On a social media platform as widely used as Instagram, food blogging is considered to be fairly common. The constantly growing community welcomes new bloggers every day, many of which join the food sector bringing incredible visual content to the platform and its hungry users. If you think about it, food in any form of content is one thing people never get tired of looking at, and that has led to a large number of Instagram users posting about everything they eat. Some blogs review restaurants and dishes, whereas others simply document a day to day journey of all the delicacies that surround us. This form of visual storytelling on the social media platform of Instagram has formed its own community of food bloggers building on food content every day.
I recently began my own food blog on Instagram reviewing food and restaurants in London (and occasionally elsewhere) wherein I encountered a list of hurdles. Using my personal experience on the social media platform, I outlined a few key aspects that help growing within the community of food bloggers. If you’re one of the new users embarking on a fresh food journey on Instagram, here’s 5 things that might just make your journey slightly easier!
1. Post content regularly (or a few times a week but make sure your followers are aware of the frequency)
Communication with your followers is one of the most important things when presenting yourself and your blog on a social media platform. Being able to communicate and relate to your followers, as well as fellow food bloggers enables a sense of trust and loyalty. For instance, if you’re busy and going to be away for a couple days or weeks, let your followers know as communication attracts engagement within posts. As time passes, your posts will build and stir up more conversations with increased engagement on the platform. Statistics to support the aforementioned can be viewed in your Instagram profile’s insights, ranging from content specifications to audience activity.
2. Use plenty of hashtags
A popular tool on Instagram that helps share content from one page to another for everyone to view is the use of ‘hashtags’! Using hashtags that describe your post in different ways lead to your post circulating the platform and presenting itself under each of those hashtags respectively. Users that search for or follow particular hashtags like #foodblog, for example, will be enabled to engage with your post which, furthermore, helps build your audience. Certain hashtags that are used by millions of users on Instagram are #like, #follow and #like4follow, which if part of your caption can attract other users to your post and blog as well. One particular article describing details of trending hashtags and how to get your post featured assists in the aforementioned.
3. Like every single photo or video on your feed
AND MORE! Liking photos on Instagram is part of the audience engagement that not only sanctions networking, but also creating a buzz for your blog amongst the community of food bloggers. Like photos of every food blogger, blog or account you follow to invigorate a sense of trust and invite to like your posts in return. This not only helps you and your blog grow as an individual but gain confidence and grow as part of the community in the companionship of other food bloggers. Understanding the Instagram Algorithm explains how Instagram builds relationships between your account and the accounts you interact with on a regular basis. This is based on photos and stories you like, along with other features like direct messages.
4. If someone follows you, follow them back
If I haven’t said it enough already, loyalty is a huge aspect if you’re part of the Instagram blogging family. This also applies to when other blogs and accounts follow you and blog on the social media platform. Aside from the impression of trust, this action puts your food blog in the middle of other food bloggers which helps you gain their attention, and furthermore, more followers! In a community that gains more competition every single day, support plays an important role and improvises blogger to blogger relationships on a large scale. Following other food bloggers also gives you some personal benefits, like tips and ideas on how to work on and develop your own blog in different ways. However, every follower you gain will not be related to the audience you are aiming to engage with. On the same note, every account followed by your blog should ideally be relevant to your content genre in particular to invite further engagement.
5. There will be some slow days with no activity at all, don’t give up
Social media engagement takes place on a day to day basis. However, there may be some days where no one at all will probably even view your blog, especially if you’re just starting out. Don’t worry, activity on social media will always fluctuate. That’s the good thing about it, the down time won’t last too long and before you know it, you have 10 new followers!
Keep up whatever it is you’re doing and continue blogging about every single meal everyday (if possible!) Growth and influence on a platform this widely used requires time and patience, but the supportive community of food bloggers will surely make your time and journey more than worth it!