Instagram Engagement Down? Try These 5 Tips For An Engagement Boost
πͺπ»β‘ You’ve been working away
πͺπ»β‘ Pumping out content for Instagram
πͺπ»β‘ Trying to outsmart the algorithm
But no matter what you do, your Instagram engagement is consistently down.
And you’re sitting there thinking to yourself:
“What the hell happened? Things were going so well! π§ π§”
Trust me when I say…it’s not personal.
You didn’t suddenly start sucking at content creation.
This happens to every online business owner at some point in their social media journey.
So please, please don’t be so hard on yourself! 𧑠π§‘
Especially because there is a way out of this engagement drought.
In fact - there are a few ways out.
5 to be exact. β
In this blog post, I’m gonna teach you about 5 things to do when engagement is down to help turn it around. ππ»
Listen to Your Insights
The very first thing to do when you notice that you’re not getting as many likes or comments as usual is check out your insights from the past year.
Try not to freak out about what your audience didn’t respond well to.
β‘Instead, take a look at what your audience did respond well to. β‘
You’re putting in tons of hard work to make amazing content.
So make that work worth your while by creating content that’s proven to appeal to your audience.β
When you go through your top-performing posts, I suggest looking for the top-performing evergreen posts. π²
Look for posts that are timeless and can be used again in your current social media strategy.
Not just some post that totally popped off because you were following a trend - something that has the potential for another life! β‘β‘
When I go through my own insights, I can see that this post I did on the word “girboss” got a record number of likes and shares. Plus, my call to action sparked a fantastic discussion in the comments.
This post was a huge hit the first time around. β‘
But now I have a MUCH bigger audience than I did when it was first shared.
So with the proof that my audience already loved this post the first time, I will definitely be bringing this one back for round two sometime soon.
Boosting engagement doesn’t mean reinventing the wheel.
It can actually mean recycling it. β»οΈ β»οΈ β»οΈ
So if you’ve been feeling like your engagement has been in the gutter lately - investigate your insights and see what you can reuse to get back in the game. β
Poll Your People
Some people think this strategy feels icky - but I think it’s fantastic. β β
The second strategy I’m gonna recommend to boost engagement is polling your audience.
Ask your audience what they want.
I think people feel weird about it because it feels like “cheating”.
Or they worry that it will give their audience a bad message that they don’t have a plan.
β And that couldn't be further from the truth! β
The way I see it - polling your audience shows that you care about what they like and that you’re listening to them.
I believe it shows an amazing sense of generosity for your audience. 𧑠π§‘
And it helps them see that you are there for them… and want to show up for them in whatever way you can.
This doesn’t mean dropping your entire social media strategy and doing whatever your audience says in their poll. Not at all.
It just means that you can start to prioritize the types of content that people are asking for.
Wondering how should you go about polling them?
My personal favorite method is to use a poll sticker and do a this-or-that series on my story.
But you can also:
- Use the question sticker
- Make a grid post
- Chat with people via DM
However you do it doesn’t matter, but what does matter is that you actually take their input into account!
That way, you’re putting out more of the content your audience is craving - and they’ll be more likely to like, comment, share, and skyrocket your engagement. π π π
Switch It Up
So tip number three is just to switch things up. π
If you find that your engagement is plummeting, it’s time to explore new types of content or new platforms entirely.
Have you been writing mini blog IG captions? Try a few short ones. β
Have you been posting a lot of polished brand photos? Try a casual BTS pic. βββ
Have you been posting a lot of carousel posts? Try turning them into reels instead. β
Don’t despair! π π»βοΈ π π»βοΈ
There is always a fresh new way to get the same information out there without showing up in the same old way you always have.
And trust me, your audience craves a little change from time to time.
It might be scary for you to stray from your tried and true successful content ideas - but it will be so worth it when you start to see those likes, comments, and views going back up as a result.
And I get it!
I used to get SUCH high engagement on my carousel posts. β‘β‘β‘
So no matter what my engagement looked like on my other posts I could rest assured that people were really resonating with my carousel posts.
But lately - doesn't matter how hard I work on them - my carousel posts are not performing like they used to.
And that was really scary. π« π«
I thought for a while there that my content just wasn’t hitting like it used to.
But that's when I realized I had to switch it up. π
So instead, I started using my carousel post ideas in my Reels.
