Zsoka here from DimNiko Agency. 

As promised, I’m back with part 2 on building a stress-free instagram plan. 

If you haven’t read my first article, you already know the importance of creating a solid base for your content strategy. 

It takes time, but it’ll be the cornerstone of sustainable growth. 

From the first article, you already learned how to create a monthly instagram plan and what type of content to create to keep your feed interesting and engaging. 

Read More: FACEBOOK VS INSTAGRAM, What is best for your business?

In part 2, I’ll provide insight into the Instagram Algorithm and how it works. 

Not that anyone knows exactly how it works since it’s a well-guarded secret to keep the playing field even. 

After working with 100s of eCommerce brands, we’ve learned a thing or two about how the algorithm works. 

Let’s start with Hashtags

Hashtags: 

If you don’t have a significant follower base, it’s very important what hashtags you choose. 

Hashtags will help increase visibility and show your post to your target audience. 

How do you find the best ones to use? 

Research – research – research!

For example, let’s say you’re selling a digital course on painting. 

1. Start typing your main keywords into the search field of Instagram. Make a list of the best ones. Select not only the big follower based hashtags (these will be the most competitive), but also the medium sized ones as well. Perhaps even less, this will depend on your niche.
   
   Save your selection into a note on your phone, so next time when you post it can be easily selected and choose a mix of relevant keywords for the day. 

Tip: Don’t forget to mix the hashtags. Use a mix of keywords so your content can be seen further. 

Never use hashtags like ‘follow4follow’, ‘like4like’, etc. These are red flags telling Instagram that you want to grow fast and not necessarily organically. 

2. Look at your competitors, famous influencers, brands, or industry leaders who are working in your niche. Their top posts will have insight into hashtags to use and might allow you to reach their followers. 

3. Build your own hashtag! Use your own keywords with all your posts. For example: #learn2paint – then encourage your followers to post with the hashtag for a chance to be featured in your stories. This is an easy way of spreading your main message. 

Now let’s say you followed everything above and your post was displayed to a bunch of people – who are your future customers. 

What’s next? 

These people can do a variety of things which will tell Instagram how good your content is. 

The more visitors engage, the better. 

They can like, comment, share, or save – all of these actions will tell the IG algorithm to show it to more people since it’s considered valuable content. 

And, if more engagement continues – IG will place your post at the top of similar hashtags or the explore page bringing a huge influx of followers. 

And what about content? 

Again, you already learned from our “Stress-free Instagram” post, which post types you can use to keep your Instagram feed fresh and diverse. 

Once you’ve started this strategy, you’ll want to start analyzing results. 

Check what posts received the most likes, comments, shares, and try to understand what caused the success. 

Was it the ‘behind the scenes’ post? ‘Tip of the week’ post? Personal Insight? 

Knowing what caused the engagement will help you create similar posts that your followers will resonate with to the same degree. 

The quality of your account will grow and will cause more publicity from the Instagram side. 

More followers = more business. 

Next time, I’ll share some tips on dynamic content, video posts, and will come back with some IGTV tips – stay tuned! 

If you followed our instagram plan outline, hit the reply button and let us know!