HOW TO OPTIMIZE INSTAGRAM AS A BLOGGER
In the previous post, here, we talked about how to edit photos for your blog & social media. Before that, we talked about the basics of starting a blog here and the essential plugins every blogger needs, here
In this post, we’re diving more into the world of Instagram as it’s probably one of the most used social platforms in recent times.
According to stats, Instagram currently records over 600 million active users around the globe.
For this reason, it has become the perfect hub for brands, bloggers and content creators to connect, collaborate and; grow their overall reach to very diverse categories of people, on a very limited budget. In other words, Instagram is the new day magazine and we’re not complaining.
As a content creator, here are 4 ways you can optimize your Instagram account:
Engagement vs Following:
It’s one thing to have thousands of followers and another to have an engaged community. The former is merely numbers; and the latter are the people that genuinely care about what you’re offering. Building an engaged community takes time, a concept we don’t seem to understand in this day of social media.
With the new Instagram algorithm (Zuck, if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it!), it has become harder to get your posts in front of a wider audience. This is where engagement comes to play. Focus on growing your social presence by consistently putting out quality content & engaging with other users, which will result in gaining genuine followers, higher engagement and post reach.
Do not obsess about the numbers, trust me.
You may have a huge following, but if they aren’t truly interested in or inspired by what you’re offering, it becomes a waste of social media effort.
Instagram Business Profile/Account:
Just like Facebook or Twitter, the Instagram business account rolled in our TL’s in 2016. It’s an upgrade that allows you gain access to an expanded set of features, to know more about your brand or audience analytics. For content creators, it is a great way to analyze your audience/followers via insights, post engagement; and also for gathering valuable information used in partnership/collaboration pitches.
The business account comes with features such as Insights, Ad Creation & Promotion & my favourite, the ever convenient “Contact” button at the top of your page. The contact info can be customised to redirect anywhere you need it to (e-mail, phone number, address), with a click directly from your Instagram profile.
*To qualify for for the upgrade, you need to have a Facebook business page as well.
Read more about how to make the switch to a business account here
Insights
Instagram Insights was introduced as part of the new update in 2016. It’s a feature that let’s you gain valuable insight into in app-metrics like follower demographics, impressions, reach, etc to better understand your audience. Basically, your Google Analytics equivalent for Instagram.
When pitching to or working with a brand, present your Instagram insights as an add-on to your package. It’s a great way of measuring engagement & ROI in brand partnerships.
Brand partnerships aka “the myth of numbers”
As long as you produce authentic content, brands will work with you. Don’t be afraid to approach a brand because you’re not raking in tens of thousands of followers. I’m an ambassador of a major brand & just completed a campaign with Coach, yet I’m sitting somewhere just above 6k followers.
The key is to highlight other statistics, e.g “I have a strong engagement with over 80% followers in your target demographic”, “My post had a total reach of ___, an impression of ___ & was saved by ___” (why you need a business account).
Have you made the change to a business account? What are your thoughts on it?
Do you deal with stressing over numbers on Instagram? How are you dealing with it? What have you done differently?
Till next time,
A.R.E
