If you scroll down my IG feed far enough, you will either be confused, confirmed or both. Yes, I used telegram in the past which explains my 700 + likes on this post, and only 99 likes on this post shortly after. Yes, I used bots and boosting programs. And finally, YES, I was spending waaaay too much time on the gram. Ever since the implementation of screen time on my phone, I’ve been more aware of how much time I’m wasting on this frustrating app. Since January I’ve made a conscious effort to lessen all the time spent on my phone, and focused on a few exercises to plan organic growth. Now, I have way more time to spend with my kids + I’m seeing content I actually like.
Before you read this, read “Why boost pods are detrimental to growing your social media strategy.”
First thing first, clean the mess…
A great way to start is to clean up bots with the cleaner app. After you’ve successfully cleaned up your fake followers, ghost accounts and non-engaging peeps, clean up the folks YOU follow as well. If you’d like to go one step further, you can clean up your “likes” or posts that you were required to “like” in, say, Telegram pods. Common, you remember that one post that made you cringe as you closed your eyes to double tap? Yeah, those narrow your reach by bumping content that’s irrelevant to your feed and vice versa. This portion will take a while but in the end, it’s so worth it!
Don’t believe me? This mistake cost me $$ and set me back so far in the game… Read all about it in this post: “The biggest mistake I made as a Mom Blogger”
Now, get into the habit of doing things over and over. Repetition is great in the social media world. People come to expect things from you day to day. Starting a good habit like posting the right time will snowball into more goo habits and result in: followers, growth and overall community. There’s success in community when we all rise together… When we as a blogging community fail to do these things, we shortchange ourselves and others. Not to mention we lose precious time picking ourselves back up. And I am a classic story of this!
Here’s my short list of steps to cut down screen time and grow organically:
Post early, or whenever you have the best engagement. Mine is early around 8:00AM.
Hashtag it. Good thing you visited today, you can copy and paste these hashtags into your phones notes to use later. I do my homework to ensure that I use both large tags, and small tags so that you get the best exposure and not swept under the rug. Copying and pasting these will cut down so much time in promoting your post! I also posted a similar post a while back if you’d like to take a peek at those tags as well. You can find that post here.
Scroll down to copy new hashtags!
Host a giveaway. Not a loop giveaway that requires you to spam friends, buy in (aka fork over money to people you may or may not know) and follow a good 15-30 people. Those are killing the algorithm that you are all complaining about! I know it’s hard guys, but it’s possible to host your own giveaway for your followers. I find that reaching out to your favorite bloggers and brands works wonders when you’ve mentioned hosting a giveaway for them. They love that! Not to mention the chances of winning are greatly in their favor. These giveaways can run for a week or so while you can just gently remind your followers on your stories. Giveaways are a great way to gain a few new friends while being fairly easy to create.
Tag other accounts. This isn’t as powerful as it once was but it’s still a way to be seen. This goes for people, brands, locations, follow and feature pages. Tagging the brand can also mean hashtagging the brand too. I tend to check out the brands page to see their specially curated hashtag like Urban outfitters #uoonme which is really cute. Then, I jot these down on a page I can reference later to make tagging easier and less time consuming.
Collab//cross promotion. You know what does really well? When you meet up IRL (in real life) with other bloggers, instagrammers, influencers etc. Personally, I’ve seen a substantial amount of growth after an event or meet up. People naturally want to see folks together!
Use Panoly to plan your posts. Find out more here.
Create a content calendar or editorial calendar.
Post consistently.
Need more hashtag info? Check out my previous post about hashtag mistakes + more hashtags to copy and paste ↓
“5 hashtag mistakes you’re making without even realizing it!”
Now, as promised, all new lifestyle hashtags!!
creative lifestyle:
#awakethelight #photosinbetween #creativelife #myeverydaymagic #wheretofindme #wildheart #postthepeople #doitfortheaesthetic #mybeigelife #mystoryoflight #alliseeispretty #oneofthebunch #seekinspirecreate #creativemind #neutralstyle #livefullyalive #lovelylittlesquares #makeyousmilestyle #photosinbetween #pocketsweetness
home//plant//decor:
#mybohohome #mydomaine #homemagic #lovewhereyoudwell #currenthomeview #stellarspaces #modernboho #momentsofmine #myinteriorvibe #losangeleshome #mybeigelife #cozyvibes #moodygrams #sepiatones #neutralstyle #showmeyourboho #indoorplants #mybohohome #urbanjungle
style:
#microinfluencer #discoverunder10k #streetstyle #mybeigelife #anotheroutfitpost #mystylediary #wearthisnext #likeitwantit #streetstyleinspo #todayimwearingthis #lovelulus #dailystyle #mylook #outfitsociety #thefashionforce #styleonthestreets #momentsofchic #everydayoutfit #fbloggerstyle #wentoutlikethis #trendhunter #stylegrams #outfitofthedaybabe #outfitscrapbook #effortlessstyle #styleoverthirty #inspocafe #girlyinspo #mydailystyle
Parisian style:
#neutralstyle #mybeigelife #postitfortheaesthetic #parisienne #tresvu #joiedeivre #theparisguru #frenchvibes #lestylealafrancaise #parisianvibes #losangelesblogger #womensboutique #theparisianchique #styledujour #losangelesstreetstyle
beauty/skincare:
#greenbeauty #veganskincare #beautycommunty #beautycounter #switchtosafer #saferskincare #cleanswap #toxinfreebeauty #cleanbeautyrevolution #thebodyshop #knowbetterdobetter #skinisin #wakeuptomakeup #nontoxicbeauty #nontoxicmakeup #organicbeauty #cleanbeautybloggers #makeupgram #naturalbeauty #motd #beautyfavorites #igtopshelfie
Flatlay:
#flatlayoftheday #flatlaysquad #slaytheflatlay #slaythelay #bestofflatlay #onthebedproject #flatlaylover #flatlayphotography #flatlaylove #flatlaynation #instaflatlay #flatlayfriday
Travel:
#citizenfemme #getlostnow #sidewalkerdaily #darlingescape #visualwanderlust #wandermore #wanderoften #adventuregram #getlostclub #travelalways #travelfever #familytravel #igpassport #traveltribe #localnomads
Funny Parenting:
#momproblems #thestruggleisreal #momlife #communityovercompetition #momcommunity #mommybloggers #reallifemotherhood #motherhoodjourney #lifewithtoddlers #mommystatus #motherhoodintheraw #toddlerhood #lifeasmama #storytellingmama #honestlyparents #momtogcommunity #thingsiwanttoremember #momlifebelike #momstruggles #sahmproblems #busymama #thatmomlife #mommingainteasy #latinamama #tiredasamother #bloggermom #stayathomemomlife
Click this above photo ⇑ for this dress or shop the look here
Did you find this helpful? I’ve made two posts like this. Do you guys want me to continue to share the hashtags that I use? Let me know below!
♥Kris
Hi Kris,
Thanks for your honesty, and for sharing your hard-earned tips and resources! I love the outfit too 🙂 I always forget to put tops under dresses. I’m going to have to try this out soon!
xo,
Adelle
Author
Oh yay!! Have you ever seen girls layer dresses over denim? That’s always something I’ve wanted to do!