Have you ever wondered how influencers and popular brands manage to get millions of followers on Instagram? We’re going to let you in on their secret — they get shoutouts on Instagram.
It’s a robust strategy that can boost your visibility on Instagram quickly and increase your followers as well. If you are looking to grow your Instagram audience and improve your engagement rate, you need to learn how to master the art of getting more shoutouts on Instagram.
To get you started, let’s take a look at what shoutouts on Instagrams really are.
Understanding Shoutouts on Instagram
When another brand or influencer mentions you or your brand on their profile and promotes your page, you’re getting a shoutout on Instagram. Basically, it’s an endorsement from another Instagram user or brand.
Shoutout posts can be photos, videos, infographics, or GIFs. Also, tagging brands along with shoutout posts is a standard practice. Sometimes, two users may even agree to go ahead with a symbiotic approach; they give shoutouts to each other on Instagram.
This way, both users can get more visibility on Instagram. It’s an effective strategy to reach new audiences and build your following. Getting shoutouts on Instagram is a great way to boost your brand’s reputation and get more engagement.
Unfortunately, it’s not very easy to get good shoutouts. You need to invest a lot of time into research and networking to find the right people to collaborate with. And you need to be willing to feature their content on your feed.
Types of Shoutout Posts on Instagram
Before you set out to get shoutouts on Instagram, there are a few things that you should keep in mind. For starters, you need to know the different kinds of ways in which you can get shoutouts on Instagram.
1. Shoutout for Shoutout
As the name suggests, this type of shoutout is like a barter deal. You agree to give someone a shoutout who is willing to do the same for you. It’s also referred to as S4S. This process can help both parties involved get more engagement.
For example, take a look at the post shared by Italian micro-influencer, Nicol Costa, on Instagram. As you can see, she has tagged many travel pages in the post so that she can get a shoutout.
In response to this, Holiday Leave featured her post on their profile. In the caption, they have tagged her and even encouraged users to check out her account. It’s a great way for both of them to gain traction on Instagram.
2. Paid Shoutouts
Want to spread the good word about your brand, improve your engagement, and create some buzz? You can pay users to publicize your brand on Instagram.
The payment doesn’t necessarily have to be in money. You could also give gifts or free subscriptions. This is a popular tactic used by many Instagram influencers.
Ida Frosk, one of the most popular food influencers on social media, often gives shoutouts to different brands on her Instagram profile. Most of them are paid partnerships and it is clearly mentioned on the post as well. So, it’s like a paid endorsement.
3. Voluntary Shoutouts
This is the best kind of shoutout. It’s the Instagram equivalent of receiving an amazing compliment in front of your friends and family.
When someone who is happy with your product or service and gives you a shoutout, it’s called a Voluntary Shoutout. You could get a Voluntary Shoutout from an influencer or one of your followers. It’s not like a deal and there is no money involved. It’s all about showering some genuine praise.
For instance, look at the screenshot below.
In this post, Will Taylor, a design influencer is seen showcasing his new apartment in New York to his followers. In the caption, he has thanked Ian Slater, a property broker for helping him in the process and even tagged him. Here, it’s clear that the shoutout is out of goodwill or as a token of appreciation.
Apart from this, your Instagram shoutout can also vary based on what you want to achieve from it. Are you looking to get more followers on your page or get more engagement? If so, you need to ask your shoutout partner to include a call-to-action that encourages their followers to check out your profile, comment on your posts, and to follow you.
Looking to boost your sales and revenue through social media? In this case, it would be a better idea to send your product to your shoutout partner. They can post a photo or a video of themselves using it. Along with it, they can include a CTA that redirects their users to your website or product page. In this case, your website must be well-optimized and perfectly built. For this reason, Zyro website builder or any other reliable platform might be an option for building a website.
Effective Ways to Get a Shoutout on Instagram
The first step to getting a shoutout on Instagram is to polish your research and social media skills. You may have to go through thousands of Instagram profiles before you find a great brand or influencer to collaborate with. Remember to stay patient throughout the process.
Here are a few tips to get you started on your journey to getting numerous shoutouts on Instagram:
1. Find Users Posting Similar Content
When it comes to shoutouts, you need to keep an eye out to find Instagram users in your niche who post content that is similar to yours. That’s because they are likely to cater to the same audience base as you do. In such a case, your content will be relevant to their audience as well.
Getting shoutouts from random Instagram pages isn’t the way to go. It may get you a tag or a mention but it won’t really help you reach the right audience.
For instance, if you run a clothing company, you would benefit by collaborating with fashion influencers. If you get a shoutout from a food influencer, you would reach a broad audience who may not be necessarily be interested in your products.
To find relevant pages and users for getting shoutouts on Instagram, here are a few tactics you can follow.
Search for Hashtags
Hashtags improve discoverability on social media. And by using them, it’s easy to find other accounts in your niche who post similar content. To find relevant results quickly, you can search for hashtags that are specific to your industry.
If you have a cosmetics company, you can look use hashtags that brands and influencers in your industry are likely to use. By using #beautybloggers or #beautytips, you’re likely to find relevant shoutout pages.
What’s more, Instagram does the hashtag research for you. Whenever you type a hashtag in the search box, the social media platform’s algorithm finds the most popular hashtags related to it.
Another strategy to find local relevant pages and accounts is to search for location-specific hashtags. For instance, if you own a cafe in London, you could look for #londonfoodies or #londonfoodblogger to find people in your region and industry.
In addition to this, you can also search for #shoutouts4shoutouts and #shoutouts4free to find pages that are open to giving you a shoutout.
Use Influencer Marketing Tools and Platforms
Hashtags are easy to use for discovering new users. But there may be millions of posts for the hashtags that you search for. It can be a tedious process to separate the wheat from the chaff.
That’s where influencer marketing tools and platforms can come in handy. By following just a few steps, they can help you connect with the right influencers in your niche.
2. Find Pages That Have a Similar Follower Count
If your goal is to get shoutouts for shoutouts on Instagram, you need to be more meticulous in your filtering process on social media. Think of it as an agreement that has to be mutually beneficial to both the parties involved.
So, how does that work on social media?
Accounts that have a similar follower count are more likely to work with you. If your profile has only 5000 followers, an account which has 300k followers isn’t likely to get any benefit by partnering with you. So, it’s best to reach out to accounts that have a similar follower count.
3. Get Them to Notice You
Social media platforms are all about engagement. Before you ask a user for a shoutout, it’s a good idea to engage with them.
To get yourself noticed, you could like their posts, leave comments, or even follow their Instagram profile. This is a subtle way of letting them know that you’re checking out their content and like what they do.
If they have seen your name popping up in their feed a few times, they know you already. So, they are more likely to respond to a shoutout request.
4. Appreciate Them
So, you’ve done your bit to get yourself noticed. What’s next after giving them engagement? Reach out to them directly via an email or a direct message.
Remember, politeness and manners can go a long way in forming social media partnerships. So, it’s a good idea to begin the conversation by appreciating their work. If you like a particular post, tell them what you like about it.
When you get a reply from them, you can put the idea of a shoutout deal forward. In your conversation, also try to highlight why it will be beneficial for them to collaborate with you.
Conclusion
Shoutouts are a great way to reach out to a new audience. They can help you boost your visibility and engagement on social media. The best part is you can do all of this without even spending a penny. If you are looking to grow your Instagram account, you should definitely leverage this marketing strategy.
Have you used received a shoutout on Instagram before? Please share your experience in the comments section.