9 Practical Tips to Get Likes on Instagram

Do you also believe that Instagram likes aren’t that important? After all, “likes don’t pay bills”, right? Well, that’s a pretty common idea… 

Just getting likes may not be that important, but this number is important. Likes increase content delivery: if a user usually likes posts from a profile, the Instagram algorithm tends to show them more posts from that account.  

Tracking the number of likes over time and in conjunction with other metrics helps measure the growth and engagement of your profile. 

That’s why we’ve put together some practical tips for gaining likes — tested and approved by LikesShip. But let’s highlight one fundamental one: it’s essential not to buy followers!

9 Tips to Get Likes on Instagram

1. Know Your Audience to Generate Content That Matters 

Getting likes on Instagram depends on creating content that users enjoy. That means you need to know what they like! 

It may seem obvious, but many brands don’t realize that they are publishing content that their audience isn’t interested in. As a result, they don’t gain engagement or attract potential customers. 

You need to know your followers, their interests, behaviours, pain points and needs. 

Instagram itself offers reports on audiences (location, gender, age), but you can also find valuable data in the Google Analytics platform, with even more details.

2. Take Care With Aesthetics to Encourage Interactions 

Instagram is an extremely visual social network. You know that image that makes you stop scrolling through your feed because it’s so impressive? You get a like right away! 

So, take care of the visual aspect of your posts. When taking a photo, pay attention to the lighting, angle, framing and effects. 

When creating a card, take care of the combinations, alignments, and visual hierarchy. Also think about the visual unity between posts, which generates a more organized and attractive feed. 

No, we’re not saying you need to be a professional photographer or designer. Social media can be helped by tools, which let you create professional social media posts and can be integrated with Canva, which is also a powerful editing tool. 

3. Comply With the Planned Frequency and Consistency of the Content

Maintaining the frequency of your posts also helps you gain likes on Instagram. On the other hand, if you go two months without posting, Instagram will reduce the number of posts you post and, consequently, your engagement will drop. 

Therefore, establish a posting calendar for the social network. Buffer offers the Editorial Calendar tool to plan the posts for the month, as well as Post Scheduling, so you don’t forget any publications.

4. Choose Hashtags That Suit Your Purpose

Well-chosen hashtags can boost your likes. This is because they attract users who search for the hashtag or follow posts with that hashtag. They can help you gain followers on Instagram and increase engagement. 

However, you must employ hashtags related to your niche in order to draw users with the persona profile. Otherwise, you will attract new followers who will not engage or convert. Also, do not overdo the number of hashtags, as this can be seen as spam. 

5. Interact With Your Followers to Encourage Future Interactions 

Don’t leave your followers in the dark! If they like your content, it’s because they like your brand. And if you value these interactions, they’re more likely to like it! 

So, interact! Reply to comments and messages, like your followers’ posts and enjoy the content they post (UGC). 

Repost posts that mention your brand to your account — this shows that you value your followers and also generates social proof. 

6. Know When Your Audience is Online to Post at the Right Times

Most likes and interactions on posts happen as soon as they are published. This means that if you post when there are more followers online, you have a better chance of getting likes on Instagram! 

Instagram Insights provides data on when followers are online,  which provides more complete and accurate data on the best time and day to post. 

7. Partner to Reach a New Audience

Partnerships with other accounts help to bring more interested people to your profile. This is another opportunity to gain more likes on Instagram. 

A brand or influencer that has a similar audience profile to your persona can bring an engaged audience, who tend to trust your brand, as it is aligned with a profile that followers already trust. 

But choose a reliable partner who shares your brand’s values ​​to add value to your image, rather than detract from it. 

8. Explore Trending Topics

Is there a trending topic on the internet that your brand can address? Joining users’ conversations is also a good way to gain likes on Instagram and promote your content and products in a creative way. 

But it’s only worth it if it’s relevant to the brand, okay? There’s no point in just guessing about anything. The approach must make sense for the brand’s positioning and purpose. 

9. Cross-quantitative and Qualitative Analyses to Plan New Agendas

When analyzing your profile’s likes, don’t just look at the numbers. Compare quantitative data — how many likes a post received — with qualitative data — what content the post covered, what day/time it was published, what language it used, what comments it generated, where the people who liked it came from (feed, profile visits, etc.). 

This way, you don’t just analyze the number of likes, which doesn’t tell you much…, therefore, you can understand what performs best and how to improve your content strategy. 

Ready to Get Likes on Instagram and Boost Your Profile? 

Now it’s your turn! We’ve already given you the tips we usually use here at LikesShip and that have helped us a lot to gain likes on Instagram, but also to improve engagement and profile performance in general. 

One of the tools that helps boost your profile is scheduling posts, which makes your day-to-day life much easier and ensures that your posts are published regularly as planned. You can schedule posts for the week or month and forget about it.