5 Ways to Connect with Your Instagram Followers

August 01, 2018

Engaging with new fans and followers on Instagram isn’t hard. However, creating new connections for fresh businesses and brands on the platform can be confusing! So here are 5 ways to connect with your Instagram followers, on their level.

Before we get started, here are 3 important things you need to know.

 

1. Useless Instagram Spamming

First off, there are millions of accounts spamming Instagram with soulless posts and the most useless comment imaginable. However, these dull and worthless actions make our content shine even more.

 

Taking the extra time to design valuable, relevant and engaging content for real connections elevates your potential for success on Instagram more now than ever before!

 

 

2. Great Content For Deeper Connections

Ok, so, creating great content for followers and new potential fans is the recipe for Instagram success. But what makes great content and connections?

 

Soulful communication is the start. You’re trying to connect on their level, understand what they want to read, see and experience. Then, deliver them exactly that, and more. Your posts aren’t meant to be fillers or fluff, it’s meant to be useful, engaging content. Advice, jokes, connections which you would want to receive, and respond to!

 

Don’t bluff your followers with poorly thought out content, it’s more damaging to your brand than anything else. Instead, find out the message you want to share, and base your helpful content around that.

 

 

3. Half-arsed Instagram Content

Here’s the last point. Don’t come into this thinking it’s possible to half-arse your Instagram content. Instagram followers and non-followers can smell bad writing, bad composition and laziness from a mile off!

 

Content without thought could almost be worse than spamming. When in doubt, leave the post for later on when you have a chance to come up with something fresh, exciting and engaging.

 

Authentic communication is two sided, and full of genuine thoughts and feelings.

 

Ok, so here are 5 ways to reach your Instagram audience efficiently and effectively.

Instagram Niche Hashtags

First of all, we’ve got to find our audience and potential fans, right? So, the first most important thing we must do is find their favourite hashtags.

 

Hashtags are the secret sauce of incredible growth on Instagram, but they’re also responsible for so many brands failing too! Failure comes from lack of knowledge, and lack of initiative.

 

Often newbie businesses use tags which are too broad and general, like “#business”. Instead of using something so unspecific, target hashtags which are niched down such as “#businessforstartups”.

 

 

Get specific, Get creative, Get tagging and researching well.

The key here is relevance. Relevant hashtags are keyed into your industry, niche and audience in the most intimate ways. They show you’re in touch with your customer base.

 

You know what they’re looking for, understand what their needs and you have the perfect solution for them!

 

Essentially, you want them to “stumble” across your post, and see that your brand understand them inside and out.

 

Here’s a more detailed, niched down example:

 

In our first example, we targeted start-ups and businesses. We could go further into the niche too. If we were selling courses for lean startups, we could use the tag, “#businessforleanstartups”, or, “#leanstartupbusinesses”.

 

These tags might become too specific, so it’s always important to search for yourself and see what tags are already in use. You don’t want to use tags which aren’t searched for, but you also don’t want to use tags which are too popular either.

 

To find the best hashtags, search through general related keywords, open some posts and take note of other unique tags being used. On the other hand, become creative and start a new, unique hashtag of your own!

 

 

Connecting through Instagram Posts

After we’ve found these hidden hashtags, we’ve got to come up with incredible posts that catch user’s attention, and encourage them to comment, like and tag friends.

 

Here’s a question, how well do you know your audience?

 

To make content that connects on a deeper level of understanding, it has to be intimate. You’ve got to know at least two of these three things:

  • What is your audience passionate about? What will make them talk, offer their own advice, share thoughts and tag their friends?
     
    • These insights will help you craft the exact content which will get them engaged, commenting and sharing with the world.
       
  • What do your followers and target audience dislike? This one’s kinda important. At all costs you want to avoid showing or sharing with them content that causes anger. Focus on content which promotes positive emotions, thoughts and feelings.
     
    • Knowing what’s off limits and detrimental does seem simple, it’s is easily overlooked. Causing shock and awe through negative information isn’t sustainable or helpful.
       
  • · Which trends are your audience following? Which trends should they be following but haven’t noticed yet? Part of successful Instagram marketing is being ahead of the pack at all times.

 

One step ahead of the game.

Wherever possible, research your competitors, scout around for great content ideas and turn them into your own unique version. Something which catches your audiences eye, their intellect and invite their response through a conversation in the comments.

 

You often notice hot topics on Instagram’s feed, why not capture that passion and use it yourself too? Further the conversation by adding a fresh perspective!

 

The ultimate piece of Instagram content is one which is easy to respond to, easy on the eyes, and intuitive. Something which tugs at the user’s heart, it understands their pains, wants and needs and delivers them just that.

 

That’s the fundamental trick.

 

 

Continuing the Conversation Through Comments

Whatever you post, once it’s sent, the content is in the audience’s hands. But it’s not all lost to Instagram’s void. Here are some tricks which we often forget or ignore which will turn your Instagram game into success.

1) Keep the conversation flowing. You’re on the other side, so talk to them and express your own feelings in the comments with your audience!

If they’re making a point to respond, comment and share their unique thoughts then why wouldn’t you do the same?
 

 

2) Ask them for more opinions in the comments, challenge them with different ideas or ways of doing things. Keep the questions and challenges open, limit yes or no questions because those lead nowhere.

 

This will help you learn more about them, and in time they’ll discover more about you and your brand too. They’ll become more invested with your story, and wrap themselves up in it too, becoming loyal and open to promoting your content for you.

 

 

Finding perfect hashtags can be time consuming at first and crafting the best posts and responses difficult and full of hard work initially too! But once you’re practicing each day, it’ll become easier and more intuitive.

 

Then you’ll notice followers coming to you, coming for the conversations you started.

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