If an excellent social media strategy is a driving factor to boost your sales, then Instagram is the the best channel for you to market and grow your audience. With over 500 million users browsing the app every day, an effective Instagram strategy can do wonders for your brand or product!

While all of us are aware of the fact that increased engagement will get you with significant sales and brand promotion, not many of you have come to terms with some clever ways to make your presence felt on Instagram. In fact, only 52% of small business owners use Instagram to promote their brand, which is quite shocking considering this is the age of digital marketing.

Basically, it is all about beating the algorithm. Nobody really understands how the algorithm works, but with few tips and strategies, you can find creative ways to boost engagement and gain a massive following. Instagram keeps changing its algorithm from time-to-time, and currently, it has limited engagement to specific types of audience per post. The challenge is to beat the algorithm and keep growing your handle. Many Instagram brands also believe in purchasing followers and likes to boost their pages which largely, do very little for the growth of the brand. Moreover, there is a chance of your handle getting shadowbanned by Instagram, in case your actions do not match the community’s guidelines. So, it is for the best to understand what strategies one must apply to make the optimum use of this app for your benefit.

So, if you are serious and want to reach out to a significantly large chunk of the audience, without spending a great amount of money, these tips can do wonders for your brand. Let’s delve into details.

1. Update your Instagram bio

The bio section on your handle is there for a reason. Your advantage is that not many people focus on Instagram bio. To optimize your page, it is necessary to add these important points to your brand’s Instagram bio:

• Have a business hashtag
• A brief but crisp description of what your brand is about
• A link to your website

You can, however, find other creative things to add to your bio, but the more authentic you are in your game, the better it will be for your page’s growth.

2. Add content to your Instagram Stories, every day

We are all aware of Instagram Stories, but do you know that they play a huge role in attracting a lot of traffic to your page? Keep your IG story content-driven, if you want to rise higher than other brands. Add videos, or simply a picture of your product with a description, crisp enough to intrigue your viewers to visit the added link, or your website. Do not forget to use features such as polls, GIFs, location, etc., given in the stories to boost your engagement. An Instagram story is a priority to promote your brand’s presence.

3.    Posting video content

Instagram is a fan of video content; period. Make sure you post at least one video, in your story or your feed in a day. You can also repost a viral video on your page to drive a good amount of audience to your brand’s handle. Keep in mind to repost the video which will drive your target audience to your page. For instance, if you are promoting your brand of sneakers, then you can share a video of the same. Video content is one of the best ways to create engagement on Instagram. Make sure to use Instagram video app such as Boomerang and Hyperlapse for a more app-driven approach.

4. Focus on the optimal time to post your content

If you have a business profile on Instagram, you can see the best time to post your content on your handle. Learn to stick to a schedule and make sure that you post at least once, every day. The more active your handle will be, the more it will be noticed and more engagement it will create. Focus on creating; everything else will come, effortlessly.

You can also Google Instagram’s global engagement map to understand the best time to post your content. As per the critical date, the best time to post is usually around is 3 pm during the day and 6 pm during the evening and 9 pm at night on weekdays.

Sunday is considered the least engaging while Wednesday and Thursdays are the most engaging days. However, this doesn’t guarantee that the same time will work for your brand. You will have to keep a close watch on your likes and engagement to understand the best time for you to post.

5.    Content is King

While you can try the above tricks and tips to make your brand’s Instagram presence stronger, there is nothing that works better than posting fresh and creative content. Instagram is majorly about pictures and captions, so make sure that you keep up and well with the content of your posts—keep it clear and creative. Instead of following the content of big brands, come up with original content. Nothing works like the original. This is one of the best and most productive ways to give your brand an authentic presence on Instagram. Disrupt the industry with your creative strategies; there is nothing more engaging than that.

6. Optimum use of hashtags

Using hashtags is an art that not many have mastered. So, if you bring your focus on adding searchable hashtags, well, then, your brand’s engagement will speak for itself, with time. Also, this is so important to understand that using hashtags do not mean stuffing your posts with them.

You can reach your target audience by using fewer hashtags. Using a high number of hashtags is never a good idea. Sometimes, you can also post a picture without hashtags; let it speak for itself, but remember to add a great caption to attract your audience. Nine hashtags are optimum for one content-driven post on Instagram.

It’s time to up your brand presence

Now that you have created a platform for your brand’s engagement on Instagram and have the help of the above tips to grow your brand’s presence on one of the best online marketing channels, it’s time for you to keep yourself focused and you will soon see your brand growing at a speed of light on Instagram.