How to make your instagram go viral

How to Go Viral on Instagram: Strategies for Your Brand

You want to know how to go viral on Instagram.

We’ve seen brands and influencers become overnight sensations on the platform.

It’s no surprise, considering there are 2 billion monthly active Instagram users looking for unique, engaging content on the app.

But going viral on Instagram is far from easy. Thankfully, it’s possible if you follow some proven tips and best practices.

In this article, we’ll walk you through 11 tips for how to go viral on Instagram.

1. Know your audience

Understanding your target audience on Instagram will help you create more relatable content that’s more likely to go viral.

Below are some ways to identify your Instagram audience:

Study your buyer personas. If your company has existing data on your ideal customer profiles (ICPs) and buyer personas, start there. Find Instagram audiences that share characteristics with your brand’s customers.
Look at your Instagram analytics. If you’re already using Instagram for business, go to your analytics and look at audience demographics. This will show you what kind of people are following you and engaging with your posts. You can also use Sprout Social’s reporting tools to dig deeper into your Instagram audience data.

Find your competitors’ audiences. Not sure who to target? Head over to competitor Instagram accounts and study their followers. Chances are these people are your target audience as well.
Use social listening tools. Track online conversations around your brand and niche using a social listening tool like Sprout Social. This will help you identify not only your audience but also any influencers you can partner with to boost your content.

Once you’ve narrowed down your Instagram audience, understand their interests, goals and habits. Study the accounts they follow and the posts they interact with.

All of this will give you a solid idea of what kind of content is sure to be a hit.

2. Keep an eye on trends

Trends on social media change fast, and Instagram is no different. Marketers need to quickly jump on new trends to create viral content.

Whether it’s posting more videos, using new content formats or adding trending music to your Reels — if it’s going viral, you need to get on it.

For example, a recent Instagram trend is the increased use of Instagram Reels — the bite-sized, vertical video format inspired by TikTok.

Reels generate more engagement than regular videos on the platform, which make them perfect for going viral.

Other trends we’ve spotted this year include using link stickers in Stories, leveraging story ads and cross-promoting Twitter posts.

3. Establish a unique brand voice

The key to standing out on Instagram is to be creative and authentic.

For businesses, this means finding your own voice that’s unlike any other brand. One that also resonates with your target audience and keeps them engaged with your content.

BBC Earth offers an excellent example of what establishing a unique and creative brand voice can do for you on Instagram.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by BBC Earth (@bbcearth)

They consistently share stunning visuals with informative captions that are also humorous and relatable at the same time. Talk about non-boring educational content!

The result? Viral posts with thousands of likes, comments and shares.

4. Audit your own posts

Conducting an Instagram audit is important so your new strategy to go viral doesn’t clash with your existing posts and branding.

It will also help you identify gaps to work on before posting new content. Maybe your captions need work. Or maybe you need to align your bio and profile photo with your brand to look authentic and professional.

Whatever it is, fixing any issues with your current aesthetic, brand voice and content will increase the chances of success for your future posts.

5. Study the competition

If you need help coming up with ideas for viral content, turn to your competitors. Analyze their posts and find out what’s working for them.

What are their top and worst performing posts?
What’s their brand voice like?
What kinds of formats do they use?
How do they engage with their audience?
What days or times do they post most frequently?

Sprout’s Instagram Competitors Report can help you gather, visualize and analyze this data from a single dashboard.

Use the insight to fuel your own creativity. Of course, this doesn’t mean you start copying your competitors. Think of it as starting on the right foot.

You may even borrow some ideas as long as you add your own personality. Be careful of copyright infringement and stay true to your brand voice.

6. Engage with other accounts

Get noticed on Instagram by actively engaging with your audience. The more you show up in people’s feeds and notifications, the more exposure your profile and posts will get.

Plus, customers love brands that walk the extra mile and treat them as individuals.

And let’s not forget the Instagram algorithm rewards posts with high engagement and shows them more frequently on the Explore page.

So, ask questions, add calls-to-action and encourage interaction in your posts and captions. Also, don’t forget to respond to audience comments — both positive and negative.

7. Use analytics to learn what worked before

Analytics help you make data-driven decisions about everything — including developing viral content. The result? More chances of success.

Use Instagram’s built-in analytics to track key metrics related to engagement and follower growth. Learn about what worked in the past, what didn’t do so well and what kind of posts and stories are usually a hit with your audience.

Looking to go in-depth? Use a third-party analytics tool like Sprout Social.

You’ll get access to granular Instagram metrics, visual reports and the ability to track analytics for competitors and multiple accounts.

8. Recreate viral content

This is probably the easiest way to go viral on Instagram.

