So a lot of the strategies we talk about for Instagram growth are the sorts of things that you need to constantly create content to maintain. Hell – this seems to be the case for all social media growth. But what are the strategies that can help that don’t require you to be constantly creating new content? This is a vital question in the throes of quarantine.
What I want to do in this article is talk about how to optimize your account, ways to keep engagement up, even if you can only post sparsely and then also content strategies that will keep you in the eye of your fans. I’ll also break down some types of content you can put out there that don’t actually require your band to be doing anything!
- Optimizing Your Account
It’s amazing ot me how many peoples accounts lack even basic optimization. I don’t want to get into any of the fancy stuff but simply put on your account you should:
-Add some relevant genre hashtags to your bio and make sure your bio is relevant (This boosts visibility)
-Have at least 11 hashtags per post
-Make sure the link in your bio goes to your music, and it’s clear that it goes to your music. (Not just an unmarked Bit.ly or something)
-Make sure your bands profile picture is a picture of the band and is clear, not just some out of focus shot.
These things are all pretty easy to do but will all meaningfully ensure that you get more engagement on your account.
- How To Encourage Engagements
This is the other big one I see people dropping the ball on. There are two big ways to push engagements. The first is to have a meaningful caption on your photos. Make it long, tell a story, give people a reason to read. Try to add some call to action too (Go follow X, like this post, ask a question) – this really gets people interacting.
The other big key is replying to every comment. When you reply to comments people see that you’re a real human who wants to meaningfully engage. When people feel like you are engaged they are more likely to want to keep commenting – they have a relationship with you now. That simple.
- Content You Can Create When Nothing Is Going On
What if I told you there was a way to create 7 days worth of content, every week, even if your band isn’t even rehearsing? Would you find that hard to believe? Well the crazy thing is it’s true – there’s always content to be created.
The thing is – at basically any time your band can post any of these seven things:
-A shout out to a friends band
-A shout out to a classic band you love
-A question for your fans
-A meme (Try to keep these to once a week at most, otherwise you become a meme page not a band page)
-Showcasing some of your merch
-Posting an old live shot
-Posting a shot of your personal rehearsal, even if you don’t get together as a band.
These are all easy things you can run and can be made into compelling content. You just have to do it!
As you can see… there are plenty of things you can do even if literally nothing is going on with your band and you’re having a hard time coming up with content. It’s not even that hard, you just need to make a point to do it!
MATT BACON
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Matt Bacon is a consultant, A&R man, and journalist specializing in the world of heavy metal. Having worked with everyone from Glam Rock icon Phil Collen of Def Leppard, to post Black Metal titans Alcest, by way of legendary thrashers Exhorder as well as labels including Prophecy Productions and Ripple Music, he has dedicated his life to helping young bands develop. Having started his own blog at the age of 14 he views his career in artist development as ‘a hobby that got out of hand’. In 2015 he formed Dropout Media in order to better support the artists he loves. We sit here now, years later with countless tours booked, records released and deals signed, and loving every minute of it.
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