We all have a love-hate relationship with Instagram. On one side, it has given us a platform to showcase our work, put our art in front of a million users, & given birth to new professions like influencers, it has also created a race & unnecessary pressure.
Can you believe that until 4 years ago I had never used Instagram? My sister told me about this cool platform that was all about visuals, about photographs and I was intrigued. It was such a fabulous platform for creators to get seen because can you imagine how it was before Instagram or during our parents’ era.
A few weeks into Instagram, I got connected to the foodie community. Accounts began to follow me and I followed them back. I thought it was courtesy. It was refreshing to be away from the stress of architecture since I had no agenda of being on social media. I wasn’t trying to grow or get more followers. I was just there for the joy of sharing but it didn’t take long for me to understand that as much fun as Instagram was, it was also a game. A game to grow more followers and a game to get more likes.
I didn’t want to play that game. It was exhausting.
I also realized that there was a fight for territory on the platform even though the platform had millions of users. I remember thinking that there was room for everyone.
That was my mindset when it came to Instagram and over the past few years, I’ve tried to keep a positive and healthy relationship with it.
It is easier said than done to not feel competitive or compare yourself to another on the platform. The numbers can bring out a very negative side of us and it is only natural to feel that way. The best of instagrammers, even those with hundred thousand followers feel the same, so we are not alone.
There are better ways to grow on Instagram and that is by building a community, by finding our tribe.
Growing our follower count should never be our primary purpose of being on Instagram because we know how fickle algorithms can be. When we don’t grow, it only causes disappointment, comparison, and frustration.
Why do you want to grow on Instagram?
It is important to know your purpose –
why you want to grow,
why you want more people to follow you
what will it bring to you and them?
It is important to be clear in our purpose so that we are targeted in our approach and can avoid unnecessary disappointment.
If you’re breaking into the influencer marketing world, & only a certain number of followers qualify you for it – That is a valid reason.
Influencer marketing
If influencer marketing is your purpose, then you might not only need a minimum no. of followers but you can be targeted in the content you post and try and establish the “influencership” in your captions. In this process, you will not only get noticed for what you want to be hired for, you will also attract the right audience that is interested in your content, and you’ll automatically grow.
By knowing your purpose, you’re not only growing, you’re growing the right way by creating and sharing the content that will bring you closer to ideal audience and ideal clients.
Connect with your tribe
If your purpose is to be able to create and share with a like-minded group and find inspiration, then the numbers would be secondary. Who is in that group, who is inspiring you and who are you inspiring, is what matters.
Numbers may have a small role to play if you intend to help your community by creating tutorials or launching a course. It might be good to reach as many people as possible but still, reaching the right people is more important than reaching those not interested in learning from you.
Even if you want to grow your Instagram to build a community, it is important to know your purpose.
It takes another level of strength, being secure about your work & who you are, to not be affected by numbers.
Your community, no matter how big, will respect you for this & your audience will love you.
Algorithms keep changing, if gaining more followers becomes the primary purpose, your art might become secondary.
Building a community the right way, by connecting to those who bring positivity, and inspire is the key to staying happy & healthy on Instagram.
As creators we need our tribe, a community that gets us, understands us, one we can share our struggles with and our wins too.
Growing on Instagram has its benefits but growing it the right way is essential. Whatever your reason for growing might be, there are ways you can build a larger stronger community
- Photography –
The most powerful way to do so is by creating killer content. Your work is the most important piece of the puzzle. Getting better at your art, practicing your skill and presenting beautiful inspiring work to a community that is waiting for it, is the way to grow on Instagram because there is no alternative to good quality work. Quality over quantity is the best mantra.
- Caption-
The second way to grow the right way is by making your killer content, irresistible – by writing a thought-out caption.
Words have a power and emotions. Alongside your beautiful inspiring work, take a few minutes to write something meaningful that will add value to your community. Share a thought, an experience, maybe the background of the food or anything that resonates with you. A caption can add so much to your photo that the next time you post, your audience might look forward to your caption.
- Nurture-
Apart from making your content top-notch, the way to build a community is by nurturing the community you already have. Check-out the work of your community and leave a fun or thoughtful comment. Let them know that you appreciate them because honestly, we cannot take our audience for granted. Show your community respect and help them at every chance possible. This way you will not only grow but you will grow from the goodwill of your audience.
Conclusion
To grow on Instagram, it is important to know our purpose of wanting to grow, whether it is for professional reasons, selling a course or product or to share and inspire. Once you figure out your purpose, stay on track.
Create content that matches your purpose and what you would like to be known for.
Create content that it is irresistible and give back the love and respect to your community.
This will help you stay satisfied, healthy & keep the joy in creating. The fear or stress of numbers will not impact your creativity or make you second guess your own potential.
Your community will grow. Slow growth is also growth, and when you grow your community with intention, it will grow the right way.
If you’re listening on Apple podcast or itunes, I would absolutely request you to, please rate, review and subscribe on itunes/Apple podcast. It will help this podcast reach more listeners and grow bigger and better. I’ll be so grateful.
If you’re looking to come up with your own photography process, streamlining your workflow, getting efficient & saving time, checkout my free guide called the 10-step photoshoot right here.