Get Your Audience Engaged On Instagram

“I can’t seem to get my audience engaged on Instagram”

This is one of the biggest frustrations we hear from our clients. When it comes to the algorithm on Instagram, it’s designed to monitor our content engagement. The more likes, shares, comments and saves you get, the more eyeballs you will get on your posts. But when your engagement is low, and you can’t get your audience engaged, Instagram’s algorithm believes that your content isn’t of interest to your followers. When this happens, the algorithm responds by showing your posts to fewer people. So, what’s a girl to do to get her audience engaged on Instagram around here?

We know it’s frustrating. When we first started using IG for business, we created content and posted our little hearts out for years only to get crickets on most of our posts.
But knowing how important Instagram is for business, we were determined to sit back and figure the shit out. And guess what we learned? It wasn’t the algorithm at all… it was our content.

In order to get our audience to engaged on Instagram, there were a few tweaks we needed to make. By making those tweaks, we were able to quickly take our Insta followers from a little under 1k, unengaged, irrelevant followers to over 5k targeted and engaging followers and we didn’t even have to show half nakey booty pics to do it!

This post contains affiliate links. That means if you use them to make a purchase, I’ll earn enough money from that sale to maybe buy myself some wine. Because I probably deserve it.

Read on to learn the 7 ways to get your audience engaged on Instagram:

7 WAYS TO GET YOUR AUDIENCE ENGAGED ON INSTAGRAM:

1. MAKE YOUR OFFER CLEAR IN YOUR BIO

Sis, your bio is your business card. This is the one place that a scroller is going to check to find out WTF you are, why they should follow you, and how following you will benefit them. If you’ve got a bio filled with cute emojis, and frilly phrases like “just livin’ my best life” as a business owner, it’s not going to come off as professional. If you want to get your audience engaged on Instagram, you need to make it clear who you are, who you help, and how you can help them go from problem and pain point to solution.

For example:

Bio A: A weight loss coach for new moms:

“I help new moms lose the baby fat so they can get their sexy back in 30 days or less”.

Vs.

Bio B: A weight loss coach for new moms:

“Livin’ it up in Sunny California. Drop it like it’s hot. No pain no gain”

As a new mom who’s looking in the mirror, in tears because she no longer recognizes her new baby bod, and desperately wants to get into her sexy jeans and feel attractive in her husband’s eyes again, which bio would get you engaged on Instagram? Bio A? or Bio B? I’m willing to bet you said Bio A. Getting clear in your bio is the first start to helping your audience connect with you before they even decide to engage.

 

2. MAINTAIN CONSISTENCY

If you’re a fair-weather Instagrammer who posts sporadically or even if you’ve gone radio silent out of frustration, then your engagement is likely very low. In order to help boost it, you need to get consistent. Showing up at least once a day (same time if possible) is a great way to help you re-connect with your audience, get more eyes on your biz and get your audience to engage on Instagram. Check your Instagram analytics to find out the behaviors of your audience and find out the best times to post so that you can ensure they see you. If you want to make consistency a little easier, use a social media manager like Later to schedule your posts. Once scheduled, your posts will post automatically and you can rest stress-free.

Grab our FREE 101 Instagram Content Ideas Here

3. USE THE PROPER HASHTAGS

Hashtags are to Instagram what SEO is to Google! If you want to expand your reach and get more eyeballs on your content, you need to make sure you’re using the right hashtags. Your audience is either following or searching hashtags that help you get seen by a whole new audience. Stick to relevant, low popularity, niche related hashtags that match the type of content you’re putting out, the market you’re in and even that your audience uses. Instagram allows a maximum of 30 hashtags per post, so I advise you to use between 15 and 30 hashtags per post. Try them both out to get a feel for what works best for you.

4. ENGAGE WITH YOUR AUDIENCE

So, you know the saying… “You’ve gotta give to receive.” This still stands true if you want to get your audience to engage on Instagram. Right before you post your content, make sure to go to other audience members within your niche and engage with their posts. Leave meaningful comments, like their images and even repost some of their content onto yours (be sure to tag them). You can and should even do this with your current followers who like and comment on your posts. By engaging, you’re making a connection with your audience and literally using Instagram for what it’s meant to do… get social.

5. GIVE VALUE YOUR AUDIENCE WANTS + NEEDS

One of the biggest mistakes we see are solopreneurs who sadly miss the mark with their IG content. Instead of posting content that serves their audience, they share the content that they love. But here’s the thing. Your business and the content you post is not about you boo! It’s about your audience. Once you know who your target audience is, what their pain points are and what keeps them up at night, you can then focus on serving them with value. Serving with value will help you show up as an authority and make your audience feel a know, like, trust factor.

6. USE HIGH CONVERTING CONTENT CATEGORIES

Sis, your content shouldn’t always be about “sell, sell, sell” that’s not only icky but a quick way to turn your audience off. Using content categories is a great way to help mix up your content and keep your audience enthused. When it comes to categories, there are 4 main types of content that not only help keep your audience’s attention but are known to highly convert.

A. Educational – Show up as the expert you are and teach your audience by providing value-driven content. This can be in the form of quick tips and tutorials.
B. Shareables – Help your audience get engaged and share with content such as quotes, infographics, videos, memes, etc.
C. Storytelling – Sharing your story is a great way to build trust and connection with your audience.
D. Sales – Talk about and share your business offer, products and services and how it will benefit your audience.

 

Also Read: 4 Compelling Ways to Share Your Story on Instagram

7. GIVE A CALL TO ACTION

One of the most forgotten actions people make when creating content is leaving a call to action. If you want to get your audience to engage on Instagram, you need to make sure you let them know what you want them to do. At the end of your caption, make sure to lead the way with “Comment and let us know your thoughts,” “Click the link in bio,” “Share with your besties.” This will help your audience take action which can help you to boost your engagement.

WRAPPING IT UP – GET YOUR AUDIENCE ENGAGED ON INSTAGRAM

Now you have 7 ways to get your audience engaged on Instagram. When it comes to Instagram, getting engagement doesn’t have to be so mind-boggling. By taking the time to adjust your content strategy and create content tailor-made for your audience, you’re creating space for your audience to connect and engage with you. Practice these 7 methods consistently and see how your engagement boosts over a short period of time.

If you’re looking to get a jumpstart on your social media content, but want to take the guesswork out of what to post… check out our social media content calendar bundle – INSTA 365. 

Comment and let us know which of the 7 methods resonated with you the most?