Do you need to up your Instagram game in 2022? In this blog post, we'll discuss some of the best strategies to increase engagement on Instagram. It's more important than ever to create a community of followers and fans who are engaged with your content.
What is Instagram engagement?
Instagram engagement measures how people interact with content. This can include likes, saves, shares, comments, carousel posts and more. The more engagement your posts receive, the better they will rank in Instagram's algorithm.
Why is engagement important?
Engagement is one of the key factors that Instagram takes into account when ranking posts. The more people who interact with your content, the more likely it is to be seen by other users - it's the basis of the Instagram algorithm. This is why it's so important to create high-quality content that encourages interaction. It means that your content is more likely to be seen by people who aren’t already following you. When you have high engagement rates, it means that people are interested in what you're sharing. That can result in more customers and higher profits for your business.
Why do you need to increase Instagram engagement?
There are a few reasons why it's important to focus on increasing engagement on Instagram. First of all, high engagement means that people are interested in your content. This is a good indicator to Instagram that your posts are worth showing to more people. Additionally, high engagement can lead to more followers and brand awareness. When people see that your posts are getting a lot of engagement, they're more likely to want to follow you or check out your brand.
What is a "good" Instagram engagement rate?
Although “good” is a subjective term, you might be shocked to find that a decent
Instagram engagement rate could be as low as 1%. And while it may appear to be so, the figure is quite typical in different industries — an analysis of 1,800 Instagram accounts from 12 distinct sectors revealed an average engagement rate of 1.6 percent.
"Instagram isn't providing any hints about what constitutes an excellent engagement rate.... The majority of social media consultants think that a decent engagement rate is around 1% to 5 percent."
Instagram calculates your engagement rate automatically
Under your "Insights" button, Instagram monitors the actions of people that you post on your Instagram video, reels, posts and stories. Instagram metrics which influence your engagements include likes, carousel swipes, commenting, shares and saved content.
Track progress against your own metrics
Rather than focusing on numbers, determine "good" by comparing your progress against your own results over time. Begin with a baseline and track what material gets greater engagement rates; then modify your social media marketing approach based on the findings.
The bottom line is that there are many ways to increase engagement on Instagram. If you put in the time and effort, you can see great results.
Top tips to increase Instagram engagement
Here's our top tips:
Post interesting and engaging content
It might seem obvious, but this is the most important thing you can do to increase engagement. Make sure your posts are visually appealing and provide value for your followers.
Use hashtags wisely
Hashtags are a great way to reach a larger audience, but make sure you're using them in the right way. Too many hashtags can be spammy, and not enough can make it difficult for people to find your content. Try to use around five or six hashtags per post.
Visit the first blog in the series to learn more about using hashtags to increase your reach! When you use hashtags on Instagram, it's like opening up your post to a much larger audience than just the people who follow you. For example, if you add the hashtag #englishriviera to a photo of a sunset, anyone who searches for that hashtag will see your photo.
Stories are great for engaging your following
Instagram Stories are a great way to engage with followers in a more personal way. Posting stories demonstrates authenticity and credibility to your existing customers, and using some clever stickers, can show off your brand to a wider audience.
Stories are the perfect way to engage with your followers by asking them questions. Not only does this help you get feedback, but it also helps you learn more about what your followers are interested in.
Instagram stickers
Use the sticker features of stories like polls, quizzes, questions, "Ask me anything" posts and sliders to invite people to interact with your stories. It's a fantastic method to break the ice with your audience and get them talking by posing questions and asking for feedback. Just make sure you respond to comments and direct messages just as you would to telephone calls to your business.
What's fantastic about Instagram Stickers is that they take just a second for someone to cast their vote, rate a photo, or do other things — and all of these simple activities encourage your audience and content to interact.
Polls sticker
A poll sticker lets your followers vote on questions you pose about anything, which could be what they're interested in for a future blog post or just gauging general feeling.
Use contests and giveaways
Contests and giveaways are a great way to engage followers and get them excited about your brand. Make sure the rules are clear and the prize is appealing.
Responding to comments and messages
When followers take the time to leave a comment or message, make sure you take the time to respond. This shows that you care about your followers and their feedback.
Use Live Video
Live Video is a great way to connect with followers in real time.
These are just a few tips to help increase Instagram engagement. By using these strategies, you can create a community of followers who are engaged with your content.
Instagram Geotags and Pin-drops
Adding geotags to photos can increase engagement by as much as 78% because they help people who are interested in the same places to discover your content.
Instagram mention-tags
When you tag someone else in a post, they'll get a notification and they may even share your post with their followers. This is a great way to get more exposure for your content. Mention tags bring along any collaborators stakeholders or business partners you work with on a post to increase the potential reach of your content.
There's no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to increasing engagement on Instagram. But by using some or all of these tips, you can definitely see results.
Focus on your audience and the engagement will follow
To improve engagement, you should start by listening carefully. The key to increasing engagement is putting together and distributing content that fulfills these needs.
Post consistently to build your engaged community
Posting consistently helps fuel your Instagram engagement. When users interact with your content, it signals Instagram to show those people your content more often. Keep in mind that more is not necessarily better. On average, businesses post about once a day on Instagram and don’t see increases in engagement when posting more often - so once per day should do it.
Top tip: Super-size your carousels
Post carousel photos daily in your feed that are sized at the 1080w x 1350h dimension to optimise the real estate of your feed and essentially make your carousels unavoidable. Carousels swipes are a fantastic way to engage with your audience of followers.
Messages you get from different types of engagement
Likes are largely "inactive" or passive engagement, because often, we simply scroll, double-tap, and move on -- but the other Instagram metrics provide additional information about the individuals who engage with your postings.
Comments say: “I care enough about this to type it out.”
Shares say "I like this and believe it will appeal to others."
Saves say, "This is amazing. I'd love to come back to it in the future."
Making content work hard for you
It's important to use faces in your social media, because it's human nature to want to look at other faces! It's good to mix in faces in what you're doing in your content plan to make sure that you keep your audience engaged.
A video-first principle
The big bonus for using video is that it's longer it's more engaging. It stops the scroll and is more and allows you to use music or a voiceover.
Photo carousels
Photo carousels encourage engagement as users flick through the different images. So instead of just posting photos, I would recommend posting a carousel and always make sure that you've got some type of question, an offer, or another engaging piece of content. (Remember to make your photos 1080w x 1350h).
Instagram is a great platform for creating a community of fans
Instagram is a great platform for businesses to connect with their customers and increase engagement. By using some of the strategies listed above, you can see results in terms of increased engagement and a larger audience. Keep in mind that there's no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to increasing engagement on Instagram, so experiment and see what works best for your brand and your business.
Exclusive package
Treat offers an Essentials package with Canva Coaching and a suite of free tools to help you create a sustainable social media programme of your own starting from as little as £480. You can get up and running on the same day - simply get in touch! Email us at hello@treattorbay.co.uk or ring us at 07513472371.
Read the Instagram strategy series
Check out the rest of the Instagram Strategy series:
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The digital marketers at Treat are social media experts, specialising in Instagram strategies that will help you achieve your business and marketing goals in 2022. Get in touch for an informal chat at hello@treattorbay.co.uk or by phone at 07513472371.