8 tips to start on Instagram and gain followers – without being famous
We all know that celebrities have millions of followers on Instagram. Sometimes, it can give us the impression that to get our own followers, we will first have to rise to fame... Well no; We can all be successful on Instagram if we follow certain guidelines and learn from those who do it best how to get instagram comments fast. We won't even need a large budget to invest in advertising: some photos, a great desire to learn, and succeed!
Before starting
Instagram is not for everyone. First of all, you have to be able to tell a story that generates interest through images or photos. Today there are tools that allow us to create images of almost any topic, however, that does not mean that this is our best way to tell stories.
Therefore, before we begin, it is important that we make sure that we not only can, but also want to generate and publish at least one image per day. Instagram is not like Twitter, where we can use any type of content; We need photos or videos that must also tell a story. So before we get to work, we must make sure that we have a story to tell and that we know how to do it on Instagram.
Our profile
As with other social networks, we must guarantee that our account can be easily found:
Choosing a name that people who search for us can recognize.
Using the right keywords: on Instagram, we have to use them as hashtags.
Uploading an avatar that is recognizable as well.
From here we are ready to start
It goes without saying that we need pretty images, right? Still, that doesn't have to be enough. There are many Instagram accounts with beautiful photos; On the other hand, some are very successful while others fail to attract the same level of attention. And this has an explanation: those who manage successful accounts master the rules and tricks of Instagram and know how to manage to attract followers, likes and comments. Let's look at some of those tips and tricks to get the most out of our activity on Instagram:
1. Research
When we started on Instagram, many people just used all the hashtags that came to mind every time they posted a photo. But there are hashtags that are widely used and that may not occur to us, and may also work better than the ones we are using.
For example, if we have a French Bulldog that we share photos of on Instagram, we have a good handful of hashtags to choose from:
#bulldog (8,131,112 posts)
#bulldogs (1,796,747 posts)
#frenchbulldog (1,051,708 posts)
#dog (2,517,569 posts)
#dogs (1,020,165 posts)
#bulldogg (16,750 posts)
#bulldoglove (549,330 posts)
#bulldoggram (16,521 posts)
#bulldogsofig (217,707 posts)
As you can see, sometimes a simple letter can make a big difference. We can also observe that some hashtags are repeated in various combinations. Which is the best option?
The answer is not always to opt for the hashtags that have the most mentions, which implies great competition in terms of visibility. Additionally, these hashtags are generally not concrete enough. But we also don't want to use hashtags that no one uses, of course, since they probably won't be the ones that the public searches for. We will have to test what works best for us, for which an initial investigation that gives us a glimpse of why some things work better than others can be of great help.
Once we have defined which hashtags are best for us and fit the stories we tell, we must save them. We can also use tools like Hootsuite Trendspottr to find trending hashtags. In any case, for an initial and simple investigation, the Instagram app will be enough.
2. Clear up your texts by hiding some hashtags
Unlike other social networks like Twitter, where you have to use hashtags carefully, on Instagram we not only can, but must use many hashtags. Up to 30 are allowed. But these hashtags can make the photo text long and unappealing to read. We can hide them from our followers with a simple trick: Posting some of the hashtags in the first comment on the photo. When there are more comments, it will appear hidden.
This way, the hashtags will not clutter the text of the image and those who search for them will continue to find our image.
3. “ Cure ” Content = Regram
Especially in the beginning, when we are just starting out, we may not have enough of our own content to publish on a regular basis. Yes, we can browse Instagram and keep track of what others are doing. We can thus feed our profile easily using the content of others. We just have to Regram your photos. In reality, it is not so simple if we are not willing to use another app to do it, since in no case should we steal content:
We take a screenshot of the image we want to regram
We select it as the photo we want to share, cropping it so that only the image is visible.
Copy the text, always mentioning the owner of the photo: “Credits @user:”
Now we can use the photo without problems.
4. Cross-post on other networks
Are you new to Instagram but already have a good number of followers on other social networks? So it is important to announce the new account in these. An option may also be to mention it in the biography of other profiles, such as Twitter.
And after we've announced our new Instagram account, we can remind others by cross-posting our Instagram activity to other social networks. With this, in addition to offering more varied content on our Facebook and Twitter, we will be able to increase engagement by up to 23% on these channels.
It is not advisable to share all posts on other networks; If you want to see our Instagram images, you should follow us on Instagram ;-). But sharing a cool photo on our Facebook or Twitter from time to time can help some of our Facebook followers do the same on Instagram and thus start building the community.
5. Schedule posts
Scheduling posts that we have already written is important and useful, and Instagram is no different in this: if we publish when no one is online, our posts will reach fewer people. On the other hand, if we publish when everyone else does, we will compete with a multitude of images that flood users' feeds at once.
What is the best time to post? We will have to test, as it will depend on the sector, our followers and the type of content we share (professional or personal). As a recommendation: any time from Monday to Thursday, as long as it is not between 3 pm and 4 pm.
Buffer or Hootsuite are tools that can help us schedule publications. Plus, Instagram now allows you to save drafts!
6. Increase your followers
When we are starting out, we need to attract initial followers. It is necessary to have a minimum audience for our content to begin to circulate. To grow our number of followers on Instagram we use the same methods that you probably already know from Twitter:
Following profiles from our same field or niche – some will return the follow -. The key to success is following the right people. A good starting point can be the competition's followers and prescribers.
By “liking” the content of other users, they may follow us when they realize our existence.
Starting a conversation with other people through comments on posts.
7. Tag other users when it makes sense
This is an “advanced” tactic that you may know from Twitter, where it is customary to mention accounts that are cited in a blog or that have collaborated in the creation of content. Mentioning these types of profiles can help us achieve retweets and likes . There are also many times when it makes sense to tag other people on Instagram.
8. Capture traffic
Driving traffic to a blog or website may seem complicated, since you can't share a clickable link in the text of a photo. What to do then? A good formula is to mention the post in the text and invite users to click on the link in our profile. Experience tells us that it works.
Another way to do this is to put the link in the text and ask users to copy-paste it . It also usually works, although with this version it is more difficult to track, since the clicks will not appear as coming from Instagram in analytics . In these cases, it will be necessary to work with campaign-specific links or other methods that allow traceability.
To know which of the two methods works best in our case, we will have to try both ;-).
If you're still new to Instagram, some of these tips will help you. Anything else you would like to share with us? We would love to hear about your experiences!
