9 Ways to Increase Your Instagram Engagement

The new Instagram algorithm has everyone up in arms. I mean bloggers, photographers, creatives, and everyone in between is coo coo for Cocoa Puffs over this algorithm, but guess what? It’s here and we have to accept it.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t care at all but quite frankly it’s out of my control and the only thing I can do is adjust. So instead of focusing on how many followers I have, I’ve made it a point to focus on the quality of my followers.

Here’s the thing, Instagram rewards people with authentic engagement. You know, comments that are actually related to the captions and not just a ton of emojis that tell you absolutely nothing. Instagram also loves people who love Instagram so the more active you are and the more you use Instagram for its primary purpose: social networking, the more it will benefit you.

So with that said, increasing your Instagram engagement is definitely more difficult now than it was 7 years ago but it’s not impossible. Like anything else in life, you just have to be willing to put in the work to get a positive outcome.

1. Increase your engagement with high-quality pictures

First and foremost, the odds are no one other than friends and family will engage with your Instagram pictures unless they’re high-quality images. There is nothing worse than coming across a “blogger” who has blurry images with terrible lighting shot through a dirty lens. #theworst

And yes I’m aware some of us can’t afford the latest and greatest DSLR but let me tell you I’m working with an iPhone 6 and I’m doing just fine. The camera helps but it’s not as important as the person using it.

So the first thing you want to do is get honest with yourself. Are your images the best they can possibly be or have you been getting a little lazy? Do you shoot a bunch of photos from a bunch of different angles or are you one and done?

If you’re genuinely giving it your all but you still feel something is missing, start with the basic principles of photography 101.

• Natural light is best for shooting. The golden hour is even better which is early morning or late afternoon (sunrise/sunset). However if your feed is high contrast and heavy on the shadows you might want to shoot in direct sunlight from 12-2pm.
• A clean lens is always a good idea. I never take a picture without wiping off my lens with a cloth first. Sometimes lotion or the oil from your skin gets on the lens causing a film over your picture. It’s not pretty and looks unprofessional TBH.
• Check your position. Sometimes the angle makes all the difference in your photos. Are you centered? Is your outfit clearly visible? My highest performing pictures are ones where my photographer shot from a low level. If you notice most streetstyle photographers are always squatting down because that angle is the most flattering for the subject.
• Be aware of your surroundings. Distractions are one of the many reasons people pass by your picture on Instagram. It’s confusing when there are a ton of people around, you don’t know what you’re looking at. You can definitely take pictures with people in the background but you want to make sure you’re the main attraction. You might have to wait an extra 5 minutes for that flock of kids to get out of your shot, but trust me it’s worth it.

2. Increase your engagement with a compelling caption

Captions are everything! Easy for me, I’ve always been a talker/writer so coming up with a longer, more informative caption is no problem and in fact it’s something I’ve gravitated to before it was “required” on Instagram.

Now, before you freak out, your Instagram caption doesn’t have to be ground breaking. It can just be 2-3 sentences which looks like a whole paragraph on Instagram. The most important part isn’t the length of the caption, it’s what you’re actually saying. You always want to jam pack your captions with value so your audience will keep coming back for more.

For example instead of writing “Fun in the sun with ::insert brand’s name here::”, you can say something like “So excited to be part of this amazing campaign with ::insert brand’s name here::. I love that with every purchase they donate 10% to animals in need. In just 3 years they’ve raised over $1,000,000! Comment ::animal emoji:: if you love animals as much as I do!” A caption like that is simple and short but still adds value. Give it a try and I bet you’ll see an uptick in your engagement.

3. Increase your engagement with a CTA

A CTA is a marketing term that stands for “call to action”. What this means is you want your audience to be called to take action. You want them to be so inspired, moved, or motivated from whatever value you provided them, that you’re now asking them to act on that feeling. A CTA can be anything from “check out my new blog post” to “what’s your favorite restaurant” to “follow my new account”.

CTAs come in all shapes and sizes but one thing they all have in common is an ask. CTAs are one of the most effective ways to get your audience involved. I can’t tell you how many times I come across bloggers’ pictures where they could add a killer CTA in their caption but don’t. In order to increase your Instagram engagement you want to spark the conversation and the best way to do that is through a CTA.

4. Increase your engagement through Instastories

Instastories, instastories, instastories. I can’t stress it enough. Video is king in 2018 and Instastories are videos so there you have it!

