If you're a social media manager for a brand or you have an Instagram business, you're probably always looking for ways to increase visibility. A feature that can help you with this is Instagram's Favorites feed.
The Favorites feed lets users pick which accounts they want to see and interact with the most. Securing a spot on your followers' Favorites feeds means they'll never miss out on your content.
Here are some tips and tricks you can try if you want to explore this feature and increase your chances of becoming a favorite.
What Is Instagram's Favorites Feed?
To give users a more personalized experience, Instagram came up with the Favorites feed. It's a chronological feed you can access by tapping on the Instagram logo on the Home page and selecting 'Favorites.'
It lets you curate the accounts you love the most, so they'll all appear in one place away from the other accounts you follow. You can select a maximum of 50 favorites, allowing you to mix your closest friends with your top creators and brands. These accounts won't know that you've added them to your Favorites list.
In addition, your chosen favorites will appear higher on your regular feed, and their posts will come with a star so you can distinguish them from the rest. It's a huge advantage for brands to get on their followers' Favorites feeds because it increases their visibility and engagement.
How to Add Favorites and Switch to Your Favorites Feed
If you want to curate your Favorites list, download the latest Instagram version and follow these steps:
- From the Instagram Home page, tap on the Instagram logo and select 'Favorites.' That will take you to your Favorites feed.
- Tap "Add favorites."
- Instagram automatically adds the accounts you most interact with to your Favorites list. You can remove them one by one or all at once by tapping "Remove all."
- To add a user to your Favorites list, enter their name into the search bar and tap "Add."
- You can also edit your Favorites list by tapping on the star icon above their feed posts and selecting "Manage favorites."
How Do You Get on Your Followers' Favorites Feed?
Now that you know everything about the Favorites feed feature, the next question is, how can you get your followers to add you as a favorite? Here are some ways to land a coveted spot on their Favorites feed.
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Create High-Quality and Engaging Content
The first step to get your followers to include you in their Favorites list is to create content they love. If your content is engaging and resonates with your audience, they'll be more inclined to select you as a favorite.
Look at your best-performing posts and analyze what your followers liked about them. Do they appreciate educational content? Are they interested in behind-the-scenes videos? When planning your content calendar, include these tried-and-tested topics and formats.
You can also tell a lot about your audience's preferences by the posts they share and save. Head to your Instagram Insights, see which types of content have the most saves and shares, and take note of them for your future posts.
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Be Consistent With Your Posts
Not only do you have to create quality content, but you also have to be consistent. When you post regularly, you build trust with your followers. As a result, they'll want to keep seeing more of your content. It's hard to be consistent on Instagram, but planning can help you stay on track.
Start by thinking of your content buckets. These can be quotes, how-to videos, behind-the-scenes, or live Q&As. You can then brainstorm and list as many ideas as possible for each content bucket. Next, you should determine how many posts you want to deliver weekly. The key is to be realistic to prevent burnout.
The final step is to batch. When you create your content in advance, you're never going to run out of posts and can stay consistent. You also won't be stressing yourself out making last-minute posts.
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Include a Call to Action in Your Posts
Calls-to-action can make a huge difference in engagement. When you ask your followers to like your post, leave a comment, or answer a question, many of them are happy to oblige. Including a clear CTA in your posts can encourage your followers to add you to their Favorites list.
You can include a CTA in your caption or directly on your video as on-screen text. You can even do both if you don't want your audience to miss them. To make your CTAs more effective, let your followers know what they'll gain by adding you to their Favorites list. You can tell them that when they choose you as a favorite, they'll be among the first to know about your promotions and giveaways.
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Time Your Posts
Maybe you're already doing everything right. You're posting high-quality content consistently and even adding CTAs to them. But all that effort would be for nothing if your followers don't see your posts. To maximize visibility, post your content when your followers are most active. You can check the best times and days to post on your Instagram Insights.
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Ask Your Followers
If you want your followers to add you as a favorite, the most effective thing to do might be to ask. It's the fastest and easiest method and can produce the best results. There's no need to think of an elaborate strategy or beat around the bush. You can ask your audience directly through a feed post, a Story, or a Reel.
The Bottom Line
Getting on your followers' Favorites feed can be just as rewarding as landing a spot on the Explore page. It can be easy to get lost in the mix, given how tight the competition is on Instagram. But when your followers handpick you as a favorite, they're sure to see your posts. While it takes effort and consistency to secure a coveted spot on people's Favorites feeds, it's worth the increase in visibility and engagement.