But practice it with caution.

Don’t just copy and paste viral content — add your own twist to it.

Explore your feed, look at viral posts in your niche and follow popular hashtags to find content to recreate. Here’s a look at how we created a viral video.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sprout Social (@sproutsocial)

Better yet, look for viral content on other platforms. For example, TikTok is a great place to find inspiration for Instagram Reels.

Since this content has already worked in the past, it’s likely to work for you as well. Just make sure you tweak it to appeal to your specific audience.

9. Partner with an influencer

Going viral on your own can be challenging, especially if you’re new to the platform or have a small following. This is where Instagram influencer marketing can help.

Partnering with popular creators in your niche can bring your content tons of exposure. You can either ask for reposts and mentions, or co-create content with them. The more eyeballs you get on your content, the more chances you have of going viral.

For example, Kapten & Son partners with travel influencers to create viral content promoting their backpacks.

The best influencers usually have an engaged following that trusts them. Having these creators endorse your brand or product can do wonders for your own credibility.

10.

Determine the best time to post on Instagram

Your followers are not scrolling Instagram all the time — they work and sleep too. The key is to find out when they’re most active and then hit post for maximum engagement.

Sprout Social’s data shows the average global peak engagement times.

While it’s good to keep these averages in, the best time to post on Instagram for your brand will vary based on the unique characteristics of your audience.

Factors like location, time zone, interests, hobbies, schedules, age and gender all affect social media behavior. Use Instagram analytics to find out your followers’ peak activity hours and use that to schedule posts.

11. Post consistently to grow your followers

In addition to posting at the best times, you should also post consistently to attract more followers and build a strong presence on the platform.

Posting randomly or taking long breaks in between can make new, excited followers slowly forget about your brand. Stay on top of their minds by posting great content regularly.

They’ll soon come to expect entertainment or creativity from your brand, which is always a good thing for your brand image and engagement.

Use Instagram automation to help you stick to a consistent posting schedule. For example, Sprout’s scheduling features enable you to set up a content calendar for Instagram and post at optimal times.

How many likes is viral on Instagram?

Generally, posts with 100,000+ likes or views and 1,000+ comments are considered to be viral. However, the term ‘viral’ is subjective and can mean different things to different brands.

For example, you might consider a post to go viral if it crosses 10,000 views. Or, if you’re a smaller brand targeting a very niche audience, viral can also mean 1,000 views or likes.

The point is — it depends. We recommend benchmarking based on your own analytics and competitor data, and aiming for higher (but realistic) engagement rates as you grow.

Create a data-driven strategy to go viral on Instagram

Going viral on Instagram can be tricky, but not impossible.

The trick is to use data to fuel your creative efforts, post timely and consistently and take advantage of new trends.

Most importantly, stay true to your brand voice and always be authentic. You’ll only drive away customers with repetitive and pretentious content. If you want to stand out from the noise, you need to be unique.

If you’re wondering how to use data and analytics to create amazing content customers love to watch and share, check out our complete guide to Instagram marketing.

How to go viral on Instagram FAQs

How many views makes a video viral on Instagram?

Instagram videos with more than 100,000 views are considered to be viral. However, that number largely varies depending on your specific goals, audience and industry benchmarks.

How many likes does it take to go viral on Instagram?

Instagram posts with 100,000+ likes are considered to be viral. But your definition of ‘viral’ could be different based on your industry, goals and number of followers.

How do I make my IG Reel go viral?

Create viral Instagram Reels by using trending music, text captions, hashtags and custom Reel covers. Additionally, publish your IG Reel at peak activity hours, share it on your feed and stories and capture audience attention in the first few seconds with an enticing hook.

What is the best time to post on Instagram?

The best times to post on Instagram are on Monday at 11 a.m., Tuesday and Wednesday between 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Thursdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. However, this can vary based on your specific industry and audience.

How To Go Viral On Instagram: The Beginner's Guide

Are you struggling to gain traction on Instagram? Still waiting for your first post to go viral?

It’s hard to know exactly what makes a post go viral on this platform. Instagram’s algorithm is a closely guarded secret.

But it is possible to increase your chances by following a number of specific tips.

In this post, you’ll find exactly what they are so you can implement them in your strategy. And finally start seeing the results your content deserves.

Ready? Let’s get started:

What does it mean to go viral on Instagram?

A lot of brands don’t consider an Instagram post to be viral until it hits at least 100,000 likes. Does that seem like an impossible number to you? That’s because it’s too broad of a rule to follow.

Viral in your niche may look a lot different than what’s considered viral in another niche. Let’s say you and your competitors only receive around 2,000 likes per post. This means a post that reaches 10,000 likes could be considered viral.

