Ways to Increase Instagram Engagement
A high engagement rate on Instagram will lead to increased brand awareness, greater marketing reach, more sales and an improved return on investment (ROI). So, increasing your Instagram engagement rates should be a priority when you are using this platform to promote your business.  The good news is that there are several tips and tricks that you can use to significantly increase your Instagram engagement. Today, we will share five useful strategies to boost your engagement rate on this social media platform.
Leverage Instagram Reels
Reels are one of Instagram’s most popular features. Also, they offer one of the easiest ways of getting your content in front of a bigger audience, extending beyond your followers. And, the more users you manage to reach with your content, the higher the chances of getting more comments and likes.
Studies also show that Reels tend to generate higher engagement rates, compared to regular video content. So, if you are looking to increase your Instagram engagement, then you should be using reels as much as you can.
With Reels, you can share behind-the-scenes, real-time incidents, how-to tips or even funny content. You can experiment with different types of content and see what delivers the highest engagement.
Invest in High-Quality Images
The most successful Instagram posts tend to have one thing in common – they have a high visual appeal. The reason behind this is that such images will grab users’ attention much faster compared to low-quality images. Also, they will encourage users to stick around long enough and engage, either via a share, like or comment.
Therefore, if your engagement rates are on the lower side, then you need to start investing in high-quality images. To this end, you will need to hire a professional photographer, who will produce high-quality photos for you. Even if you are working with a tight budget, you can still manage to find an affordable one, who will produce high-quality photos for your Instagram. While hiring a professional photographer comes with a cost, it will be worth every cent.
Post Frequently
Posting frequently on Instagram can also help to increase your engagement. The more you post on this platform, the more opportunities your target audience has to engage with your brand. Also, posting frequently shows that your brand is active, which will prevent you from losing followers – a consequence of being inactive.
Ideally, you should be publishing at least two posts per day per platform. And, this means you need to be creating content regularly, which is time-consuming. If you are short on time, you can always use social media templates to speed up the process. You can find these templates on various websites and platforms.
But, it’s equally important to ensure you are posting at the right time. Regardless of how many times you publish content, if you are not doing it at the right time, then your engagement rates will remain low.
According to various studies, the best time to post on Instagram is between 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Monday to Thursday. But, these are just general recommendations. You need to check your Instagram analytics to determine when your followers are most active. From there, you can schedule your posts to go live during these times.
Including hashtags in your posts can help to increase your posts’ reach. Whenever you include hashtags in your posts, some Instagram users who don’t follow you may come across your content. And, a bigger reach comes with the possibility of a higher engagement.
So, remember to include hashtags in your Instagram posts. But, don’t use too many on a single post. A post with too many hashtags will make your posts appear spammy. While Instagram allows up to 30 hashtags per post, you should limit yourself to around three per post and a maximum of five. Anything beyond this will be counterproductive.
Also, make sure you only use relevant hashtags, which will allow you to reach the right audience. At the end of the day, the goal is to reach people interested in your content and not every user on the platform. Such users are the ones who are likely to engage.
Leverage the Collab Feature
Instagram recently released a feature that allows users to co-author posts with others. And, this is known as Instagram Collab. With this feature, a single post will appear on two user profiles simultaneously, which translates to a wider reach, higher engagement and even more followers.
So, leverage this feature by partnering with brand partners, industry leaders, and influencers. For instance, if you are selling health supplements on Instagram, you can co-author posts with other players in the industry like gym owners or those selling workout equipment. As you may expect, such Collab posts will earn you hundreds of comments, likes and new followers.
In Conclusion
As you can see, increasing Instagram engagement doesn’t have to be rocket science or expensive. The insights and tactics we’ve shared here can help to significantly boost your Instagram engagement. Experiment with them and then choose the ones that deliver the best results.
