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“Why is my Instagram account stuck? No growth in weeks. Should I schedule a time to freak out?”
This is a question I get Every. Single. Day. In DMs, emails, comments, and texts. The truth is this… to win with social media you must???
Ding ding ding…be social!
The only real way to do this is to become part of the conversation…I’m going to let you in on a secret…
How many Instagram followers you have *DOESN’T MEAN ANYTHING*
It really doesn’t, especially if some of them aren’t potential customers who care and engage with your business. So, how do you build a community of engaged future customers?
It’s really not that hard, especially with my proven $0.30/day Instagram strategy. Here it is broken down into 3 simple steps.
Here’s the math:
5 hashtags x 3 posts x 2 cents = $0.30/day
Simple enough, right? Good, now let’s hash out the details step-by-step.
Start by searching on Instagram for the most popular hashtag that’s related to your business.
If #90dayfiance pops up, better try again. For example, if you’re an electrician, search for the hashtag #electrician. Found it? Now we’re rolling.
Tap on the ‘Tags’ tab, and Instagram will immediately recommend rele- vant hashtags.
Spend about 15 minutes going through not only the most popular hashtags (these usually have more than a couple hundred thousand posts) but lesser-used hashtags (with less than 150,000). Both are relevant to your business and both can make a big impact.
Now that you’ve found a relevant hashtag, take a look at the most popular posts. Check out the individuals who creat- ed those posts, read their caption, look at their profile, scroll through their feed.
Launch a mini-investigation like your pup does at the dog park. Do they fit within your ideal customer avatar? If yes, like their post, and leave your 2 cents (aka a meaningful com- ment). If not, skip and move on to the next person.
Logical, yes? Here’s why this strategy works.
Think back to our discussion about ‘signals’ and the Instagram algorithm.
The more you interact with the most popular posts for a specific hashtag, the stronger the signal becomes that your business is related to this hashtag. The more often you do this with your super impactful 2 cents, the more your posts will start to show up.
This means more exposure in your community, more people seeing your business, and ultimately more customers.
“But Clarence, what comments can I leave that will be authentic or even matter?”
Well, are you on Instagram to help others? Are you interested in them? Good, you’ll find this part easy then.
Be part of the vibe. Like you would at a concert where you’d point someone to the nearest beer stand or offer to take a photo of a couple for them.
See, there’s no need to compose a novel or say something incredibly profound. Just be yourself on Instagram like you are in the physical world.Hang out, be playful, and help folks.
For example, let’s compare these two comments
“This is awesome! You should check out my latest post!”
vs.
“Wow @username, thank you so much for sharing. Congrats on starting your own side-hustle.
I remember when we just started our business, pursuing our dreams, and we haven’t looked back since. Keep up the great work. Are you open this weekend?”
If you think the first one is fine, please see me after class.
Obviously, the second comment is waaayyyyyy better. It shows you’ve taken time to look at the photo, read the caption, and be part of the community. Engaging on each post takes at most 60 seconds, even less if you have super fast fingers.
Here’s how much time you should be spending on my $0.30/day strategy:
Totally doable.
Like, comment, & engage. You are now helping grow the Insta community, and the Insta-lords will reward you handsomely by showing your content at the top of people’s feeds.
If you make this a daily habit, I prom- ise you will get results. The better your 2 cents, value, and authenticity, the more your Insta- gram account will grow.
You’re going to leave $0.30 in karma, $0.30 in community, $0.30 in thoughtfulness.
You’re not going to spam… you’re not are you?
Yelling “follow me, follow me,” is a big turn off.
By putting in honest effort you will pick up 10 – 15 followers a day.
Hey, that’s good stuff.
And if you put in more than 15 mins/- day, you’re going to grow even faster.
These are real people that relate to your business and have potential, unlike bots and spam accounts that wouldn’t know a mortgage from a morgue.
Now lean in, because here’s the best part…
Gaining exposure in your community is going to be terrific and so is growing your Instagram account. Plus, you’ll feel great about contributing to your online community. Yet, the free bonus is that you are going to learn.
Learning will be a byproduct of consuming the most popular content in your community. With the tactics we just laid out, your finger is now on the pulse of your area. You will stay up-to-date with what’s going on in your own stomping grounds.
Believe me, that makes it so much easier to create fabulous content as you ramp up your Instagram game. Is that a worthy use of 15 minutes/day? Of course!
The key lessons in this chapter → Value, Gratitude, Positive Vibes.
Spread that around and you’re guaranteed to gain more awareness in your community. Start by picking 5 hashtags. And then put in the work. Everyday.
Because nothing ever beats the work, and I know you’re not afraid of a little 👍