance to discuss what type of content they would be willing to share from your page. This is a great way to expand your reach and leverage on another page's audience.
As we mentioned in Tip #2, creating highly-shareable content also increases the likelihood of your post being shared by pages with a massive following. Having been featured multiple times by various pages was crucial in the growth of Techy Apes' Instagram page, as it allowed our content to reach an audience that was already interested in our type of content, but just hadn't come across our page.
Try, try, and try again.
Even with all the tips above, you might not get it right immediately. Don't be disappointed that your page isn't growing quickly - improving your skills takes time, and so does follower growth.
If you need help with social media marketing or content creation, drop us a line.