In all seriousness Instagram is still trying to push Instastories because, I’m assuming, for the advertising. If you don’t know, in addition to Facebook and Instagram ads you can purchase Instastory ad space and all businesses are always going to push whatever feature is able to be monetized, which in this case is Instastories so don’t miss the boat!

Instastories are also a great way to allow your followers to get to know you and when they get to know you they engage with you. Sometimes it’s hard to relate to someone or something without a face and voice behind it so video is a very personal experience that consumers are loooooooving. It’s so easy to swipe up on a story and slide in the person’s DMs which even though it’s not public engagement, it’s still engagement.

5. Increase your engagement with Instagram live

Like Instastories, Instagram live is another feature Instagram is pushing lately in an attempt to attract and keep users on the app longer. You see a live, it sparks your interest so you tune in, and the next thing you know you’ve watched Kim Kardashian’s entire 30-minute speech at Create and Cultivate. And there you have it.

Aside from actually being next to the person in real life, it doesn’t get more personal than Instagram live. Your followers can directly engage with you right then and there. How cool?!

Imagine your favorite person addressing you and your questions directly. It’s a really neat feeling and it bonds you to that person. It’s like the modern day form of customer appreciation.

However if you do use Instagram live you want to make sure you’re using it with purpose. You don’t want to just “hop on” and have people watch you while you’re eating dinner. What a bore!

You want to go on and do a Q&A or a mini tutorial or home tour or something of value. You have to hook your audience with an interesting topic and the keep your audience with an interesting delivery (<this part will take time but practice makes perfect).

6. Increase your engagement by responding within 1 hour 

Instagram has never fully addressed any of its algorithm changes. They beat around the bush by saying “We’ve improved user experience by xyz” BUT there is a rumor floating around that when you respond to comments within 1 hour of them being posted, Instagram will yet again reward you because you’re using the app and on top of your sh*t. But who has time for that really?

So instead of waiting around for an hour to see if you get any bites, you can utilize your time by commenting on other people’s pictures. That way you’re on the app so you’ll be notified if someone comments on your picture and you’re engaging (networking) with other people’s content for an hour, all while responding to your own. It’s a win-win.

7. Increase your engagement by commenting on other people’s content

Rule #1 of Instagram: don’t be lazy. You can’t just post a picture and expect people to engage with it because you posted it.

The only bloggers who can maybe get away with that are Something Navy, We Wore What, and the Sincerely Juleses of the blogging world. And even they engage back from time to time. If macro-bloggers who have started clothing lines, are getting married, and expecting their second child can find time to engage, so can you.

You have to put in the work if you want your business to work. Plus, the more you’re out and about and engaging with other people, the more opportunity you have for potential followers to discover you. Not only that but people are likely to return the favor when you engage with their content.

8. Increase your engagement by posting at active times

If you don’t have Instagram for business, I highly recommend it. And if for some reason you can’t get it, then just use common sense for this one by asking yourself the following questions…

When are you on Instagram? Maybe around lunchtime? In the late afternoon when you’re bored at work? After work? Before bed? You want to post at those times because odds are if you’re on Instagram, a ton of other people are too.

If you do have Instagram business, there’s a great little feature that allows you to see what time your followers are most active. I would definitely experiment with those times and see what works best for you. Don’t get so caught up in analyzing but definitely optimize your Instagram by posting at recommended times. I mean, why not, right?

9. Increase your engagement through giveaways

I’ve talked about my love-hate relationship with loop giveaways before but they’re almost necessary in order to give your engagement the boost that it needs. After my first giveaway my engagement sky rocketed and it’s maintained that momentum ever since. Needless to say, I’ll definitely be partaking again v v soon, in fact, I may have a little something up my sleeve that you can all get in on next week!

Ok back to giveaways.

So giveaways incentivize your audience to engage. It’s getting harder and harder to get people to like your picture let alone comment on it and giveaways are a nice little reward to your followers for doing so. Plus, they’re a great way to give back to your community. Like, who wouldn’t want to win a Macbook or Gucci bag for being a loyal follower? Think of giveaways as customer appreciation. Your followers need a little TLC every once in a while and giveaways are the perfect way to do that.

What’s your Instagram handle? Comment below so I can stalk you and give you some engagement! 🙂 

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Photos taken by: Susan Hang