Your Instagram Needs More Engagement

Since its launch, Instagram has gone through a few changes. One area you may have noticed is the feed itself. Whether you check your feed throughout the day or a handful of times a week, you may have noticed that the feed isn’t in chronological order. So what gives? Well, they’ve made changes to their algorithm and posts with more engagement are more likely to be seen in a user’s feed and potentially the Explore tab.

Instagram will show users posts that they care about prior to other posts; regardless of postdate. If a user has interacted with other profiles on numerous occasions, they are more likely to see that profile’s posts. Additionally, they are more likely to see posts that have received a good amount of engagement.

Instagram Post Ranking is Influenced by:

1. The number of Likes and comments each post has.
2. If the user has interacted with your posts previously, and, how frequently.
3. How recently you posted and how active your account is.

Receiving engagement on your organic posts (as opposed to paid ads) creates a positive loop: the more Likes and comments the post receives, the greater likelihood of it appearing in a user’s feed as well as the Explore tab.

How to Get More Engagement on Instagram

1. Interact with questions and comments on your posts. Whether it’s Liking a comment from someone who gave a “thumbs up” emoji or answering a question, interacting is a key part to the post rank algorithm. If you don’t respond, or react, in some way to the user comments this can turn a user off to your company. Especially if they see questions going unanswered.
2. Curate a widespread amount of content and post wisely. When posting, it is wise to spread out your content. Meaning, if you post 4 times a week, post on 4 different days. Posting on multiple days will increase the opportunity of your posts being seen by your followers.
3. Host contests and giveaways. Let’s face it, people love winning free stuff whether they need it or not. Posts that discuss contests and giveaways are almost guaranteed to get a lot of attention.
4. Incorporating hashtags with your posts helps for users who may not follow your account to find you. This in turn gives further opportunity for users to find our account and your posts. Users are able to search hashtags so using a hashtag, or series of hashtags, will help get your post in front of as many users as possible.
5. Post a video. Instagram now allows for videos of approximately a minute in length to be shared and interaction for these videos are on the rise! Users who see a video in their feed are more like to halt their scrolling, watch, and interact with the video. The key to this is to show something engaging, especially if it’s a full minute.

If you aren’t using these methods currently, implement them into your Instagram strategy this month to begin seeing the changes. Like many strategies, it won’t be an overnight success. This will need to become an integral part of your Instagram presence and strategy. Not something you think you can commit to on your own, or, need help with execution? Contact our team of professionals today! We’ll get you started down the path of success.