The Instagram algorithm can be a scary thing for businesses and influencers alike. It's constantly changing, and no one knows exactly how it works. But if you understand how the algorithm works, you can use it to your advantage to build your brand on Instagram—and boost sales in the process! Here are my top tips for mastering the algorithm and watching as sales surge:
Good Content Always Wins
There is a saying in the Instagram algorithm world: "Good content always wins." While this may seem like an obvious statement, it's important to remember that the Instagram algorithm is predictable and consistent.
Because of this predictability, you can make smart decisions about what types of posts are most likely to perform well on your account based on previous performance and data from other accounts that have similar content and followings.
While there will always be changes in how Instagram ranks content (such as through its recent move towards rewarding engagement), these are just short-term fluctuations that don't impact long-term strategies or goals. The key is to make sure that you're creating good content at all times—and knowing how each piece fits into your overall strategy.
Find Your Niche
The first step in mastering the Instagram algorithm is to identify your niche.
Why? Because if your content is focused on helping one group of people, it’s easier for your content to get pushed to that group of people.
For example, if you are a fashion blogger and have an audience of women between 18-24 who love fashion, then it makes sense for you to promote a clothing brand that caters toward this audience. Your audience will be more receptive to the message and be more likely to engage with it because they relate!
Post Content Your Niche Loves
To get more likes and comments on your posts, you need to post content your niche loves. While it's important to post engaging content that will get people to keep coming back for more, it's also important that you create a feed that is relevant to the audience in your niche.
To do this, think about who would be interested in what you have to offer. Your ideal customer has probably been searching for the same thing for a long time and is looking for answers—and if they're not finding them on their own, then maybe there's a good chance they'll find them from other sources.
If someone has already been thinking about buying something similar before they saw yours...it might just be time for them!
Duplicate Popular Formats
Learning from the best is the best way to learn. If you want to see what's working for other creators on Instagram, head over to the search bar and enter in a popular hashtag like #InstaQuotes or #MotivationalMonday. You'll be able to see exactly which posts are getting the most likes and comments.
If you notice that certain types of content are performing well (e.g., quotes or memes) then copy that format into your own post! Don't worry about creating new content because this might be enough to give your account some traction among users looking for something specific.
Be Relatable
The most important thing is to make yourself personable. Share stories, thoughts and opinions that are relevant to your audience.
Examples of this would be if you have an online store that sells clothing, then perhaps share one of your favorite outfits with a link in the caption so people can shop the look.
Or if you run an eCommerce store where people can buy products for their homes, share a picture of your home and how you use the product(s) for decorating it.
The more relatable you are (and the more human side of business), the more likely people will enjoy what you post on Instagram and want to engage with it by commenting or liking it; which ultimately turns into sales!
Sell your Product
At this point, you should have a pretty good idea of what your target audience looks like. If it's not clear, revisit the previous steps to make sure you've done an adequate job so far. The next step is to actually sell them on your products or services. If you have a strong product and are pushing it consistently, you'll see an increase in sales and engagement.
To start with, try out these strategies:
1. Be as specific as possible when asking for the sale. This means asking if they’re interested in buying whatever it is that you're selling rather than simply asking them if they want more information about something in general—the more specific you can be about what their needs are, the better chance there is that they'll respond well!
2. If you provide good content to your niche, you will see sales increase over time.
3. If you provide good content to your niche, you will see sales increase over time. It’s that simple. Identifying your target market and providing them with the content they desire is the most important factor in growing an Instagram following.
If you want to successfully grow a large following, there are some simple steps that can be taken to ensure success:
1. Make sure that 90% of your posts are engaging. The key here is quality over quantity; it’s better for you to post one good photo every week than 10 mediocre ones each day.
2. Use hashtags very sparingly (if at all). Even though many people think hashtags help their posts get seen by more people, they actually work against them by cluttering up the feed and making it harder for potential customers to find what they want when scrolling through their feed - which means no conversions!
Final Thoughts
The Instagram algorithm is a complicated thing and it’s hard to know what exactly causes it. That being said, if you follow these steps, the chances are good that your sales will increase over time. You can also test other ideas like posting at different times of day or using different hashtags—but don’t get too hung up on this stuff because at the end of the day there really isn’t an exact formula. Just keep doing what you do best, post quality content that aligns with your target audience’s interests and preferences, and watch those sales soar!