The Instagram algorithm is an ever-changing mystery. Instagram users have seen engagement on their photos drop since Instagram moved away from the chronological newsfeed and embraced the algorithm, with pictures sometimes showing up in followers’ news feeds 2-4 four days after they are posted.
What’s an Instagram enthusiast or a fashion blogger to do?
Instagram Tips For Fashion Bloggers
For those who use Instagram as part of our business, it can be really frustrating to keep up with all of the changes. Today I have a few tips to help you survive the Instagram algorithm.
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Choose Your Style
Much like the Choose Your Own Adventure books of our childhoods, you have to make choices when it comes to Instagram. The more you niche down, the better. So, think carefully about the pictures you love to take and the content you are going to create week after week. Therefore, choose a style you can easily stick with for a long time.
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Use Your Profile To Announce Your Style
On your Instagram profile you have the opportunity to use keywords that relate to the pictures you are going to share. Be mindful of including things in your bio that relate to your niche. As a matter of fact, if you want to be found by people and businesses local to you, make sure to include your town or general location.
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Create Beautiful Content
This could go without saying, but I’m going to say it anyway. Create beautiful content! Be picky when you are deciding which pictures to post on your feed. Your Instagram Stories can be a little bit more raw and in the moment, but everything that goes up on your feed should be carefully curated. Plan ahead for what you will post on your Instagram feed.
If you are going to post in a pattern (alternating pictures and quote cards, or alternating pictures of yourself with pictures of other things), be mindful that you stick to the pattern as you are planning out your content.
Always include something in your caption that invites engagement. Asking a question can be a great way to spark comments from your followers. Finally, use a few hashtags that relate to the image and your niche every time you post. Just make sure you don’t get stuck in a rut using the same hashtags every time. You need to switch them out and keep them fresh!
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Your Engagement Matters
You have chosen a niche, and you are planning content around that choice. Now what? You need to go find other people in your niche and engage with them! Every action you take on Instagram gives Instagram another clue as to who you are and what your account is about. So, if you are posting pictures of dogs, but then you only engage with pictures of cats, Instagram is going to be confused.
Go follow some great accounts in your niche and make friends. Don’t just like their pictures, leave comments, too. Make sure your comments are valuable – more than 5 words, not overly generic, and relate to the picture and text posted. Also check out the people who are following larger accounts in your niche. It’s a great idea to spend 10-20 minutes a day visiting new people who are interested in the type of content you create. In addition, you should spend a little time engaging on the hashtags you are using after you post a new picture.
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Use Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories are a great way to build up your profile. They allow you to post several touchpoints in a day, and as people watch and engage with your stories, the pictures you post on your feed are most likely to jump to the top of their newsfeeds.
Follow the same rules in your stories that you are working off of for your feed. Make sure the things you post relate to your niche. You can be raw and share some unedited photos, like I said above, but they should still be of generally good quality. Don’t forget to use hashtags. Invite engagement beyond just watching by asking questions or including polls.
It’s also great to announce on your stories when you post something new on your main feed to get people to click over and check it out. The more likes and comments you get on a picture in the first few minutes after it’s posted, the more people Instagram is going to show it to in their newsfeeds.
Bonus Tip For Instagram Stories
One more tip for using Instagram Stories. When you get 10,000 followers, you can convert your account into a business account (if you haven’t already made that switch), and then you will be eligible to unlock the swipe up feature. Swipe Up in Instagram Stories enables you to link things directly in your stories when people swipe up. The benefit here is you won’t need to put the link in your bio. This is a great feature that brands are really looking to have people use, so it makes your account more attractive for brand collaborations and sponsored work.
Hopefully these tips will help you to conquer the Instagram algorithm and grow your account. If you have any Instagram questions or tips of your own, please leave them in the comments! I’ll see you on Instagram!
XOXO,
BLENDstyles