How to grow your Instagram

 

Here we are again, having a crack at Instagram. I’m starting a bit of a new series on this blog on Sunday, all around how I plan to grow my Instagram.

To get in the mood, I wanted to do a bit of a post about the best ways to grow your Instagram in 2018.

How to grow your Instagram

Quality over quality. 

It’s important to be consistent with your posting, but at the same time, there is no need to post all day every day! That’s what your stories are for.

I’ve found a happy balance of one upload a day. I upload a photo I love and am proud of. This means if I take lots of photos in one day, I’ll save them for a later date.

Ask questions!

As questions in your captions to give your readers something to engage with. A lot of people won’t comment unless prompted!

Engage.

Instagram seems all about engagement in 2018. So make sure you are replying to comments and leaving comments on other peoples posts. Don’t just mindlessly scroll without giving anything, yet expect things in return.

Try to make yourself available to reply to comments within the first hour of your post going live for an extra boost!

What’s popular for you?

If you look back at your last few weeks Instagram posts, see what posts were most popular and try to do more of that type of content.

For me, my most popular posts are those with me in it, usually fitness related.

Post at the right time.

Experiment with different times and see what helps your post get the most engagement. Is it in the morning when your followers are drinking their morning coffee? Or is it in the evening on the commute home?

Get out of comment pods.

Comment pods are groups where people like and comment on each other’s posts. The idea is to give the post a boost, but Instagram has now caught onto this and has starting shadowbanning users who they suspect are using pods.

You want authentic engagement, not fake engagement! This is not how to grow your Instagram!

Use stories.

Stories are a great way to connect with your followers in a more informal way. You may want to save your best photographs for your grid, but get using your stories as a way to interact with your followers and show them a bit more of your personality. Use location tags and hashtags to get seen more!

Ensure you reply to any comments on your stories too, as this shows Instagram you are being engaged and gives you a boost.

Share what you like!

Share what you love on Instagram and stories. Whether that is tagging a brand in a fashion post or giving a shout out to some accounts or posts you love.

Follow me.

Of course, the most important tip of all is to follow me on Instagram!

Seriously though, I’m all for engaging with those that engage with me, so if you want to start a super special Instagram relationship with me, follow me!