10 Things You Should Be Doing on Instagram

If you find yourself intimated by how to use Instagram to grow your blog, don’t miss this 10 Instagram Strategies that are sure to be effective!

I have fallen in love with Instagram over the past couple of years. It is the number one way I engage my community and I have so much fun with it!

If you’re struggling with where to start or how to use Instagram to grow your blog, try these 10 Instagram Strategies I’ve found to be very effective:

1. Post every 24-36 hours in your feed.

Posting consistently every 24-36 hours seems to be the best rhythm for the highest engagement on Instagram.

This is long enough for the algorithms to show your post to a lot of people and give them time to engage, but not too long that your post starts really losing momentum. (If I wait more than 2 days in between posts, I find that Instagram tends to show my posts to fewer people.)

Also, if possible, post at your peak times (you can find this information for your account in your insights). And post consistently around the same time every day.

2. Tell stories with photos and text in your feed.

Story is more compelling than facts, and people will always connect more with you when you tell a story.

Every account is different, but I’ve found that a lot of people miss an opportunity to really engage with their audience by just giving facts in their post text and not connecting with their audience through a story.

The more your photo tells a story and has text that backs up that photo with story, the more you’re likely going to see people engage and interact.

Also, make sure that your photo/story are generally relatable!

3. Get your face on camera in IG stories.

I know, I know, I harp on this all the time. But it REALLY makes a difference and this is one of the most important Instagram strategies I can share with you!

People want to connect with other people, not with platforms.

The more people feel invested in you as a person, the more they will regularly show up and want to engage.

Now, that said: I don’t recommend just getting on IG stories and doing 27 frames of you talking. Change things up and keep it interesting!

Try some photos, some text stories, some videos where you’re showing something, and some where it’s your face.

Don’t always have the same look, the same background, or the same kind of story. The power of a good story is that it keeps people intrigued and they don’t know where it’s going to lead.

4. Post at least 6-8 IG stories throughout the day.

I’ve done a lot of experimenting and I’ve found that Instagram is rewarding people for posting multiple times throughout the day on IG stories. For me personally, if I post 5 or fewer stories in a day, I’ll see thousands fewer views than if I post at least 6-8 stories throughout the day.

Space out your stories some and post them at different times throughout the day. Each time you publish a story, it causes your profile to go to the front of the line at the top of people’s feed. The more you hit publish, the more opportunities you have to get your stories in front of people.

(That being said, I definitely wouldn’t go wild and post 75 slides in one day… unless you have a huge following and know that works. Too many stories can also cause you to lose followers.)

5. Don’t post stories that are longer than 4 slides.

I polled my audience awhile back and asked them at what point do they stop watching a story. Almost every one said that if a story is longer than 4 slides, they usually click away.

With this in mind, I challenge myself to keep my stories to 4 slides or fewer. I try to tell the best story in the shortest amount of time possible. It’s a great exercise in learning to be a better communicator, too!

6. Ask good but very simple questions.

People love to to know that their voice matters and that you care about what they have to say. This is why I try to read and at least hit the heart button (if not respond) to all of the comments and messages I get every day.

One way to encourage more engagement is to ask for input. Try asking people simple, yes or no questions. Stay away from longwinded, open-ended questions. Just give people two options or ask them to finish a simple sentence. I’ve found this works really well!

One such recent request I asked my audience that elicited a ton of helpful responses was: Finish this sentence (and then I put up a question box): “I wish you would post more about _____.”

7. Give a very clear call to action.

Lead your audience to take action — whether that action is to respond to a question, sign up for your email newsletter, follow someone, buy something, etc.

Make it very clear what you are encouraging them to do and re-state it twice throughout your story.

8. Use text overlay on your stories.

I cannot emphasize this enough. SO many people watch stories without having the sound on.

When you use text overlay, it gives them an idea as to what you are sharing and often entices them to turn their sound on (especially if you make it interesting enough!)

Also, use the polls feature, questions feature, and emojis. These keep your stories interesting and encourage people to engage more.

9. Regularly use IGTV & IG live.

In addition to stories, Instagram is currently really rewarding people for using IGTV and IG Live. So definitely experiment with them!

One thing I often do is record an IG live and then download it and upload it to both FB and IGTV. I’m all about maximizing the mileage of my time!

10. Answer the question people are asking, “What’s in it for me?”

In everything you do on Instagram (and online, in general), remember that people are always asking, “What’s in it for me?” (Most people don’t realize they are asking this, but they are!)

Make your Instagram bio and your content be all about what serves your audience.

Yes, it should be life-giving for you, too, but if it doesn’t serve people, no one is going to show up!