Instead of asking how you can get more “likes” for your Instagram posts, the real question you should be seeking answers to should be, “how can you make your Instagram posts more likable?”
Strange as it may sound, many of us sometimes forget that we’re dealing with real humans on Instagram. And as such, when we post, we’re more concerned about the caption to use, who to mention, and what hashtags to use, without really paying too much attention to the content we’re actually sending out.
Yes, captions and tags are relevant, but in order to get people to like your posts, you need to make sure that the posts are actually likable in terms of their appeal, quality, and impression.
So without much ado, here are the things you can do to make your posts more likable.
Post jaw-dropping pictures
Like we mentioned earlier, content is absolutely king if you want to get more likes on Instagram. Remember, before Instagram became the marketing powerhouse it is today, it was formerly a platform for photographs, where people came to show off their inch-perfect photos.
And guess what? Even in the midst of the ongoing marketing madness on the platform, people still admire nice photos.
Be it a business photo, product picture, or personal shot, your posts on Instagram have got to be enthralling at all times if you want to get more likes for them.
Use hashtags
Yes, hashtags matter a lot. While the quality of your content appeals to the human nature of your followers, hashtags announce you to a wider audience reach, including those that are not even following yet.
But, in order to get the most out of your hashtags, you need to learn to do it well. Here are some strategies you help you redefine how you place hashtags.
- Don’t use broad words (i.e., #wineconnoisseur) instead of going all niche (i.e., #redwinesfromthebestconnoisseur)
- Use a very few numbers of hashtags (studies have shown that posts with at most nine hashtags get the most engagement)
- Place your hashtags in the comment, bio, and story sections. Although hashtags in the bios and stories sections don’t automatically equate to likes, they can both help to expand your reach to new audiences.
- Use branded hashtags more
Get more, organic likes
Likes attract like! If you want people to like a post more, convince them that the rest of the world already likes it. As humans, we generally tend to do things when we see that it is what everyone is doing – that is, we love to follow the crowd (with only a few exceptions anyway).
Now, imagine that you already have up to a hundred likes on your post on IG, how do you think your followers would react when they see this. No cap, they’ll also want to follow the bandwagon and hit the like button.
That’s just humans for you.
But where can you get “likes” for a new post? You may wonder. Well, it is fairly simple. You can actually buy real, genuine, and selected likes from platforms like StormLikes. You can check out the Stormlikes reviews on their website to see what people have got to say about their service.
Use relevant captions
When it comes to captioning on IG, shorter doesn’t always guarantee engagement. As we’ve seen with influencers like Caroline Calloway, maxing out your 2200 characters in detailing a caption can be all you need to get the likes and engagement you need for a post.
By and large, you just need to understand what works for your niche and how best you can use captions to captivate viewers.
Geotag your locations
Just by mentioning your location in a post, you can inspire a sense of belonging in people, especially those that have visited or have a special connection to that location.
For instance, just by tagging the word #GrammyAwards can get you so many likes, both from people who have been to the Grammys before and those who have a special connection to music.
Posts when your followers are online
Unfortunately, it is possible to snap the best of photos, tag the right people, and buy the right amount of likes and still not get as many likes for your posts as you may desire.
This kind of situation happens mostly when you post at the wrong time. Yes, Instagram doesn’t show posts chronologically, but its algorithm does give preference to recency, which means that the most recent posts will get preference over older posts.
Now, if you’re posting when the large majority of your audience is offline, you won’t get as much engagement as you desire.
To discover when your followers are mostly online, you can use some Instagram analytical tools like Iconosquare, Owlmetrics, and SquareLovin.