What a fun and crazy 8 months this has been since starting @angelarosehome last Spring! I had no idea when I started this account, that I would have 50,000 people interested in my projects and home DIY. It is humbling, and I have loved being able to share what I love and help empower others to love their homes also. Recently, I have been getting a lot of questions about how I have grown, and what tricks and advice I have for other accounts wanting to grow. I wish there was one easy trick, but the truth is that it takes a lot of work, thought, and hours….but I love it!
There aren’t any shortcuts, but here are the 7 things I did to grow my account...and grow it organically (no gimmicks, no buying followers, no follow trains, no follow for follow etc).
1.Be passionate about your topic.
It seems obvious, but in order for Instagram to work for you…you have to be extremely passionate about your topic. Followers can easily tell if someone is genuine and engaged. Instagram takes up a ton of time and effort, and if it isn’t something you love, you will burn out quickly. The trick for me was, I was already doing DIY and dreaming up projects all day long. So it seemed like a natural fit to start a DIY Instagram account…because I would have been doing these projects anyways!
2. Be YOU, not someone else…
When I first started my account I tried to act like a fancy interior designer. I quickly realized that that was not my expertise or interest. What I did know, is that I loved using tools and recreating expensive looks on a budget. I wanted a dream home, with a DIY budget…and that’s where my account needed to be.
3. Provide VALUE to your followers.
Now you need to create VALUE. Not to be mean, but Instagram isn’t about YOU. It’s about the your followers. People want to follow you if you provide them with some sort of value (inspiration, ideas, entertainment). I try to provide tips, ideas, tutorials, and anything that can help my followers. I try to give them information that I myself would be interested in and would like to learn and see. I do this in my photos, the captions, and my stories. You also want to be innovative in coming up with new and unique ideas or fresh takes on an old concept.
4. GOOD Content…GOOD pictures.
I say this to myself over and over in my head, and I especially said it over and over again when I first started my account. It took me 3 months to gain my first 1,000 followers. I knew there were quick growth opportunities with follow trains, and giveaways, and follow for follows…but I wanted all my followers to be organic and to follow me because they GENUINELY were interested in my account. So I kept focusing on trying to produce quality, interesting content with new projects and tutorials, and eventually people started noticing.
But I had to prove myself! At first you need to PROVE to people that you are worth following.
It’s also important to remember that Instagram is a VISUAL platform. You need to have good photos in order for people to notice your good content. I just use my iphone for photos, but I always edit my photos using Snapseed and the Instagram photo tools (brighten, straighten, and sharpen up those images!). Just keep telling yourself this…GOOD content GOOD pictures.
5. Networking and supporting others.
Find other accounts in your circle, and reach out. I had the most success reaching out to accounts that were around my same size so we could talk through different learning experiences together. People can often feel very competitive in the Instagram space. I have found that the more you support other accounts, the more support you get in return. One person being successful doesn’t have to push the others down, we can all build each other up. This only works if you are genuine in actually caring to help and get to know the other accounts.
6. Utilizing stories.
Stories creates a huge opportunity. I love using stories to help others get a behind the scenes look and learn more about me and about my projects. I try to show details I would be interested in, but not overshare. Most people don’t have an attention span to watch me cut wood for 5 minutes straight haha. Instagram is a social platform, which means it’s SOCIAL. People want to get to know YOU and they want to engage with YOU. Don’t be afraid to let others get to know you 🙂
7. Consistency is key.
People need to be able to know what to expect from you and that you will show up everyday. If you only sporadically post or start doing stories about your dog…it’ll feel out of place and unexpected. I don’t post every day, but I try to post 5 days a week and share to my stories every day. I want to be someone that my followers can count on to show up! Trust with my followers is very important to me. I don’t ever want to do something that is forced or not genuine. I always want to stay true to myself. So I make sure to only work with companies that are a good fit and that I would work with even without an Instagram account, and I only want to use and buy products that I would have bought on my own anyways!
Lastly, be consistent in your message. Who are you, what do you want to share with your followers, what’s your story. Stay consistent to that message…through your photos, bio, profile photo, captions, and stories.
Let me know if you have any questions! I’m an open book @angelarosehome
