A guest post by Steven Macdonald.
Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms in the world and a powerful social channel for brands to connect with their audience.
It is the channel where people are now spending most of their time. The social media platform garners a larger audience with every passing day and is estimated to have nearly 1.2 billion users by 2023.
However, only a small percentage of businesses are using it to its full potential. You can use Instagram to post photos and videos, engage with your followers, run contests, create stories, and more.
Amongst the varieties of features, comments are the lifeblood of your Instagram page. Without them, you don't have a community who wants to interact with what you have to offer through your posts.
This post shows you the different ways you can attract more comments to your Instagram account and demonstrate how to skyrocket engagement on Instagram through comments.
Use your captions wisely
As much as Instagram revolves around the visual elements, there are several other factors which can be used for increasing engagement in the comment section.
Captions are one such element that can change the look of your comment section within a few posts. The trick is to use the most human-friendly call to action phrases.
As the stats suggest, you can curate your captions within 50 characters for most interactions. You can find numerous resourceful platforms to create content which can convey your story in a concise manner.
A few ideas that can help you make the most of the space include:
- Ask relatable or compelling questions
- Conduct polls on debatable topics
- Seek suggestions and opinions
- Give an open call for queries
Use niche hashtags
Hashtags have been a part of Instagram’s algorithm for the longest time. You can harness the power of these hashtags to elevate your reach and sales without appearing spammy.
Using three to four relevant hashtags attracts appropriate attention as well as comments that help you generate a buzz on your feed.
Identifying the niche hashtags may require a little effort on your part. However, using fewer but well-researched, smart and relevant hashtags can go a long way when considering the engagement and impressions of your post.
Your post ranks higher when you use specific niche hashtags. This makes it more discoverable and hence you can cater to an audience that is genuinely interested in what you have to offer. All of this wheelhouse into higher engagement through the Instagram comments.
Respond to Instagram comments
A great way to attract more comments, and in turn elevated engagements is to be active in the comment section yourself. The more you engage, the more you encourage your audience to drop a comment on your feed.
By responding to comments, you are adding the “social” element to these social media platforms, as simple as that. Your brand can use this strategy to make the most of omnichannel sales and marketing trends.
Responding to comments is a time-sensitive matter though. So make sure that you engage with your comment section promptly and don’t leave them hanging for days. That’s a major turnoff and can dishearten your audience from interacting in the future.
Host giveaways and takeovers
Instagram contests which result in giveaways make for a powerful engagement tool. Giveaways shoot your brand’s awareness with contests which involve following your account, interacting with the post via comments and tagging other Instagram accounts as well.
The planning can include etching out the rules and partnering with relevant brands. The rewards at the end of the contest get users interested in your products. You can create a community by building on this interest with consistent posts which keep them coming back for more.
Collaborative takeovers are a fun alternative to giveaway contests. You can introduce the team behind your brand with these takeovers as this creates a personal rapport with the users. Your engagement and interactions shoot up as photos with faces attract 38% more likes and 32% comments on Instagram.
Time your posts judiciously
An essential part of growing your Instagram reach and engagement is knowing your target audience. The demographic of the audience do a lot more than just defining the type of content you post and your brand voice. You can also find the days and hours when they are the most active and clock the ideal time to publish your post.
You can switch up your content calendar and experiment with different posting schedules. This will give you an idea of the best times to post for your industry and target audience. The takeaway is to reach your followers when they are active but your competitors are not. This will encourage them to leave their opinions and interact with your post via comments.
How are your Instagram comments?
Everyone knows how important it is to get your Instagram game up, but no one really tells us how to succeed. This post has covered the essential tactics you need to make a note of while strategising to increase the interactions in your comment section.
Build on these approaches by factoring in your niche and audience to observe substantial outcomes and growth on your feed.
About the author
Steven Macdonald is a digital marketer based in Tallinn, Estonia. In the last 10 years, he's helped e-commerce and B2B SaaS brands generate more than $100 million in new revenue through SEO, content and conversion optimisation. Find him on Twitter and LinkedIn.
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