How Authors Can Increase Visibility on Instagram
Instagram is an amazing tool for authors to connect with new readers all over the world. And best of all, it can be done organically and authentically without the need to spend hundreds of dollars on ads.
But with more and more people using Instagram, sometimes it feels like it’s impossible for our posts to actually be seen by the right people and to grow our platform with our ideal readers.
Thankfully, the solution isn’t complicated or time consuming. So I wanted to share four ways you can increase visibility on Instagram and connect with your ideal readers.
Use the Right Hashtags
There are several tools available that share hashtag suggestions. That’s a good place to start, but those suggestions are often too general and too large for your posts to be seen. What I would suggest is to do a little research to find smaller and more specific hashtags.
Take a keyword and put it in the search field and see what other suggestions Instagram provides for you. Scroll down and find smaller and more specific hashtags. This will make sure your posts are seen and that you get in front of the right people.
Post at the Right Time
Posting at the right time is critical to our post visibility. When our post goes live, we want to make sure that it immediately begins to see likes, comments, shares, and saves. This tells Instagram that people like our post, so the algorithm will make it more visible and show it to more people.
It’s kind of like showing up to a party too early or too late. If we don’t show up at the right time, no one will be there!
Thankfully Instagram gives us the tools to know when our audience is actually most active to insure that we post at the right time.
All you need to do is go to your insights and tap on “Your Audience.” Scroll to the bottom and they show you the most active times for each day of the week.
But please note, all of the numbers are calculated using Pacific Standard Time. So be sure to adjust your time according to the PST timezone.
Create More Engagement
I always tell my clients that you can never assume that your audience will know what you want them to do. You have to be clear, concise, and specific - especially when it comes to engaging with your content. One of the best ways to do that is to do that is with easy to answer questions.
When readers can quickly answer a question, they are more likely to take action. If we ask them a deep question that requires a lot of time to think through and write out, they will most likely swipe on through.
I wanted to make it easy for you to get more engagement, so I created a list of of 70 conversation starters to get you going. These would also be great to use in Instagram stories!
Experiment With Video
OK - I know this one might freak out my fellow introverts, but hear me out. :) If you’re looking to boost your visibility and grow your audience, I would strongly encourage you to play with video on Instagram. Whether that be Reels, Stories, IG TV, or Instagram Live - video dramatically increases your visibility on Instagram.
The beauty is that you don’t need to be on camera for many of these. On Reels you can use video that you take of nature, books, a candle, etc., and put text over it. You can post videos of your dog, your workspace, your morning walk - whatever you like.
Get creative and think outside the box. Take a look at what others are doing and be inspired to try something yourself.
By making just a few adjustments, you will see big changes. The key is to try it out and to give it some time to do it’s magic. It makes a big difference!
If you’re looking for more guidance and want to know what to post to reach your goals on Instagram, I’ve got something for you. Download my FREE Instagram Posting Formula - it’s a game changer!
