Instagram is one of the social networking platforms that has steadily risen in popularity over the past few years. And by the looks of the latest statistics, Instagram does not show any signs of slowing down.
The photo-sharing network currently boasts the following:
- 70+ million new photos/day
- 5 billion likes/day
- 300 million active Instagram users
- 30+ billion shared photos
With this massive following and strong engagement, it comes as no surprise that businesses have swarmed the Instagram community.
If you want to leverage this fast-growing photo-sharing community for your business, you must know the rules of the game.
Here are 5 engagement tactics to grow your Instagram following:
Engagement Tactic #1: Tell a Story
There was a period in search engine optimization history when marketers crammed keywords into their blog content just to pull up their website ranking. Although Google banned this tactic, this strategy still squirmed its way into social media – this time in the form of click-bait.
With a few differences, the basic strategy is the same: use a few strong keywords to reel people into clicking a link and directing them to a page.
This black hat SEO tactic is not something you should follow, but it does reveal a gem of truth: people love stories.
The Power of Good Storytelling
Good storytelling turns visitors into avid readers and in Instagram, your pictures are the tales you use to regale your followers.
If your company organizes events, frame your visual content to showcase a story from the planning stage up to the after-party. This will show the audience your commitment to a project from start to finish.
You convey a message to prospective clients that you strive to make an important event as memorable as possible.
Engagement Tactic #2: Interact with Followers
You can pre-schedule your posts, but when it comes to responding to direct messages and comments, you must meet people real-time or as soon as possible.
If this proves to be too much work for you, outsourcing this task to a virtual assistant is the smartest move. Along with responding to messages and comments, you can also delegate the tasks of following established users or influencers of the same line of business and liking or reposting content from followers who mention or tag your company.
Engagement Tactic #3: Post Videos and Lots of Them
Instagram has expanded from photo-sharing to video content. According to research, 40% of people prefer visual content than plain text. Of the numerous data transmitted to the brain, 90% of this is imagery. No wonder videos are a big hit!
When Instagram introduced videos, not too many people tried it at first and yet, those who did gained massive engagement from viewers.
SEE ALSO: Top 7 DIY Video Production Tips You Should Know
Videos are a creative and dynamic way of connecting with followers. With a limited amount of time to run your video, you get straight to the heart of the matter. This is what will make your Instagram video memorable to your audience.
Engagement Tactic #4: Always Include a Call to Action
Engagement is a two-way street. How people engage with your brand lets you know how your brand is performing. How would you know that a story resonated with a follower? Ask them to double tap if they agree.
Are they brand advocates? Do they tell friends and family about your product? Ask followers to tag a friend to try it with. Leaving a call to action rouses your users into active followers.
Engagement Tactic #5: Reward Your Followers
Don’t forget to reward fans who patronize your business or buy your product by offering rewards. One way to do this is by hosting a contest for them to participate in. You can mail them samples of upcoming products or you can dole out tickets to exciting events, concerts, or shows.
Instagram is a goldmine for business owners, but you must have the right tools to tap into its marketing wealth. These top 5 engagement tactics for Instagram followers will get you on the right track.
Have you tried and of these engagement tactics to grow your Instagram following? Let me know.
