Instagram is now the fastest-growing social network on the planet. It has the highest engagement rate (of any social platform) and helps brands achieve success across the planet. 

In other words, just having an Instagram profile of your brand is not enough, you need to analyze, optimize and improve your audience.

The best way to do this is to post regularly and reach as many people as possible with your posts. 

But before we give you some great tips on how to reach your full potential on Instagram, it is absolutely important for you to have a business account on Instagram. 

Upgrading your account (for free) to a business account lets you track and analyze the success of your posts, stories, and profiles. This will allow you to analyze your successes, apply strategies, and eliminate failures.

The Instagram Algorithm | Instagram reach 

The reach of your Instagram posts is 100% algorithm-dependent, so it’s important for you to know how it works. 

Instagram's algorithm determines where your posts will appear in the news feed. If you post something you don't like, hardly anyone will see it. 

There are many signs that algorithms affect ranking placement, but there are three things you should all know:

Engagement: Saving, commenting, sharing, and liking refers to how many people have interacted with your posts. The busier you are, the higher your rank and the more likely you are to appear on a new page. 

Engagement Speed: Having high engagement in your posts is the first sign of success. But if you get that engagement fast, you will get higher ratings and much more exposure. 

Recent: Recent posts have higher rankings than the old ones. 

Instagram’s algorithm applies other things, including ‘Applicants spend time viewing your posts’, ‘How often users engage with their posts’, and ‘Location when tagged’. As we work through strategies, let’s explain this in more detail. 

For now, though, really think about how you can prepare your posts for the first three (we listed above). 

Let's dig into Instagram's reach-raising tactics:

Engagement Boost Posts

If Instagram's algorithm likes posts with a high level of engagement, it's up to you to do everything you can to get it! 

We’ve seen so many brands on Instagram that posts are repeated over and over again at the same time (close enough). This may initially be interesting to users but after a while, they are not interested in the same type of post and as a result, the level of engagement decreases. 

There are several post strategies you can use that will instantly increase your engagement rate. We’ll list a few at a moment, but first, you need to understand the importance of diversity. 

When we say 'different', we do not advise you to change your posting strategy on a regular basis. 

Yes, you will see your winning strategies that may lean the strategy of your post but in different cases should always be kept in mind. 

Here are some post types that generate tons of engagement: 

Contests: Brands often compete on Insta and users must comment, share the post as needed for the article. This type of post tells users to get involved, and you are guaranteed a high engagement rate if you choose a good competition. 

Questions / Likes: Ask users a question on your post and ask them to respond to their comments. You can use split images from two options and ask your followers for their opinion. 

The great thing is, after a user spends a lot of time engaging in one of these posts, their next post will probably rank higher in their news feed (because the Instagram algorithm thinks they like you). 

Remember the importance of diversity before you go out and post competitions and questions every day. Use these post types when you want to increase your engagement level. Don’t abuse contests or questions, Instagram’s success can’t be built on them alone (and in the end, they will annoy your audience).

1. Time of day

As we mentioned earlier, engagement speed and payback time are two very important ranking signals. 

For this reason, the best way to make your posts better is to post them at the right time of day. 

And contrary to many brands' beliefs, the best time to post is when you can't find the time to click the publish button. 

There are several ways to do this. The first thing to consider is how well you know your target audience. Whenever we work with a customer (or market ourselves), our marketing efforts begin with creating an image of our ideal customer. 

This ‘ideal customer’ is not made up of any wide population (e.g. 20-30 years), all features are precise. Our customers really want to work with that person (like their customers) and by creating a specific avatar of their own we have been able to reach them more effectively. 

When you have a complete understanding of your target audience, it’s time to test, analyze, and optimize. Suitable for expressing this meaning 3-5 times a day. Spread your test for a few weeks, with a separate post time each day of the week. 

The day of the week will also make a big difference in getting up on your Instagram, so be sure to check out different times for each day! 

After spending some time experimentally, go to Instagram Business Manager and analyze the presence of your posts. Must have at least a couple on top of the rest. 

Use it as a guess and keep experimenting around them until you find the best time.

2. Cross-Post

This strategy is ridiculously simple so we won't go into too much of it, but if you expect to increase the reach of your posts, you can definitely make it. 

When posting something on Instagram you must post the same social picture on your other social networks. 

Instagram lets you do it automatically on Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook. Cross-posting on Instagram and Facebook is a widely used strategy. 

We recommend cross-posting your best content but don’t do it for everything. 

If you cross-post everything, your social feeds will all look the same and you'll see that some followers won't join your Insta viewers because they've already followed you elsewhere (and will get exactly the same content!).

3. Video

Video is a fast-growing medium of content on the internet and its popularity continues to grow year after year. 

There are several studies on Instagram about video versus video engagement rates. And while many of them claim that the photos create more engagement, not all of them are strictly accurate. 

Photos are known as more of a choice because they let Insta users fly through their news feeds and tap the heart button that appeals to them in anything. However, the number of comments in the videos is estimated to be more than 2x. 

Comments are really engaging and although we can't be sure (because Instagram won't share information with us!), We're not surprised when Instagram's algorithm likes comments when posting ratings. 

Another amazing thing about forcing video users is to spend more time looking at your posts. For example, if you see a beautiful picture, it may take 5-10 seconds to capture it, but if you watch a 1-minute video that catches your attention, you will spend a full 60 seconds watching it. 

The more people see your written content and put it on the Instagram network, the more Insta Algorithms will like you! If it is good for them, they will show it to more people.

4. Hashtags

Content tagged with hashtags reaches more people from outside. Simple. 

Instagram allows 30 hashtags per post. Whenever possible you should have a combination of three types of hashtags (at least 10): 

The most popular hashtags in your niche: Use a free tool to discover the top hashtags in your industry. They have the most followers, reach, and philosophy but they are highly competitive. 

Relevant Trending Hashtags: Trending hashtags are short-lived but high-level engagements, visits, and will definitely increase your presence on Instagram. Use the 'Live' section at all-hashtag.com to find the most hashtags right now. 

Branded Hashtags: This is a tag that includes your brand, product, or product name. When you start posting with branded hashtags, they will have little or no effect on your reach. But as you grow you build a community and encourage your followers to contribute as well as they can help lifeless followers build an intensely loyal tribe. 

Posts with hashtags are available on Instagram's 'Explore' and 'Search' features, so it's important to use them in all your posts, including your story (more to come soon!) 

To put a hashtag in your stories, simply add text to your image and give it a hashtag of your choice. This will increase the chances of your post being viewed by more people than using hashtags.

Conclusion

These are our top tips to increase your reach on Instagram. 

As the social network grows, so does the competition, and the best way to stay ahead of everyone else is to understand the platform and how it works. 

When you fully understand that the Instagram algorithm prefers to rank in the news feed, you will be able to create an Instagram posting strategy that works for you.