Last updated: April 2024
Grow Your Reach on Instagram with these Quick Tips & Hacks
Want grow an audience and increase your reach on Instagram in 2024 and beyond?
In this post, I’m taking a brief look at the Instagram algorithm and sharing several future-proof tips to help you increase your reach on Instagram without having to spend hours working on it!
The Instagram Algorithm
As Instagram continues to make changes to its algorithm (sometimes against the wishes of the majority) so too do the challenges and opportunities associated with increasing reach and engagement.
Recent shifts in the Instagram algorithm have placed greater emphasis on certain types of content, with a notable change recently from favoring reels to instead prioritizing stories and static posts, especially carousel posts.
7 Quick Tips to Increase Instagram Reach
Each of these tips are really super quick to do right now and will get you results the very next time you post! These are the very same strategies I use to grow organically and authentically on my Instagram account.
Optimize Your Profile
The first thing I recommend is to optimize your Instagram profile. People search Instagram to find all sorts of things from travel destination reviews to handmade craft items.
You need to ensure that you are using relevant keywords to make sure your profile is easily discoverable in searches.
If you’re not sure what keywords to include here are a few tips:
- Look for the popular hashtags that your followers follow in your niche. This is found in their following list, if they follow hashtags they’ll be included above who they follow.
- Check the profiles of your competitors or influencers in your field to see which keywords they use.
- You can also use Instagram’s search bar, keyword research tools, Instagram statistics, or social media analytics platforms to find trending topics and often search phrases related to your niche.
After you’ve added your keywords, ensure that you’ve also added a link to your website or a landing page. This means that getting found in searches can lead to more traffic to your website or landing page.
By optimizing your profile, you’ll not only get discovered more often you’ll also make a strong first impression but also increase your chances of attracting and retaining followers who resonate with your brand.
Check Insights
Now you’ve optimized your profile, the next thing to do is to check your insights!
Go through them with a fine-tooth comb.
~ What are your top five performing posts?
~ How were they discovered by people?
~ What was the image or video about?
Whatever the winners were, try and post more just like them!
You could quickly repurpose the top three into different types of posts such as a carousel or Reels and then share again.
Here are some tips to help you repurpose your content more effectively.
Create High Quality Visual Content
Simply put, your content will reach more people if it’s really good.
Whether it’s informative, inspiring, entertaining or motivational your content just needs to capture the attention of your audience and encourage them to like, comment or even share it to their stories.
If you’re a service provider check out the post ideas for VAs to get some great content ideas.
You can also read: How to Brand Your Business on Instagram Like a Boss if you need to give the look and feel of your content an upgrade.
SEO Optimised Posts
Ensure you are being as descriptive as possible in your written captions and search optimize posts with different types of hashtags.
Search optimized posts include:
- Keywords: The words and phrases you use in your posts must be related to what you sell, your niche or what you are all about – so stay on topic!
- Hashtags: Always try and keep the majority of hashtags you use relevant.
- Geo tags: Using these is an opportunity to get found by people in your location.
- Brand tags: Ensure you tag in other accounts such as suitable feature accounts, collaborators, your brand reps, and so on. I’ve written more about branded hashtags later in this post.
Don’t forget to be more explanatory within your captions. However, you don’t need to too much time on this, just try and be more descriptive in your captions.
Engage with Your Audience
When it comes to increasing your reach, it’s not just about trying to reach new people all the time. Don’t forget your current audience on Instagram. By engaging with them it’s like reaching out to them and reminding them you exist.
Make it a priority to respond to your comments and messages promptly, showing your followers that you value their input and feedback. Also, take the time to like and comment on posts from your most engaged followers, initiating meaningful conversations and helping to build relationships.
Branded Hashtags
Here’s a lesser-known tip that people aren’t doing – post all your content with a branded hashtag and regularly encourage your fans to follow your hashtag.
If you don’t have a branded hashtag, create one! It could be your business name, nickname or something very closely related to your brand or offerings. For example, mine is simply #thecreativesdesk
The idea being is that the more people that follow your hashtag the better, as it’s another opportunity for you to be seen via the feed.
Remember to add to your Reel descriptions too!
General Hashtags
General hashtags are still relevant, especially for newer or small accounts, and using the right ones in your posts will help increase reach on Instagram.
Research popular hashtags within your niche or industry and include them strategically in your captions or comments. Aim for a mix of broad (400k – 800k) and specific hashtags (10k – 390k) to maximize your visibility and attract people who are interested in your content.
Tip: keep them saved in topic collections on a spreadsheet, Google document or scheduler like Planoly, Later etc.
Don’t miss this free resource download 👇
Instagram Stories
One thing I’m prioritizing going forward is sharing more Instagram stories. I started to notice that my stories weren’t just reaching my followers but were often seen by non-followers too!
I did this by sharing interactive features like polls, quizzes, or question stickers to encourage engagement. As the more engagement your stories get the more reach you’ll get too as your stories will get shown to a wider range of people.
By regularly sharing stories, you’ll not only get seen more by your current followers, you’ll also increase your visibility and discoverability – ultimately leading to new followers.
Reels
Ok, so I don’t need to tell you that short-form videos can really boost your reach on Instagram!
So here is a super quick video post hack…
This tip is great for if you’re having a bad hair day, you’re out and about, away from your desk, or you simply don’t want to record a face-to-camera video.
Why? Because video rules ok!
Ok here’s how:
1. Find video clips that are free for commercial use. So search on Canva.com or Pixabay.com.
2. Choose a clip that relates to your brand in some way. For example, pet businesses could use a cat or dog clip. Eco-friendly brands could use a clip of forest trees, leaves in the breeze or a waterfall – you get the idea.
3. Upload to Reels and add some text and a short caption. This could be 3 things you did this week, an inspiring or entertaining quote, your brand ethos, a new product teaser (coming soon…!) or just asking your audience to subscribe to your newsletter.
4. Post it with some suitable music and there you have it, another quick and easy way of boosting your reach on Instagram.
Key Takeaways
- Optimizing your Instagram profile with a compelling bio, and relevant links can make a strong first impression and increase discoverability.
- Creating high-quality content that is visually appealing, diverse, and accompanied by engaging captions and hashtags is essential for attracting and retaining followers.
- Actively engaging with your audience through timely responses, likes, comments, helps build relationships and a sense of community.
- Sharing Instagram stories and reels for updates, behind-the-scenes content, and interactive experiences can also boost your engagement and reach.
- Regularly analyzing your Instagram Insights and adjusting your strategy based on data-driven insights ensures continuous optimization and growth.
Ok so now you have some ideas on what to post next that’ll boost your reach on Instagram. I hope you’ve found these quick-to-do tips helpful.
If you’re looking for help with your social media content, take a look around our social media templates to help give your IG feed a glow-up and help speed up creating your content.
