Why You’re Losing Instagram Followers and How to Fix It
It can be disheartening to see people unfollow you on Instagram. We work hard to make connections with readers and wonder, “What went wrong? How can I fix this?”
I’m going to share six reasons why readers are unfollowing you and what you should do instead to grow a solid audience on Instagram.
Posting Inconsistently
I’ve had authors tell me that they don’t want to “bug” their audience with too many posts on Instagram. So they might post once or twice a week. Or they only post when they feel like it or have something to promote. This isn’t the best strategy to keep your readers around or engaged.
When you show up consistently for your audience they will show up for you. In fact, when you post inconsistently, it only hurts you.
When you post only a few times a week it trains Instagram’s algorithm to not make your posts visible in your follower’s feeds. If you go days without posting your readers will engage with other people’s content. This will retrain your reader’s algorithm to show less content like yours and more of what they are engaging with. So your posts will become less and less visible.
And why should someone follow you if they don’t know when you’re going to show up?
Try this instead:
I know you might think that posting every day is impossible, but it’s something you can schedule ahead of time. When you post consistently you increase your chances of staying in your reader’s algorithm. And it actually takes less time than you might think!
I have a post where I actually show you how to schedule a weeks worth of posts in 30 minutes. It’s a huge timesaver and will help you stay consistent.
Not Engaging Enough
Many authors assume that engagement means conversations on their own profile, but that’s only the half of it. Yes, you want to create conversations on your own posts but you also need to interact with others on THEIR profiles as well.
If an author sits and waits for readers to come to them they will be waiting for a long time. On Instagram, it’s important for authors to like and comment on other people’s posts as a way to introduce themselves and to increase engagement.
Try this instead:
Spend 5-10 minutes a day leaving genuine comments and liking other people’s posts. Pick 3-4 hashtags that you feel your ideal reader uses and respond to posts that catch your eye.
In episode six of the Book Marketing Simplified podcast I share different conversation starters and other ways that you can use to increase engagement. It’s a quick episode that is full of great information.
Not Focusing on Your Ideal Reader
If you’re losing followers on Instagram, there’s a very good chance that you’re posting content that your ideal reader isn’t interested in. If you share a random collection of posts without any direction or intention, you’ll lose followers.
You need to remember that when someone visits your profile, they are asking themselves, “What’s in this for me? What will I gain or learn from following them?”
Try this instead:
Identify your ideal reader and run everything through the filter of, “Would they respond to this? Would they find this funny? Is this something they are struggling with?” When we focus on talking to one person - your ideal reader - it makes figuring out what to post so much less intimidating AND it helps to create posts that your ideal reader WILL respond to and connect with.
In episode three of the Book Marketing Simplified podcast we discuss how you can discover who your ideal reader is. And if you want to go deeper, download our FREE Book Marketing Blueprint to get you started.
A Misleading or Non-Existent Bio
Your bio is a five second pitch to show readers why they should follow you on Instagram. It’s one of the most important features on your profile. Yet I see so many authors leaving it blank or not using it correctly.
If you don’t give readers a heads up in your bio of what kind of content you share, what they can expect from you, or what they will gain from following you, you’ll lose their attention.
Try this instead:
Writing a bio that hooks readers from the start isn’t as difficult as you might think. I have a full tutorial and a bio formula that makes the process so much easier.
Not Using Hashtags
Think of hashtags as a filing cabinet for Instagram. They help keep content organized and discoverable. Posts that use a specific hashtag are put within that “file.” When your ideal reader searches for that hashtag, they can easily scroll through all the posts that use it.
When authors use the wrong hashtags, it keeps them from getting in front of the right people. Hashtags are also one of the best ways to boost engagement. So if you aren’t using any hashtags, that might be why you’re losing followers.
Try this instead:
Hashtags aren’t as intimidating as you might think. In fact, if you put just a little bit of research into it you’ll have a list of relevant hashtags to turn to when you need them. Here’s how you can best use hashtags.
Being Too Promotional
Instagram and all social media outlets work best when we focus on connection, not promotion. Yes, we can talk about our books, let people know about them, and where they can purchase them. But when we only use instagram as a promotional tool, it will drive people away from your profile.
Try this instead:
Create content buckets. When you don’t have parameters around what you should post on social media, it’s just too vast and you feel overwhelmed with options. And it makes you tend to only talk about your book and look overly promotional. I have a full post on how to create and use content buckets to help you create posts that will help you stay on track.
If you make these simple adjustments, you’ll see readers stick around for more!
But before I go, I’m going to let you in on something that might shock you. I’m happy when I see people unfollow me on Instagram.
Why, you ask? First of all, my focus is to help people who WANT to be connected to my account. So if they aren’t getting what they want or need from my posts, it’s totally fine to unfollow me.
Second, when people unfollow me, I’m really narrowing down who my true community is. I want to communicate with my ideal readers and share information that will make them and their writing career thrive.
And finally, it helps me to not focus on the number. The number of followers that you have isn’t as important as the quality of that connection.
Having people unfollow your account isn’t always a bad thing. It’s going to happen, and that’s OK. Just remember that you’re honing in on your true audience!
And if you want more guidance and know what to post to reach your goals, I’ve got something for you. Download my FREE What Authors Can Post Before You Publish - it’s a game changer!
