Are you ready for leveling up your Instagram game this year? If your answer is “yes” and you’re interested in trying current trends and tendencies for yourself, today we’ll be covering 7 essential trending strategies. You can implement them to growth hack your account, skyrocket your reach and make your followers more engaged. We’re getting messages that you’d love our guidance in this area – so here we are!
With that being said, let’s go to 7 things you should consider to use to grow your account in 2021 – what’s new and what’s getting more and more hype? Let’s see.
Finding your niche
Instagram is too crowded to simply assume that being a lifestyle, fashion, or photography Instagrammer will be “right niching.” It would help if you narrowed it down – now, in 2021, it’s more important than ever.
We’re almost sure you’re already tired of advice “go find your niche!” because let’s be honest: it isn’t as simple as it may sound.
If you don’t know your niche yet, of course, you shouldn’t let that stop you from posting.
Just test different topics, try out all the ideas that come up to your head – but do it consciously and decide which are the ones you feel the best with, which are the ones that your audience is interested in the most.
An analysis is a key to success (cliché but still 100% true). You’ll learn what feels most natural to you only by observing and experimenting.
Focus on IG Lives Streaming
In the past, people were a little bit shy and intimidated by the thought of going live. It felt a bit unnatural to sit in front of the camera (built-in phone camera to be specific), but 2020 and the pandemic made people used to on-line activities and showing up on Zoom or Google Meet calls, plus all the things were happening on-line: yoga classes, fitness classes, linguistics classes, cooking classes, EVERYTHING.
Now going live on Instagram feels less awkward, and many times, even the shyest creators decide to try. It’s rewarding!
Now let’s dig a little bit deeper: it’s also a great way to actually engage with the audience. Answer their questions, get to know them better, and make them like us more because of our smile, tone of voice, and gestures.
It’s not only on the rise: it’s here to stay.
Reels
Researchers assume that this year reels will take center stage on Instagram – this short video form has a vast potential simply because people enjoy consuming it. What is more, Instagram made reels shoppable, which means you can actually buy something that has appeared on somebody’s reel. That is a piece of big news for business owners – reels marketing will be growing fast, that’s more than sure.
Micro-influencers coming to the forefront
Micro-influencers are winning this year. Why? They most often have a much higher engagement rate and closer relation with the audience, and they are perceived to be more genuine. They provide a more niche-specific kind of growth and more deep engagement for brands they collaborate with.
Consistency
Instagram’s market is getting more and more saturated, and with that being said: it’s crucial to remind our followers why they follow us and why they should stay with us. Consistency gives your followers something to look forward to. It’s the easiest way to say, “hey, I am here, don’t forget me!”
Consistency looks different for everyone – but being consistent on Instagram is all about creating a realistic posting schedule. Yep, you have to note down your plan and stick to it. If it’s three times a week? Great. Everyday? Amazing. There is no right, specific option that will work best for everyone: you have to decide for yourself.
As long as you’re committed to your schedule – it’s okay. Plan your posts ahead: there are so many apps that can help you: UNUM, Planoly, Later… Spoiler alert: we’ll discuss which one is the best for who in one of the upcoming posts.
SEO
Search engine optimization is finally coming to Instagram. If you have a website, a blog, or a Youtube account, you already know what it is and why it’s so important (and why it will make our Instagram life a little bit easier). Because of that change, we have to take our captions SERIOUSLY. They matter not only because they have to be engaging and user (follower) friendly: now our captions also should include keywords. Keywords that people interested in our niche are looking for – it will make our posts easier to be found! Great news: it’s going to be increasing our organic reach!
Branded AR Filters
Influencers and brands create their own augmented reality filters all the time – even though people love raw, natural, authentic content, at the same time, we adore those funny filters and creative animations.
2021 will surprise us many times – but hopefully, most positively and creatively. What trends are your favorites? What do you expect more of, what should we research: we love to hear from you!
We write to inspire you to analyze your content – eat up all the information, use it and make us proud with your creative results!