Do you want to increase your likes and comments? What about gain more followers ORGANICALLY? Do you want followers on Instagram who are *actually* engaged with you and your brand?

If you said “UM YES” to any of those, then this week’s video about Instagram Engagement was made JUST for you! Click below to tune in: 

When it comes to increasing your Instagram engagement, the FIRST thing I want you to think about is this:

Focus on how you can GIVE engagement, not just get Instagram engagement. 

RESPOND TO ALL COMMENTS & DMS

There are two super practical ways you can do this:

• Respond to ALL the comments you get on your posts, especially on new posts. Your followers don’t want to feel like they’re talking to a brick wall!
• Respond to ALL your DMs.

TAKE RESPONSES A STEP FURTHER

If you’re thinking, “yeah, I already do that”, here’s one way you can take this a step further: Respond to your DMs with VIDEO messages or voice recordings. When your followers can see your face and hear you talking, it instantly creates way more connection than words on a screen ever could.

ADD CTAS ON EVERY POST AND STORY

Another thing to make sure you’re doing to increase engagement is to add CTA’s on EVERY post. Not just on your Instagram posts, but also on your STORIES as well. 

A CTA is essentially asking them to DO something after they’ve read your post or seen your story. Think: What do you want them to do next? Do you want them to double-tap and like the post? Maybe you want them to comment with their thoughts on the post? Do you want them to comment with an emoji? Invite them into the conversation to start engaging with you!

On stories, this can be asking someone to swipe up to DM you, or adding a poll to your story! 

If you’ve never added CTAs to your posts before, start with SUPER simple steps. Don’t jump into super in depth CTAs. Take baby steps by asking your audience to answer polls or double-tap to like a post, then later down the road, you can ask them to answer more in-depth questions as they become more engaged with your brand.

SHOW YOUR FACE

Trust me, even if you don’t think they do, your audience WANTS to see the person behind your brand. I know this can be super intimidating, but having a personal brand has been a HUGE way that I have created my brand. 

When it comes to Instagram engagement, people feel way more connected to a PERSON versus just products and services or whatever you do in your business. Most people can’t relate to the fact that I’m a photographer, but they CAN relate to the fact that I am married or have a dog or have a favorite drink I drink every day (like chai lattes). 

I recently shared a photo of myself with my plants on my Instagram and it had a nearly 10% engagement rate with over 50 comments and 480 likes. My followers absolutely loved seeing ME (my face) with something that I loved (my plants). 

If you want to know more about how I get SO many headshots of myself (how I teach non-photographers to take my headshots), head over to this post to learn more!

BE CONSISTENT

I know this is something you probably hear a lot in business in general, but it seriously is SO important. Showing up consistently not only keeps you top of mind, but gives you the opportunity to serve your audience over and over again. 

I aim to post on my Instagram account every weekday on my feed (Monday-Friday), and nearly every day on my stories. I use Later to plan out my feed every Monday so all I have to do is hit “post” once the day and time comes! If you want to try Later with 10 free bonus posts, click here!

HOW THIS GROWS YOUR FOLLOWING ORGANICALLY

I know these strategies are more focused on how to make your Instagram audience more engaged, but when you implement these strategies really does help to grow your Instagram following organically. When you put your focus first on how to serve the people who are ALREADY following you, it is going to continue to push your brand follower. 

Even if you have a smaller follower account, if they’re super engaged with what you’re doing, they’re going to share about you and what you’re doing because you’re showing up and giving them value and letting them in on who you are and your brand. 

By implementing these strategies, you’re going to increase engagement on your account and increase your potential reach with your posts. 

Not only will it help you to reach more people, but you’re also going to have the ability to launch new offerings in your business and have SO many of your followers EXCITED about what you’re offering because they’ve fallen in love with you!

Don’t already follow Stephanie on Instagram? Follow along @stephanielynnkase >>