The Explorer is the place to be on Instagram. Having your post appear in this section increases your visibility x10. And being seen by people who might have yet to come across your account. So, how do you get to that ultimate grail and multiply Instagram likes online? Let us warn you: there’s no secret hack or magic strategy. However, if you apply the advice we’ve shared in this article, you’ll eventually reach that coveted page!
Explore Instagram: How it Works
The Explore page is a section of the Instagram app that you can access by pressing the magnifying glass icon. It is a section that combines all the posts (photos or videos) that might interest you. The posts are selected according to the content you like and the accounts you follow. But the most important thing to understand is that Explorer is an incredible tool for developing your visibility on social networks.
Appearing on Instagram Explorer is like appearing in an advert on World Cup night! Your visibility and number of followers explode without you even having time to understand what’s happening.
As well as allowing you to search for accounts, hashtags and locations, it shows you an album of posts from users you still need to follow but might like based on previously liked content.
Instagram’s algorithm monitors how you interact with content and selects posts that are likelier to like you. Specifically, this section includes:
- liked posts from accounts whose posts you like
- posts from accounts similar to those you follow
- posts that have a lot of likes and comments
- stories that might be interesting and posted near you
- live videos.
Why Appear on the Explore Page
But what is the advantage of appearing on Instagram’s Explore Page? Firstly, it can be an additional contact point for you to reach potential customers you have yet to manage to intercept.
And then it’s a great opportunity to engage with people interested in your particular niche. For example, if your hotel has a spa, entering your Explore Page will allow you to attract people who have interacted with photos and videos of hotels with spas.
The great thing is that you can do this organically without spending a penny to increase the reach of your posts.
A Quick Preamble to our Method for Being Visible in the Explorer Tab
Here, we are sharing advice from my experience that has worked for us. What you’ll find next isn’t a blurb about how an algorithm works that’s bound to change every fortnight. It’s about copywriting techniques to break through the virtual barrier and touch the hearts of Internet users.
Your subscribers will like your posts, save and share them because you’ve succeeded in getting them to click. And boom, bada boom, Instagram will realise your publication is popular and propel you onto the Explore Page!
Now that that’s out, check out our top copywriting tips for defying Instagram’s algorithm and boosting your visibility.
How to Appear in the Instagram Explorer?
- The relatable effect. It consists of sharing content, a message or an idea your prospect can identify with. You want to create the effect: “Oh, that’s SO good!!!”. Your subscribers will want to share your post to show that they agree with you and recognise themselves in your messages. They’ll post comments to tell you: “I agree with you so much” or “I feel less alone”. And when your post is in the Explorer, it will arouse the curiosity of strangers who will recognise themselves in you. They’ll identify with your values and beliefs even if they don’t know you yet. And they’ll sign up to your account. A great virtuous circle!
- The emotional reaction. Each piece of content you publish should create an emotion. Whether it’s joy, anger, sadness… These emotions will make your content more memorable and easier to share. So stop writing content as bland as the mashed potato in the canteen! Stop trying to please the Instagram algorithm. What do you do instead? Always try to surprise, captivate and shake up the reader! Make their hearts skip a beat with content that makes an impact, hits home, and pierces. On Instagram, providing value is fine; but making your audience feel things is better.
- The assertive idea that nobody dares to say. The idea is to create this reaction: “OMG, finally someone who dares to say it!” You’ll get as many comments and shares as possible from people happy to see someone speaking out on the subject! If you successfully create this feeling in your readers, your post will get likes and comments. It will also be shared! And one thing leads to another, it will end up in the Explorer.
To appear in the Explorer and go viral, you have to dare to stand out, assert yourself, and do something that has never been done before. So, we know… it’s scary! You have to expose yourself and be prepared to get negative feedback to be rejected by people who don’t think like you… If you dare to take the plunge and show who you are in your content, the worst that can happen is a few unsubscribes from people who would never have become your customers. And the best thing? You’ll receive a genuine wave of love from your core audience!
