How to grow your business and get clients with Instagram in 2022
When I set out on my business journey, I knew I had to get involved in social media.
But what to choose from? Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Tumblr, Pinterest, TikTok (not that TikTok existed when I started, but it's just another one to add to the list!) … it goes on.
I’d heard from many successful business owners to not spread yourself thin, but pick a couple of platforms and be really good at those. This advise felt good for me to take, because honestly, I didn't have the time to tackle all of those different social platforms.
I knew straight away that I wanted to utilise Instagram. It was my favourite social media platform by far and I also knew that my ideal customer would be on Instagram too.
Now, that’s really important: Before you read this blog about the best ways to get clients through Instagram, first think, “Is my target audience hanging out on Instagram?”. Because if they’re not, you shouldn’t be. Or at least, you shouldn’t spend much time on it.
Because, dedicating your time to a specific social media is very time consuming. While Instagram paid ads can certainly be a part of your strategy, at this point we're really just talking about organic, free social media strategy to gain clients.
When I originally wrote this post, we had about 500 followers. Here I am rewiring it 4+ years later with a few updates, but mostly we're still using all of the same strategies. Now, we have around 16k followers. You might be thinking to yourself, it's really taken that long to get to 16 thousand followers? Yup! And within those 4 years we have NEVER stopped consistently posting and engaging.
Big Cat Creative is a good example of how much time and dedication organic social media takes to grow.
The thing is, though it's taken us a long time to get those followers, in comparison to some larger accounts and businesses, the followers we do have are high quality, engaged and actually interested in our business and products.
The amount of connections we make and the amount of inquiries we get through Instagram is not a reflection of how many followers we have, but the quality of the followers.
So if you want to start growing your Instagram and getting some good quality followers to help you grow your business, read on!
Instagram Reels + Short form video
Instagram Reels is one of the most popular functions on the platform as I write this in 2022, but it is a relatively new feature and its role on the platform could change!
Right now, while Instagram Reels is new (and while Instagram is trying to compete with TikTok) they are prioritizing and rushing Reels so much that they have a higher reach and engagement than any other type of IG content.
So, if you can get on the bandwagon to grow your Instagram audience faster, why wouldn't you!
Instagram is constantly updating its algorithm, so although having a strong Reels strategy is one of the best ways to gain new followers and potential clients right now, make sure that you’re diversifying your overall Instagram strategy with other techniques that are more tried and true (like the tips in the rest of this post!)
Though Instagram Reels specifically is new, it does seem like Instagram (and the rest of the internet) is making a huge push towards short-form video content. It's undeniably captivating!
So, while Reels is one to keep an eye on, and will probably be changing quickly and often within the next few years, I think short-form video is here to stay and should be something you're considering jumping into for your business.
Instagram Reels is one of the fastest ways of gaining new followers and potential new clients right now. These engaging and easy-to-share short form videos give you an added boost in the algorithm and should be an essential part of your Instagram strategy.
Post a highly relevant Instagram Reel at least once a week.
These content pieces should be relevant to what you’re selling because the last thing you want is to gain a huge following that is completely disinterested in your actual business.
Use trending music to gain an extra boost! Instagram favors Reels that use trending audio so this will help push your Reel to more people.
Experiment with Instagram Reels trends and challenges (but only if you can make them relevant to your business!).
For a more in-depth guide on making your reels go viral, check out this post!
Create valuable and relatable content
This is a huge part of Big Cat Creative's Instagram strategy and is one of the key attributes to the quality of our audience. When you give value to your community, they in turn learn to trust your brand and your services, which leads to higher conversions down the line.
Identify your audience's goals and give them the solutions that they need. Step into your ideal client's shoes for a moment and think about the problems that they might have as well as the solutions that your business offers. At Big Cat Creative, we do this by creating informative and free tutorials for very real questions that Squarespace web designers have.
Be informative and comprehensive. Nowadays, technology and information move at lightning speed so it can be hard for anyone to keep up-to-date with the latest changes and best practices in whatever industry your business operates in. One way to add value to your community is to take charge as an authority and proactively update your audience with new and comprehensive information.
Be authentic. Sometimes, one of the best ways to give value on Instagram is to offer insight into the behind-the-scenes of operating a business. By offering an authentic and straightforward perspective, you build trust and relatability with your audience.
