When you are starting out with social media, you may see people with many followers, while you have managed to attract only a few. How does that happen? Well, with some people, they just buy them. But that’s not how you achieve true engagement with your target audience. It’s better to do the hard work and follow these tips.
1. Make sure your profile is set up properly.
Usernames make it easy to find you, especially through searches. Make sure it’s part of your brand.
2. Figure out how you are going to make a lot of fun content on the farm.
If you don’t have an idea of what content you would like to post, think about what people ask you during a farm tour. If not, talking about your animals and your land always makes for great content.
3. Practice your photography and video skills.
There are many good online courses, but apps such as Snapseed and Video Show can help make your content better.
4. Stick to your voice / brand.
An honest approach about you and your farm always is the best practice. Don’t mimic other Instagram influencers. Just be yourself. As a farmer or rancher, you automatically are considered cooler and more unique than most people.
5. Interact with followers immediately (notifications and comments).
The faster you can engage, the more boost your post will get. This takes a lot of time, but major influencers swear by this tip.
6. Answer their questions.
If someone has a question, answer it. Then, make another post about it so others can see your answer.
7. Optimize posts with consumer-friendly hashtags, not just farm tags.
Seriously consider using many more hashtags than you currently are using. Of course, you can use the popular farm hashtags (#farm365 #dairyfarming #cowsofinstagram) but also consider using popular mainstream tags people. For example, if you are talking about milking cows, consider where your milk goes. If it goes into pizza cheese, then use best-hashtags.com and search pizza.
#pizza #food #foodporn #foodie #instafood #pizzatime #italianfood #pizzalover #pizzeria #love #foodblogger #yummy #pasta #delicious #foodphotography #pizzaria #pizzalovers #foodlover #instagood #foodstagram #cheese #pizzas #foodgasm #dinner #delivery #pizzanapoletana #restaurant #beer #italy
Pro tip: Put the majority of your hashtags in the first comment on the post. This way you don’t have a lot of hashtags on the original post.
8. Cross promote with other consumers and farmers.
This is one of my favorites, and I love when farmers take over each other’s pages. You should also chat with food bloggers. Maybe you can switch with them.
9. Use Instagram Stories for behind the scenes.
Instagram stories and IGTV helps you show people what’s happening behind the scenes in a funny way with gifs, emojis, and hashtags. IGTV helps you to have longer videos and to get into a viewer’s channel.
10. Share your profile anywhere you can.
If you have business cards, it can go there. If you use email, put it in your email signature. If you have farm vehicles or signs, include those.
BUT … what’s the most important tip?
Number 2: Figure out how to create great content. The platform doesn’t matter if you don’t have good content. People won’t follow or engage. If you are struggling, review your content and see if you can make it differently. Experiment and try new things. Funny videos, sad/emotional videos, videos that make you think or give you great information and great photography are what people seek on Instagram.
If you are a dairy farmer who wants to get better on Instagram, please reach out to your local checkoff staff. They have lots of great resources to help you become a better ag advocate. Or you can reach out directly to me at don.schindler@dairy.org. I’m happy to help. Follow me on Instagram at @donschindler.
