With all the algorithm and aesthetic changes happening around Instagram these days, it’s easy to feel like you’re backtracking. While your carefully curated feed might change from the 4 grid lay out and your posts may suddenly receive less engagement than before, what’s important is realizing that change is inevitable

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As a social media specialist handling multiple accounts for Performance Marketers, I can agree that the struggle can be real.

In order to beat the pack, you need to roll with the algorithm changes. With Instagram showcasing the top 30 percent of accounts in your newsfeed, your goal should be to lock your spot in the newsfeed and give your audience a reason for them to stop the scroll and engage with your content.

As much as you can’t really control the level of engagement you’ll receive,what you can have control is optimizing your Instagram page to have more pair of eyes on your profile.

Here are 4 ways to get the most out of your Instagram page:

Sprinkle in those Keywords Like they’re Magical Unicorn Dust in your Name Field

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They say a picture paints a thousand words, but in this case your bio is doing most of the talking for you.

Whether you’re a solopreneur, a blogger or a service based business, you want to increase your chances of being found in the first place.

One effective way of doing this is making the most out of your “name” field in 30 characters or less.

Your first instinct might be to put your full name in name field as well as in the username.

The goal is to capitalize on that prime real estate through keywords.

Think of your name field as the “SEO” of Instagram that your target audience can find you by.

This area  highlights “WHAT” you are/you do.

Instead of having your name field the same as your username, you can have your first name and your industry in the name field instead. ( Example - Kate : Travel Blogger) .

On our Instagram profile, our username is our brand while our name field highlights what we are. With these keywords, users who are searching  for a  “digital marketing agency”,  will be delighted to see our profile pop up! ( or so we hope :P)

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Tips for your bio

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• Your feed should do the showing while your bio should do the telling. Example : If you say you’re a cat lover  in your bio but there’s not a cat in sight in any of your photos, Bottom line : walk the talk
  
  
• Try to avoid making your bio look like a resume. You want to highlight WHAT you do, and what’s in it for them without taking up too much space in your bio.
  
  
• Using fancy lettering in your name field 𝓵𝓲𝓴𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 won’t help with SEO. As cool as it looks, it’s not searchable
  
  
• Fun Fact : Emojis are searchable! Don’t be afraid to add some personality in your name field! (this works well for photographers )
  
  
• You want your bio to give users a) a reason to follow you and  b) what they can expect from you. You only have 150 characters, so make each word count!
  
  
• Be as specific as possible in your CTA. Tell users what they can expect by clicking on the link. Example : Instead of saying “new blog post” emphasize what’s in it for them : “5 tips on how to travel smarter” .

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Tag Accounts on your Instagram Photo (not in your Comments)

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One effective way of getting attention from a brand or person you follow is by tagging them.

What about if you’re tagging a brand with a huge following? 

With Instagram giving you only 5 hours of notification at a time, chances are your 2 am tagged post may get lost in the realm of likes, comments from the big league accounts.

What’s an instagramer to do?

Tag the person in the PHOTO and NOT in your caption with your hashtags.

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By tagging them in the photo, you’re allowing them to get a notification that’s visible in their tagged section on their profile page:

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Hashtagging your Way to the Top 9

If you’re a brand new account that’s joined the Instagram community ,congrats! You’re officially joined the rest of us hashtag addicts. In comes the research now!

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When you’re first starting out, you might be tempted to use popular high volume hashtags for your Instagram theme like “travelgirl” or “travel” to get more eyeballs on your content
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The reality is,  if you don’t have a following yet, your first couple of posts might not even be seen in the hashtag feed.

Once your posts start being recognized by Instagram and its users , your best bet is to be a big fish in a small pond (instead of a small fish in a big pond).

What this means is to aim for small density hashtags with medium high frequency instead of using popular hashtags that your content will get buried in.

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Low density hashtags are more specific to a niche and will attract your target audience. It also means you have a better chance of standing out from the crowd and be seen for a longer period of time in the hashtag feed.

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End result? Getting that prime real estate spot in the top 9 :

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ADDITIONAL HASHTAG TIPS :

• Pay attention to the frequency of the new posts coming in on every hashtag. If there's a new post every 10 seconds, chances are you content won’t be visible very long. Aim for hashtags that have new posts that come in every few minutes and hourly.      
                                
• To get a good chance of ranking in the top 9, post in hashtag feeds that have a volume of less than 10k. Once your following starts to grow, you can aim higher

Post More Video Content

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As much as video may have killed the radio star, it didn’t kill the Instagram Star.

In fact, have you noticed how video and IG stories are prominently displayed at the top of your explore feed?

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It’s no coincidence that Instagram is trying to encourage you to stay longer on the platform. One way of doing so is through watching videos.

Here’s some food for thought: If you want to get on Instagram’s good side and be one with the algorithm, why not take part in creating engaging videos on your feed instead?

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Key Takeaways :

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• If you want to be found on Instagram search, plug in keywords that are related to your niche/target audience in your name field
  
  
• Your name field should highlight WHAT you are, while your username is WHO you are
  
  
• Avoid using fancy letting in your name field, it’s not searchable
  
  
• If you want to get the attention of a large account on Instagram, tag them in your photo NOT in the comments/caption
  
  
• When building an IG account, aim for small density hashtags with medium high frequency (  big fish small pond )
  
  
• With Instagram prioritizing video content, create and post more videos that aligns with your profile’s theme

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