Share positive inspiration. One of the best things about social media is that you can really foster a supportive community of like-minded individuals. Whether you're giving examples of success stories from your community or simply offering words of encouragement, positive vibes are always a sure way to go.
Master Caption Writing
Instagram is all about connection and people love to get to know you on Instagram. I follow a lot of businesses and influencers on Instagram that are incredibly successful, and the majority of them are excellent at writing long captions telling stories about their life, business and struggles.
This type of storytelling makes you feel connected to them, and you feel like you know them. Obviously, you don’t know them, but that’s the magic of Instagram. You can utilise your caption to really connect with your audience. Although it can seem a bit strange at first, like you’re talking to a brick wall, it's worth it, and you’re not. Your followers will really love to read that stuff.
A really good example of someone who does this well is @jennakutcher. Not only is her feed beautiful, she always has a great story to tell with each picture.
Structure your captions like a hamburger:
The top bun should start with a strong hook. This needs to compel your audience to stop scrolling and actually read.
The meat (or non-meat) center should contain the value, information, or story that you’re offering. Make it easy to scan with bullets, emojis, and clear spacing.
The bottom bun is where your call to action lives. This is where conversion happens. If you want your followers to reach out about your services, this is where you should prompt them to do so!
Write your captions with your call-to-action (CTA) in mind.
Take engagement a step further by asking your audience a question, requesting that they bookmark or share your post, or asking them to check out your bio for more information about your offerings. Writing your caption with your CTA in mind ensures a more cohesive post and keeps your services top-of-mind.
Connect with your audience on Stories
Instagram Stories is one of the most intimate ways to connect with your audience on the platform. It's a great way to offer additional insight that would otherwise not make it to your feed and to share more personal aspects of your business.
Instagram stories are not a good way to grow your following or help people find you, but if you're looking to connect deeper with the audience you already have, and to sell your products and services, stories are the way to go!
Share behind-the-scenes snippets and tips from running your business. This makes your brand more relatable.
Post Q&As or AMAs (ask me anything-s) to better understand your audience and their needs. You can share your responses publicly or respond more personally via DM.
Leverage stickers, gifs, polls, and music to make your stories more engaging.
Re-post stories from your community. This encourages more engagement and builds a sense of appreciation.
Get personal! People love watching stories for the human factor. Maybe what you think you're doing is boring, but I bet your audience would enjoy watching (just think of how many instagram stories of other people you watch, and what you enjoy watching). This ultimately builds trust, and will help create a solid audience and more paying clients.
Sell yourself and your products. If you're showing up regularly, don't be afraid to show off what you're selling.
Have a High Quality Cohesive Feed
While not as important as it was in 2017, having a cohesive feed is still important, especially if you're a designer or creative of some sort. It allows new potential followers to see at a glance exactly what you’re offering. Your content should center around your business’ offers and add value in a way that engages your audience.
Post high quality images, videos, and graphics (that means not fuzzy or pixelated). Each content piece should look like it belongs on your feed and speak to a content topic that your business addresses.
Try to keep to a color scheme throughout your feed.
If you’re using filters, use the same filter for every photo, this keeps everything looking cohesive. Similarly, if you’re editing your photos on the computer, try to use the same editing techniques for each of your photos.
You can plan for what your feed will look like with an app like Later or Planoly. These cool tools allow you to upload and rearrange your photos in your grid and they both offer free plans - bonus!
Instagram search-ability & SEO
Instagram has recently revamped their search engine and now has a bigger role in discoverability. Here are some tips to boost your rankings in Instagram’s search function:
Add a good profile picture that reflects your brand. Either a logo, or a professional photo of yourself.
Add a keyword in the section that asks for “Name.” For example, rather than simply setting your name to “Michelle Jones,” adding your services/products here (eg “Squarespace Website Templates”) in that section instead will increase your chances of ranking for relevant search terms.
After that short description, add a longer description (with keywords) about your business that will attract your ideal audience. Who are you and how are you helping? There’s a 150 character limit, so you’ll have to keep it short and sweet! You should spruce this up with some emojis and line breaks.
Instagram is now using captions and even text WITHIN your instagram graphics as keywords for search. So, make sure you add your keywords to your graphics, caption and hashtags (if you're using them - more about those below)
If you're a local business, make sure to add your location wherever you can! This is a huge search factor for people looking for someone locally.
