Instagram is continuously evolving and so do we, when I created my page, during the initial stages my reels were barely getting views, but after we tried to understand what the algorithm wants, things became easier and now Instagram pushes our reels because all we do is keep the algorithm Happy.
Now that doesn’t mean you need to follow the algorithm blindly but we need to make sure to follow some strategies to keep Insta algo happy. So in this post I’ll share 5 ways that were really helpful for me to get my first 1k impressions during the initial stage of my page.
A common mistake content creators does is they rush for million impressions but instead they should be focusing on the content quality because Thousands of impressions eventually lead to millions but only if your content is pure. lets see how it works
1. Create Reels in Parts
If you thing your content is more aligned towards Storytelling or long form content, then you should create the reels in Parts, this will engage the users if they truly like your content they will follow you to follow up with the Part 2 of the reel.
When you create Reels that are part of a larger story or educational topic, you’re encouraging your followers to come back for the next part. Here’s why it works so well:
- Stronger Community Building: This strategy help you to create a sense of community. When followers know that they can engage with content in a serialized way, it gives them a reason to stay loyal and invested in your content. They start feeling a connection to your ongoing story or educational series.
- Keeps Users Coming Back: By teasing the second part of your video at the end of Part 1, you generate anticipation. If viewers are really interested in your content, they will follow you to stay updated for the Part 2.
- More Engagement: When you encourage viewers to follow you for the next part, you’re not only building anticipation but also increasing your engagement rate. People are more likely to engage with your content if they know there’s more to come.
Its about experimenting, whichever thing works on your content, apply that and give it at least a week or two for the conclusion.
2. Power of Instagram “Stories Highlights”
Yes Instagram stories disappears in 24hrs but Stories Highlights are permanent. Many creators overlook this feature, but it’s an excellent feature to add the best content easily accessible to unique profile visitors. if anyone visiting your profile for the first time and can lead to more interactions, like saves and shares. It helps the algorithm understand your account’s value and can keep people on your profile longer.
If you create different categories of content then you can create multiple Stories Highlights. Some of the common Highlights can be “FAQs,” “Tutorials,” “Behind-the-Scenes,” and more. It totally depends on the type of content you create.
Also Read: 7 Essential After Effects plugins for Beginners
3. Post When Your Audience Is Most Active
This is very important to note that Instagram’s algorithm gives early engagement a lot of weight. If your post starts getting likes, comments, saves, and shares within the first 30–60 minutes, it’ll be higher chances for your post to be pushed to a wider audience through Explore or Reels tabs
Instagram provides pages with Professional Dashboard but only few creators utilize this tool. So if you know your audience better you will surely succeed.
To Find the Best Time to Post:
- Switch to a Professional Account (if you haven’t already) It’s free and gives you access to Instagram Insights.
- Go to Insights > Total Followers > Most Active Times.
- You’ll see a breakdown of when your followers are most active by day and hour.
4. Use Instagram’s Native Features In Reels
If you create a reel and want to know people’s opinion on it, comment box is great but adding a poll in your reel can boost more engagement as it increases watch time, as viewer often replay the video while deciding their vote.
Similarly one of the native feature of Insta is that you can use music already available on Insta instead of adding it externally. In simple terms, the more you use instagram tools, the more it would be beneficial. You can add a description for your reel and add some relevant hashtags and tag relevant pages. All these small efforts helps algorithm decide whom to show you reels to reach your right audience.
Also Read: 5 Free AI tools to Generate Images of Different Styles
5. First 3 Seconds Rule & Content Quality
The first 3 seconds of your Reel are everything. Due to this infinite scroll habit, viewer decide whether to continue watching or swipe away almost instantly. That’s why a strong hook is very important. A good examples of a strong hook is “Struggling with low reach? Try this simple fix” it depends on the content .
After hook, Content Quality is important, the above ways will only help if your content has the quality to engage audience. It can be achieved with combination of Storytelling, editing, background music and visually appealing elements. It totally depends on the type of content you make, you need to create something and watch it with the perspective of the Viewer if you like it, they’ll like it.
Take your time and work on the quality more than quantity and all set!
