There are a number of ways to achieve Instagram growth for your ecommerce business, and these methods are constantly changing and have now swivelled more towards uploading more video content, like Reels.
In is worth noting that Instagram growth doesn’t happen instantly, with the average growth for account followers being around 1% a month. If you want to beat this average for you account, then you should follow these strategies below.
1. Instagram Reels
Instagram have stated themselves, that Reels are the best form of media to grow your follower base and ultimately your eCommerce business. Instagram users currently spend 25% of their time on the app watching Reels, and it is the fastest growing format. If you wanted to implement only one strategy for your eCommerce business’s Instagram marketing, it would be to prioritise making Reels.
2. Diversify your Content Format
Sharing multiple media format on Instagram is still currently favourable in helping find new followers and expand your reach across all of Instagram’s users. Simple photo posts have the smallest reach, as these will only be shown to the people who follow you. Currently all Instagram videos are turned into Reels, so video content as stated before should be a priority over all other formats.
3. Post Regularly
Growing your eCommerce business’s Instagram followers, is not only about gaining new ones, but also about keeping your current ones engaged and preventing them from churning. To do this your business should create often and regularly in order to keep users engaged. A healthy Instagram feed should be a post a day and a few stories a day, and obviously now the more video content the better.
4. Focus on your Followers
Your followers are bound to have similar traits, to their followers and the people they follow, so it is highly recommended that you reach these like-for-like followers, which will help you in growing your base at a much faster rate than non-similar, non-targeted followers.
5. Engage with your Followers
Whilst Reels can bring new followers and eyes on your brand, most new followers need more nurturing in order to convert them into long-term followers. Instagram has stated the easiest way to turn casual followers into dedicated ones is by replying, liking and sharing their responses. Increasing engagement through responding to comments and direct messages can lead to more comments and an overall higher engagement, which hopefully will translate to more sales.
In terms of other ways to increase engagement, stickers and polls are another great way to keep your audience engaged, whilst providing new content as well.
With Instagram engagement is seen favourable by their algorithm, leaving your content more likely to appear in your followers’ feeds, keeping them interested in your brand, and more likely to make a purchase with the increased brand exposure.
6. Utilise the Correct Hashtags
Hashtags are the easiest way to expand your research and are a key component to gaining new followers and growing your customer base. Having the right hashtags can aid in bringing new followers through allowing people to come across your posts through searching specific hashtags, allowing your brand to have a much greater reach and hopefully attracting more like-for-like customers.
The algorithm is constantly changing terms of how many, and which ones to use. Instagram allows you to large number of hashtags, but has stated for feed posts that between 3 and 5 hashtags work best in describing your products or your business to your potential customers.
Using the most popular hashtags, is not necessarily the best way to achieve growth. The best way to utilise hashtags, is to use more niche and targeted hashtags with fewer Instagram posts and there will be a lot less competition along with a more targeted audience.
7. Have an Effective Bio
Most of the engagement criteria so far have been to do with content, but your Instagram bio is also an important factor in growing your following. Make sure your handle is relevant and clear, and make sure to utilise the 150 characters to explain your brand to your new visitors, in order to convert them into followers and ultimately customers.
8. Collaborate and work with Creators
An effective way to increase your following and brand awareness, is to work with other creators and influencers. This can allow your brand to get in front of a new targeted and engaged audience, whilst also benefiting from new content ideas.
The most effective and best creators for your business, should have similar aesthetics and brand values as your brand, in order to have the greatest impact in gaining new eyes on your products.
Instagram now have a creator marketplace, which is a great way to source great creators for your business who align and are relevant to your brand. When looking for influencers, the size of the audience is not necessarily the best at achieving Instagram growth. The best way is usually to find creators with a good engagement rate who is already creating content similar to your brands niche.
9. Stay on Brand & Original
The most important thing is to keep your brand original and even with algorithm changes, continue to focus on creating engaging content for your audience that aligns with your brand, this way is the best in insuring growth over time. Instagram’s algorithm currently prioritises original content in recommendations, which hasn’t been posted on the platform before.
10. Paid Instagram Ads
Whilst the above focuses on organic growth for Instagram, it does not mean avoid paid Instagram ads to achieve the best growth for your brand’s following. There are a few ways to use Instagram ads for your growth, with the easiest being to boost a story or a post, with more traffic and profile visits as the ultimate objective. In order to get the best return on investment from your ads budget, it is very important to target the correct audience for your brand. Targeting followers who share the same traits as your current following is the best way to ensure maximum returns on your ads. This like-for-like marketing technique can been done through utilising Instagram’s analytics, which will allow you to learn everything about your current following, and allow you to create a targeted ads to similar eyes as your followers.
If you are a new or already established eCommerce business or brand who is trying to obtain a larger customer base and increase sales, and want to concentrate on achieving growth rather than spending unneeded time picking and packaging your orders, then please get in touch with UK Fulfilment, and receive a free quote for fulfilment services for your brand here .
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