If you want to go the extra mile, consider adding alt text to your images. This not only makes your content more accessible, but gives Instagram’s algorithm a better understanding of what your content conveys.
Use Hashtags mindfully
If you have anything to do with social media, you know what a hashtag is. These used to be one of the main ways to get found on Instagram - this isn't the case anymore.
Instagram has recently upped their search function, and now when you search, Instagram searches through hashtags, captions and even text within your images and graphics. This means that hashtags aren't as important as they once were for getting discovered.
Because Instagram wants to continue to improve their search function, they are recommending less, more specific hashtags.
Gone are the days of cramming 30 irrelevant hashtags into your post in the hopes that you'll get discovered. All this will do is confuse up the Instagram search algorithm and probably will ruin your reach.
Use less, more relevant hashtags.
While you can technically still use up to 30 hashtags per post, using all of these is no longer recommended, only use hashtags if they are relevant, don't worry so much about the number.
Use words that you want to be found for, especially if you haven't already used these words in your caption.
Use a hashtag ladder by mixing in some broader hashtags for more reach and smaller ones that are more niche-specific. Eg, if you're a photographer, a broad hashtag would be #photography, and something more niche specific would be #portraitphotographykansas (obviously, this actually needs to relate to you!).
Make sure to use any hashtags within your caption, NOT within the first comment of the post, as it has recently been announced that putting them in the first comment doesn't work anymore.
Engage
This one’s really important for building those connections with other business owners and potential clients.
I have made a lot of great business relationships through Instagram, and also met a lot of people who have turned out to be clients. Many people overlook this step because it’s so time consuming, but for me it has been one of the most useful techniques for client acquisition.
If you're being honest with yourself, you probably spend too much time scrolling through instagram anyway, so you might as well make it worth while!
Comment on people’s posts and really mean it, engage with their caption and write a meaningful response.
Especially try to engage with those that look like they could use your services, but be genuine about it and try to build a real Instagram relationship with them.
Watch and reply to people’s stories, as this goes directly into their IG inbox.
Replying to people's comments on your post, especially if they are genuine comments (not just spam), is a good way to be social and engage. If they leave you a compliment, say thanks! It’s awesome to hear back from someone, and unless you have 10’s of thousands of followers, you should be able to do this pretty quickly and easily.
If you show people enough comment love, most people will show it back. This is extremely helpful as Instagram favours posts that have more comments (comments are more valuable than likes) and will push your post up the feed so more people see it. Bonus!
Post regularly and consistently
This is one of the most tried and true instagram "strategies". Post frequently, and post consistently.
How many times you post depends on your goals. Instagram notably favors those who post most often, and there's businesses out there who are posting multiple times a day, every day 😳. While this is awesome, it's not realistic for most small businesses.
Posting 3-5 times a week is potentially a more sustainable strategy in the long-term as you'll be able to be more consistent. And like I said before, consistency is key!
Being consistent over the long term is going to do so much more for you than a couple of viral posts.
Choose how many posts is realistic and manageable for you per week, and stick to that plan every week!
Plan your posts
Planning your content, social media and all marketing ahead of time is a huge time saver and will help you be much more consistent with your posting.
Sit down for a couple of hours once a week, or once per month, and gather the content you want to post.
Your instagram content strategy should tie in to your overall business strategy. It should specifically address your niche and ideal client.
Then, put it into a scheduling tool. We love Later, Planoly, or even just Facebook Creator Studio to plan our social content.
If your posts are planned for the week/month, then you won’t forget or avoid them, which will make you reliable and consistent!
Our Go-To Tools & Techniques for Scheduling Content
How I Batch & Schedule my Work Week as a Small Business Owner
These are all of the tips we have used to grow our instagram following and get new clients and customers. Our followers are growing slowly every day through our consistent effort, but we are also growing a dedicated audience, making connections, providing value and most importantly, making sales.
So, start applying these strategies and I can guarantee your Instagram will start to grow! There's no quick fix with Instagram, or any social media platform, and it’s a true test of patience. But your hard work and hustle will definitely start to pay off, consistency is key!
Speaking of, make sure to follow us over at @bigcatcreative and send us a DM if you enjoyed this post!
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