The DIY Decorator started a bit over a year ago via just an Instagram page. When I started I was more than clueless! I didn’t know why you had to hashtag. How you got followers. What brand repping was. Or that it was such a friendly and supportive place! By scouring other pages and getting to know the insides and out of Instagram, I feel that I’ve learnt how to make use of it to my full potential. And today I’m going to share my top tips for growing  Instagram pages for small businesses.

Be present. If you post one photo a week and expect people to be interested in your page,  you’re going to be sorely disapointend. Unless of course you are super attractive and take a great selfie while promoting your product or something…if you do, please send me the link to your page 😆. Post often. At least 2-3 posts a day if you can. Enough to get people hooked on your feed and see that you are socially present and are committed to your page.

Hashtag, hashtag, hashtag. They are important! They are a direct link to people finding you. I use every avaliable hashtag in every post I make. If you aren’t sure what words to use, just make them relatable to your post. For example, if you were posting a photo of a giant slice of chocolate cake, you could hashtag words like #cake #chocolate #chocolatecake #Ilovecake #chocoholic #yummy #mmmcake #willneedtoworkoutafterthis etc. Anything which is relatable to your post. This way, if someone searches the hashtag #Ilovecake, there’s a chance they will find your post and you may gain a new follower.

Make friends. Instagram is such a friendly and supportive place! I personally have met numerous lovely people who are as addicted to social media as me and who love to both give and receive support from fellow insta-lovers. And your followers will be supportive people too. If they are following your page, they are interested! I personally find that a real honor! So interact with them when you can. Be real-be approachable. Once you get to know a few people,  you’ll find that you will start helping each other out. Sharing, tagging, pointing in the right direction. It pays to make friends via social media as much as it does in real life-friends will always have your back.

Be friendly and interact. A good rule to follow in everyday life really! Reply to people who comment on your posts. Comment on others posts if you like them-they may end up following you! Always, ALWAYS give credit to someone if you are reposting their post/image. Show your support-remember that it’s not a competition. Everyone is trying their best to do what they love and being negative towards other businesses will get you nowhere. You should thrive together-not compete against one another.

Tag. Find promotional pages,  bargain hunting pages, small business lover pages. Other pages who may be interested in what it is you do, And tag them in your posts. If you are a small business selling a handmade product for example, follow small business promotional pages and tag them in your posts. You may get lucky and have them share that post to their own page which again, can get yout new followers.

Keep it interesting. Mix things up. You dont just have to post photos of your product or service. Keep it interesting by posting other things such as quotes, selfies, your home styling, what you are doing etc. A variety of posts is attractive to wider audiences I find.

Take part in loop giveaways and competitions. A great way to not only promote your business and items, but they are also a fantastic way to meet other small business owners and work together to build your page following. Who doesn’t love a giveaway? People will follow you for the chance to win one of your items and you may even get a sale or two these new followers as a result of them becoming aware of your business. Hold your own competitions when you hit milestones or be open to joining loop giveaway competitions. Every giveaway I have been a part of, no matter how big the prize, has been a success for my page! I highly recommend using them to help build your small business.

Most importantly, have fun! I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t enjoy it. I love keeping my page interesting by thinking of new things to post.  I love the interaction with my fellow pages and followers. I love discovering other small businesses and inspirational pages. Instagram has me hooked and I ain’t complaining!

Zoe – THE DIY DECORATOR