How to Increase Your Instagram Engagement: Tip #2

TIP #2: PROVIDE VALUE

There's a lot of competition when it comes to grabbing the attention of Instagram's 800 million daily users. Grammer's are continuously scrolling through their feeds searching (with extremely short attention spans) for meaningful content and stories. So how do you create a post that will "stop the scroll"?

Well, as you know, in this day and age, that is not necessarily an easy task. People are so accustomed to ads and sales tactics that they gloss over them like it's white noise, especially when it comes to super spammy and sales-y content. What a yawn fest! Also, those posts are generally annoying. Please stop interrupting my day with these lazy salesman tactics--they do not work. Also, for the sake of your company and soul, do not, and I repeat, do not use clickbait schemes, they are the absolute worst. Instead, what you need to do is find out what your audience and customers want. Ask yourself, why are they on the platform to begin with? The simple answer to this question is quite universal; it's to connect. 

So how do you create a connection, you ask? Well, I'm going to break it down for you with this very literal and cliche metaphor--think of it like your best friend group. You have the goofy, funny friend that's the life of the party who makes you laugh and dance and get wild--that friend is your entertainer. Then you have the friend that's the trivia nerd or history buff who knows about the comings and goings in the world and who continually teaches you something new--that friend is your educator. Then you have your philanthropic, entrepreneurial, divine life-inspiring friend who leads by example with their tireless work ethics or charitable soap-box causes--that friend is your inspirer. And finally, you have that real gem of a friend who encompasses all three. The ones that educate, entertain, and inspire you. Ultimately they bring you tireless value and undoubtedly become your most trusted advisory and best friend. And while all of our friends provide some sort of value to our life, it's the best friend that means the most to us because their value is rare and irreplaceable and that's what you want to be in business--the valuable best friend. 

What I am saying is that to increase your brand loyalty and engagement, we want to encompass all three core objectives; inspiration, education, and entertainment into our posts. By doing so, you are sure to attain that irreplaceable-best-friend-forever value on your platform and ultimately increase your engagement! 

Below I will give examples of each. Once you learn these, if you haven't already, read our first tip on how to increase your engagement TIP # 1: MAINTAIN A SCHEDULE, in order to take these created posts and implement them into your content calendar! 

Okay, here are examples for you. . .

EDUCATE

Give your customers + audience practical advice, tips, new industry information, and tricks that they can learn from. This helps position you as an expert in the field. You're giving them value by gifting them with something and not asking for anything in return. That builds trust and brand awareness. Who do you think a customer is more likely to choose? The one that continually posts about their business hours and services or the one that teaches them? Here are two post examples that educate:

1. HOW TO’S - TEACH YOUR AUDIENCE HOW TO DO YOUR JOB!

Great digital marketing provides viewers and readers with valuable, engaging content. That’s why tutorials or how-to’s crush it on social media. Instagram posts allow brands to provide quick tips on almost any topic. The most obvious of industries is the make-up industry, which has made millionaires out of teenagers. They took to social media to teach their followers how-to-do make-up like them and won. BIG! 

Instagram Example | James Charles: @jamescharles

2. NEWS FLASH - SHARE INDUSTRY NEWS!

Follow other high profile accounts that share studies and current news from your industry. Or post trivia and/or history facts (make sure they are real news and not fake news) with #tbt posts that your audience will find interesting. Then, post them to your social media accounts, with your commentary, to build yourself up as an industry expert.

Instagram Example | NASA: @nasa

ENTERTAIN

The best way to entertain your audience is to be yourself. Treat your following, as you do your friends. Share funny stories, behind the scenes content, quotes that you love. These are all ways to make your brand bigger and how to humanize you. In turn, this creates recognition, trust, and connection. Here are two post examples that entertain:

1. BTS: BEHIND THE SCENES - BE YOUR PERFECTLY FLAWED HUMAN SELF!

Want a great way to humanize your brand? Post pictures of you in your “natural habitat! By letting your followers in on what goes on behind the scenes, you help them emotionally invest themselves in your company.

Instagram Example | Chrissy Teigen: @chrissyteigen 

2. INSTA STORIES: LET ME SEE THE REAL YOU!

Stories are displayed at the top of follower timelines, where users already look daily. They also only stay up for 24-hours, so they do not have to be perfectly curated to fit your feed aesthetics. This is an excellent opportunity to record your day-to-day life, show your personality, what your office looks like, silly memes, or quotes...honestly, the list is endless, which is the best opportunity to showcase your personality.

Instagram Example | Will Smith: @willsmith

INSPIRE

The whole purpose of a social media platform is to create inspiration by sharing stories. Brand messaging is essential, but it is not everything; instead, share it in the form of a story to communicate. By becoming a story-teller, you can automatically increase your engagement rate.

1. IGTV - BROADCASTING...

Unlike videos uploaded straight to Instagram, your IGTV videos can be 10-60 minutes long. However, it's also important to note that IGTV needs to be well thought out and planned. It lives on your channel, so if you want to have an interview series, a product video description, an inspiring story series, this is where you can do it. It's inspiring and creative--virtually it's your very own TV Network--and if done right, can move mountains for your business. 

Instagram Example | Jay Shetty: @jayshetty

2. PODCASTS - TIME TO INTERVIEW LIKE-MINDED PEOPLE!

Podcasts are great because they appeal to the individual on the go--so it's convenient for your audience. For us at SPR, we are Angelenos (Los Angeles babes), so podcasts are especially important due to our commutes in traffic. The greatest thing is cross-promoting your podcast onto your Instagram. You can create content out of episode clips, quotes, or important announcements about upcoming guests. It's just a great way to bring attention to your brand and improve your credibility with your audience. Through providing tips and tricks to your audience, listeners can develop clear takeaways to use for building their brands. Especially if you are using your podcasts as an interview platform with industry experts because not only are you providing value to your audience but at the same time, you are gaining some of their following. It's a win-win! 

Instagram Example | Oprah: @supersoul

CONCLUSION

I hope we gave you enough information about why it's essential to create value on your posts. These are the types of posts people will save and share. Those are the two most significant ways to reach an organic audience, increase your following, and ultimately up your engagement game! The audience you build on social media isn't going to continue to follow you just because you're there! However, providing consistent value to them until they come to know, like, and trust you and are willing to engage with you is how you build "brand loyalty." Remember, the "brand" is YOU – not your business or products – and the way to attract and keep customers loyal to YOU is by making them feel connected. Be their best friend!

 ...Stay tuned for our next blog, TIP #3 on How to Increase Your Instagram Engagement: COMMUNITY OUTREACH + ENGAGEMENT