With more than a billion users, the most active social media community, and immense business opportunities, Instagram has incredible potential for promoting your brand. But, it all comes with a big “if” – if you can get enough people to see your content.
The viral potential of Instagram is undeniable. Look at some of the most popular posts – they have millions of views. With each new like, the post is exposed to even more people. But, how do you get to that point?
How many views does it take to go viral on Instagram? There’s no set number, but it’s definitely in the millions, somewhere between 2 and 5 million. And expect to reach that goal in just a few days. But, it’s not all about views; engagement is the real champion.
When people talk about it, a post gets viral – like, comment, and tag friends. The good news is with the right strategy and a little luck, you can get people talking about your post. And we’re going to break down exactly how to do that. So, let’s start with the basics.
How Does Instagram Algorithm Work?
No matter how ‘Van Gogh’ your photo is, or if you’ve got the ‘Groucho Marx’ of eyebrows, your Instagram is just a photo album if you can’t appease the maths behind.
Instagram, like other social media platforms, is driven by an algorithm. In simple terms, the posts on your feed are sorted by how likely you are to engage with them. And that’s why your best friend’s photo is at the top of your feed, rather than a post by National Geographic.
The algorithm looks at dozens of factors when sorting your feed, including:
- How often do you interact with the person who posted it?
- The type of content you usually engage with (liking, commenting, and tagging friends).
- Timing – how recently was the post published?
- How many people have engaged with the post?
- How much you’ve interacted with similar posts in the past?
These factors give the algorithm a good idea of what you’re interested in and what you’re likely to engage with. So, if you want your posts to be seen by more people, you need to get them to engage with your content. And there are some constants that you can rely on to help you get more views.
The Strategy: How to Go Viral on Instagram
Instagram has over 1 billion monthly active users and over 500 million daily active users. And the average user spends 53 minutes per day on the app. This means a ton of content is uploaded every minute – around 95 million photos and videos.
So, how do you ensure that your content is seen and engaged? Here’s a three-way strategy:
Research & Plan
Find out what kind of posts are getting the most likes and engagement in your niche, and try to emulate that style. This doesn’t mean copying their ideas but finding a way to produce similar content unique to you.
Take a look at what’s getting them all the attention. Is it video or photos? Is it the subject matter? The style of the picture? The time it was posted? Analytical tools like Sprout Social and Iconosquare can give you better insights into your competitor’s posts.
Create Engaging Content
Now that you know what kind of content is well-received, it’s time to start creating your own. Remember, it’s for your target audience, so make sure they find it exciting and worth their time.
Instagram is more visual than any other social media platform, so your photos and videos should be high quality and engaging. Try to capture a moment or tell a story with your content – people love feeling like they’re part of something special. This could be a funny story, a behind-the-scenes look at your business, or even just a quick tip.
Hashtags Strategy
You spent two hours editing that one photo, dug deep to find that perfect caption, and now you’re ready to post. But, before you hit publish, let us tell you; Instagram doesn’t know if there is a party going on in your photo or your cat just photobombed your selfie- you can help it figure it out by using hashtags.
Hashtags are a way to group similar posts, making it easier for users to find what they’re interested in. And when used correctly, they can get you that magic number of likes to go viral.
Use a mix of popular and niche hashtags relevant to your post. This will help your content reach a wider audience and increase the chances of it being seen by people interested in what you have to say.
Generic hashtags, like #love or #cute, will not help you get more engagement. In fact, they could even hurt your chances of being seen. Millions of posts use those hashtags, so your content gets lost in the shuffle.
Summary
So, there you have it – a three-way strategy for going viral on Instagram. If you want to reach the masses, do your research, create engaging content, and use hashtags strategically. Just remember, it takes time and consistency to build up a following and get more engagement. So, don’t get discouraged if your first few posts don’t get a ton of views. Instead, keep at it, and you’ll be on your way to Instagram success!
FAQs
If your post has reached 100,000+ likes and 1000+ comments in a short amount of time, then it can be considered viral. Of course, this may vary by industry and niche, so there is no exact number. But, if you’re seeing a surge in engagement that’s significantly higher than your average post, then it’s likely viral.
It’s more challenging to go viral without any followers. But, it’s not impossible. If your content is high quality and engaging, it has a chance of being seen by people who don’t follow you. This is where hashtags come in handy – they can help get your content in front of a larger audience.
10-12 hashtags is a good number to start with. But, you can experiment with different numbers to see what works best for your content and audience.
