6 things to know about IG in 2024

2023 was one for the books, {NAME}… We had our sweet baby TZ (after which I had an infection that landed me in the hospital for two weeks) and I took over 4 months off of social media while my business continued to hit $60-80k per month! After over a decade as an online entrepreneur, I ended 2023 feeling like I ~finally~ had a business that allowed me to truly relax and go offline – with a proven and profitable social strategy… …and that’s just part of what I’m sharing with you today!! I’ve rounded up the PERFECT Instagram strategy for 2024. (For full details, visit this [blog post](=). But I know we’re all busy, so I’m breaking it down here in this email for you too!) INSTAGRAM STRATEGY #1️: VALUE FIRST 💫 Your Instagram strategy doesn’t matter unless you do one thing: Provide real value to your audience. Now, I’ve seen countless coaches hype up the importance of value, but I HAVEN’T seen many definitions of value. I define value in 3 ways: - Inspiration. If you inspire a follower to take action or have a new thought, that’s value! - Entertainment. Let’s be honest: a lot of us scroll on Instagram to kill time. So if you make someone laugh or smile, that’s value! - Education. If you’re teaching your followers something new they didn’t know before, that’s value! Every piece of content you publish, no matter if it’s a Story, Reel, or Carousel, should in some way give VALUE to your ideal follower. In a feed full of overly curated and often shallow content, substance stands out. If there is a “magic bullet” to growth on social media in 2024, it’s providing things that are actually useful or insightful to your audience. INSTAGRAM STRATEGY #2: CAROUSELS & GRAPHICS As part of an [experiment](=) (inspired by Sean Cannell), the Elise Darma Team recently posted 12 Reels and 3 carousels over a period of 5 days. 👀 While the Reels did outperform the carousels in engagement, our carousel posts did consistently get people talking (our last one had 47 comments)! Another plus for the carousel column, is that you can whip up a post really, really quickly. 🙌 In fact, sometimes we just use a screenshot of the Notes app. This can be helpful to your audience if they’re on the go and just want to scan through something. To go behind the scenes with the Team on this experiment, [click here](=) to watch the YouTube video we made about it. INSTAGRAM STRATEGY #3: REELS Come on, you knew this would make the list. 😉 I recommend posting at least three times a week, but five is even better! (That’s why I provide five fresh prompts per week for my [On Video]( members.) The easiest way to do that many videos every week is to designate filming days, editing days, caption days, and scheduling days. This is called “batching”, and it’s a MAJOR time saver. ⏰ Here are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to creating Reels that generate views AND sales: - Instagram’s main goal is to keep people on the app, and they do that by serving you content they know you’ll like. - They decide that content by measuring things like: - Whether you watch a Reel all the way through - If you like, comment, save, or share the Reel - Whether you visit the audio page for the audio used in the Reel (they want to know if you’ll make your own Reel – BIG WIN!) This means starting your Reel with a great hook so people will keep watching is really important! You should also make sure to end your Reel with a call to action so you’re taking full advantage of views. Tell people what you want them to do next, whether that’s sending your Reel to their friends, commenting with their thoughts, visiting your bio, or something else. INSTAGRAM STRATEGY #4: COLLABORATIONS & ENGAGEMENT Connecting with people who have a similar audience as you (but aren’t direct competitors), interacting with your ideal customers or clients, and staying plugged into your community are all ways to increase your engagement on social media. 🤝 Now, before all the introverts run away, collaborations don’t always require a lot of face time. Keeping up with a few key accounts and responding to whatever comments you can goes a long way. In fact, there’s actually a way to AUTOMATE that process for even bigger results… I’ll get into that next. (This is what helped me consistently hit $60-80k months even WHILE I was on maternity leave!) INSTAGRAM STRATEGY #5: STORIES & DMs I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it a million more times… DMs are the BEST place on Instagram to build a deeper connection with your ideal customer. The problem is… none of us are online 24/7. So when a potential customer is messaging my account, I’m likely not seeing it right away. And even if I am, I’m likely spending a lot of time typing the same things over and over. Enter… ManyChat. As I mentioned, when I went on maternity leave, I was able to keep generating $60-80k per month – even while I was totally offline. Aside from my rockstar team, automated DMs are how I held those numbers month after month. These automations are triggered by a “code word” (like DECK for Deck The Vaults). Once a customer comments that word, they’re sent a DM with a link to a sales page. This is a big part of what kept my social media up and running while I was away on maternity leave. The bottom line is that automated DMs give someone a reason to start messaging you. Think of it as your “opener” for more sales, better relationships, and engagement. Plus, the algorithm values an Instagram Direct Message above likes. It views DMs as a more personal interaction and, as a result, will start to prioritize your content in their feed. So if you turn your attention to any Instagram feature in 2024, let it be your DMs! INSTAGRAM STRATEGY #6: SEO BIG NEWS: Instagram is starting to function like a search engine. According to Prabhakar Raghavan, the Senior Vice President of Google, “Something like almost 40% of young people, when they’re looking for a place for lunch, don’t go to Google Maps or Search. They go to TikTok or Instagram.” Bottom line? In 2024, it’s critical to work SEO into your Instagram strategy! But don’t stress, improving your searchability on Instagram doesn’t have to be hard. One of the easiest ways to stay at the top of relevant searches is to include strategic keywords in your profile name and bio. Remember, Instagram WANTS to get your content in front of the right people. For it to do that though (in Suggested and Explore), it needs to have a clear understanding of who your account is for. That means you want all of your content to speak to your niche! (📌 Want more on Instagram SEO? [Read this post here](.) --------------------------------------------------------------- There you have it, {NAME}. Those are my “quick” thoughts on how to grow on Instagram in 2024. If you’d like to read the full round-up, make sure to [check it out on the Elise Darma blog](=). 🙂 ~ Elise ​ P.S. I’m trying something new and releasing a clipped version of a [blog post](=) here on my email list. Do you like it? Is it helpful for you to get the info you need now and then go back and review whatever you’d like to later on the blog? Hit reply and let me know! If you wish to [unsubscribe](, you'll be removed from all mailings – including any paid programs you're a part of. 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