3 Ways to Get on Instagram’s Explore Page
Even though we broadly know how Instagram’s algorithm works, it is impossible to predict whether a piece of content will ever end up on Explore.
However, a few tricks increase the chance of this happening. Here are three of them:
1. Know your audience
Instagram’s algorithm ensures that content similar to what users have interacted with appears on the Explore page. This means you need to understand what your typical customers like on Instagram. Is yours a bike hotel? Follow people passionate about cycling or profiles of other bike hotels: this will help you understand the types of content that work best for this particular niche.
Take a look at your Explore page: you will gradually see more and more videos and photos about cycling appearing. This will make it easy to take inspiration for your next posts.
2. Use popular hashtags
The most classic way to be found on Instagram is to use hashtags, which make your content visible outside your circle of followers. Hashtags allow users to find new content based on their interests, increasing the chances of your posts ending up on the Explore Page of your potential customers.
A word of advice: don’t just use hashtags related to your brand, but also add those most used in the geographical location of your establishment.
3. Interact with your followers
A good method is to engage more with your followers to increase the chances of your content making it onto Instagram’s Explore page. How? Don’t just ‘like’ the posts of people who follow you; engage with the comments they leave under your content.
Comments are perceived as more natural interactions than ‘likes’. The important thing, however, is that your responses are specific: the more specific they are, the more likely your followers – and related users – will interact with you.
How to make sure you end up on Instagram’s Explore? These 3 methods will help you end up on the Explore page organically, i.e. without paying, but you can never be sure you will, as you will depend on Instagram’s algorithm.
But what if you want to be 100 percent sure of reaching the right audience in this section? You can: Instagram has included ‘Explore’ among the placements where you can show your paid posts.
A Simple Visual
Have you noticed that Explorer posts generally have very simple visuals? Apart from videos, two trends stand out.
And it’s logical: looking at the Explorer, you don’t want to squint your eyes to read tiny texts. So, on Instagram, we opt for a plain background and text of no more than 10 words (it has to be eligible for a nearsighted person who can’t find his glasses). If, by chance, your post lands on the Explorer, but it’s illegible, no one will click on it to like it and subscribe to your account. Instagram will quickly remove it.
On the other hand, readable content with a good hook will make people want to go further and read what you’ve written. The text must still be interesting and evoke emotions – but we hope you’ve understood that!
In short, if you want to appear on the Explorer, there is a better time to show off by creating ultra-worked-out designs on Canva. Go for clean content!
Master persuasive writing to get your Insta account, and above all, your business, off the ground. Persuasive writing will help you create viral posts on Instagram. But that’s not all! Copywriting will help you with all your content: newsletters, sales pages, email sequences and YouTube videos.
Avoid Posting and Disappearing
It’s the famous Post and Ghost, i.e. post one day and disappear for a week.
Don’t panic, and all is not lost! Just get active again, and you’ll get back on! Engage and socialize before and after posting on your feed. Now that you understand why you need to be social, don’t stress! Engagement takes less time than you think!
Start engaging your community 15 minutes before you schedule your post: comment and like at least 50 users, and you will see results as soon as your post goes live.
Then, continue to like and comment on other users’ posts for another 15 minutes after your post is published. Believe it or not, this will move your post up in IG’s algorithm, and your posts and Reels will appear in the feed faster.
Finally, connect with one new user daily, commenting on their posts and videos, stories and reels. This way, you will increasingly increase the number of followers and interactions with your feed.
Share Other People’s Content
Do you want to grow on Instagram? Then, you don’t have to be selfish or self-referential. If you see noteworthy profiles, photos or visual material created by other users, try sharing it back on your feed or in your stories with a call-to-action inviting people to visit that profile.
The favor will come back to you: the community appreciates people who can also share the work of others and not just their own.
Post Stories Astutely
The rule of the moment is to take a break of 3 or 4 hours between one story and another to allow your audience to see all the stories, from the first to the last one posted. On average, if you start making stories at 9 a.m. daily, posting every three hours, you will post a maximum of 5 stories – which is more than enough.