The result?
My engagement has already significantly improved without having to alter my message!
Again - I’m not asking you to reinvent the wheel to increase your engagement. π π»βοΈ
You might just need to start repacking your original ideas in different mediums to keep your content fresh and exciting for your audience.
Another popular strategy is to try a different social media platform altogether, such as TikTok or Twitter.
Although it won’t directly affect your Instagram engagement, you’ll be following social media users to their app of choice and reaching completely new audiences.
Let’s face it - Instagram is evolving and different social media apps are rising in popularity.
That could be a very good reason why your content is getting such low engagement.
π π»βοΈ But don’t abandon your Instagram! π π»βοΈ
Start showing up on the most popular platforms and keep up with the times.
Having low engagement on Instagram these days does not mean that your content is bad. 𧑠π§‘
It might just mean that your audience is somewhere else on another platform.
So don’t sit around and sulk about your low views or likes - get out there and find them! πͺπ»
Analyze Your Environment
When you notice your engagement has taken a turn for the worse I’m gonna ask you to take a deep breath and analyze the environment.
Ask yourself:
ππ» Is Instagram engagement down for everybody? (Spoiler alert: as of March 2022, it is. π)
ππ» Is there an algorithm change coming?
ππ» Is there a new feature you’re not using yet?
And while this tip won’t actually help you boost engagement, it might help you diagnose the problem.
And maybe even take some pressure off yourself. π§‘
If we’re all going through the same problem, you can try all the tips and tricks you want - but it might just be what we have to deal with for now.
So remember…before you freak out about a low-performing post, or series of posts - analyze your surroundings.
I highly doubt that your low engagement has anything to do with the quality of your content, friend!
It can be helpful to gain a little perspective about how engagement is going for everyone in your industry.
That way, you can move forward and create content place of clarity and calmness. β¨ β¨
That being said, it never hurts to do a bit of market research.
Before you blame the algorithm or decide that engagement is low across the board, check-in and see if other people in your industry are seeing the low numbers you are seeing.
Social media strategy is a moving target. You may have a few things to work on, but now is not the time to be hard on yourself.
It’s time to rise to the challenge and start revamping your social strategy to boost engagement. β β β
Need a little help with where to start with your social strategy reboot?
Starting May 2022, I’m offering a workshop that walks you through my entire content workflow - start to finish.
No holding back.
β‘ I’m sharing all my secrets, so don’t miss it. β‘
You can join the waitlist here to make sure you get first dibs on a spot in this exclusive offer.
Take a Break
This last tip might be a little controversial. π³
But if your engagement is down and it is seriously discouraging you (and maybe even affecting your self-esteem and mental health!) PLEASE take a break.
Your health and wellbeing always come first. 𧑠π§‘
No carousel post, Reel, or Instagram poll should ever get in the way of your happiness.
I totally get that low engagement can be frustrating as a business owner.
At one point, a low-performing post could absolutely crush my self worth to the point where I wouldn’t know what to do.
But over time, I’ve learned that when I start to feel this way, the best thing is to take a step back from social media.
Sometimes I choose to announce my social media break, sometimes I don’t.
But whatever you decide just know that when you come back your creative energy for content will hopefully be renewed. β
You’ll have a newfound sense of motivation to create exciting content that will get engagement back up again…and boost your overall morale!
Remember that no matter which of these tips you decide to use, low engagement happens to everyone.
No matter what stage you’re in during your social media journey.
The best way to protect yourself from the negative effects of low engagement is to reframe your mindset around it.
Remember…your content DOESN’T suck! π π»βοΈ
But it might be a sign that you might need to make a few changes. To try new things and switch it up!
And yes - that can be scary, but it will help your business grow! π±
Growth and change are never easy, but they’re always worth it. β
Ready to get the tools you need to make content creation easy and grow on social media?
Join me for my Content Workshop in May 2022, join the waitlist now to get access to the sign-up the minute it goes live.
Keep your head up!
Low engagement doesn’t last forever.
Now you have the tools to do something about it!
So get out there and show ‘em what you got! β‘πͺπ»
Amber
A Creative Co.
I've been in the marketing industry for over 10 years... and I have done it ALL! From working in corporate America, to working as a solo marketer for a small business, to running my own Social Media Agency. I am here to help small business owners grow their businesses through strategic content!