Of course, reaching that 100,000 milestone would be nice. More likes means more followers and more click-throughs depending on the campaign you’re using.

To be more specific, when a post goes viral, it’ll have a lot more…

Likes than the majority of your posts.
Shares than the rest of your posts.
Views from unique users.
Activity on Instagram than your other posts. This means it receives interactions much quicker and continues to receive interactions long after activity for the majority of your posts stalls.

What you do with the viral traffic you receive is up to you. If you want more followers, insert a gentle “follow us” reminder at the end of your post.

If you want click-throughs to your website or landing page, you’ll need to use a tool that allows you to create a splash page for links on Instagram. Instagram only allows you to insert a link in your profile’s bio section rather than individual posts.

Shorby is a great option for this. It’s simple and affordable. We’ve even reviewed it if you want an in-depth look at the tool before you try it out yourself.

As for going viral, we have eight tips to share with you today.

8 tips on how to go viral on Instagram

Tip #1: Research your audience and your competitors’ audiences

Sure, #fashion and #art may be among the top 100 most popular hashtags on Instagram, but that doesn’t mean your content should target them if your niche is entirely unrelated.

Conduct research on your target market via audience surveys instead. These are short questionnaires that allow you to learn more about the type of people that make up your audience, what their interests are and the struggles they’re experiencing in your niche.

More importantly, discover what types of content your audience interacts with most on Instagram by researching your own and your competitors’ analytics. You can learn a lot about the types of content your audience prefers by reviewing yours and competitors’ most-liked and most-commented posts.

Use a tool like Pallyy to analyze your competitors on Instagram. Check out our Pallyy review to learn how it works.

Tip #2: Recreate your competitors’ viral Instagram posts

You should have a decent-sized list of your competitors’ most popular posts after the last tip. You can use this to get a headstart on the type of content that may help you go viral.

Don’t simply copy your competitors’ content outright. Your audiences likely overlap, and they will catch on and call you out on it.

Let some time pass instead. Then, analyze the post to see how you can create something that’s similar but unique to your brand.

For instance, if your competitor keeps going viral for quick how-to videos, come up with a way to create your own short tutorials in a style that’s unique to you.

Tip #3: Recreate viral content from other social media platforms

This is similar to the previous tip, except you’ll research your competitors’ content on platforms like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn. TikTok is a great place to look as well if your competitors happen to use it.

What you want to do is see what’s working for your audience on other social media platforms, then recreate that content in your own style on Instagram.

Again, don’t simply copy and paste what your competitors are doing. If their most popular YouTube videos are dedicated to reviews on products in your niche, don’t simply review the same products in the same review format.

Find a simpler way to review and showcase products, then turn your content into high-quality images, videos and Instagram stories.

Tip #4: Use your own voice

When you’re a new blogger or a young startup, you likely do your best to maintain a professional image on social media platforms. This may include never mentioning your personal life and speaking only in an anonymous voice (using we, us and ours instead of I, my and mine).

What you may not be aware of is that you can actually do a lot to improve your chances of being noticed on social media by simply showing more of your own personality. You may even increase your chances of going viral on Instagram by getting personal.

Take Bindi Irwin, conservationist and daughter of famed wildlife expert Steve Irwin, as an example. A lot of Bindi’s posts get around 100,000 likes on Instagram with some receiving a few hundred thousand. Posts featuring only pictures of animals receive even less, around 50,000 or so.

However, when she took to Instagram to announce the birth of her child, she received an astonishing 1.4 million likes, much higher than her average posts.

The post was accompanied by an image of her, her husband and her newborn along with a heartfelt Instagram caption.

It’s proof that behaving more like a real person on Instagram rather than a marketer does a lot to set you apart on the platform.

Tip #5: Be more active on Instagram

Some marketers are lucky. They barely post on Instagram, and suddenly find themselves going massively viral with a single post.

Others aren’t so fortunate. If you’re struggling to gain traction on social media, try being more active on the platform outside of publishing content.

Respond to every comment users leave on your posts, and use a unique reply every time. Never send canned responses on social media. It’s among the easiest ways to aggravate users as they’re able to see you send the same message to dozens of other users.

You should also become more active with your competitors. It’s an easy way to collaborate on Instagram. Respond to their posts and stories more, and even communicate with their own user comments.

You’ll start to become known to them and their audiences over time. They may even start interacting with your content.

Instagram does a reasonable job at keeping you in the loop with notifications but once your account activity increases, it will get harder to keep track of. A social media inbox tool can help you keep on top of your comments.

Tip #6: Run social media contests on Instagram

This is one of the easiest ways to go viral on Instagram. People love free stuff. Others love participating in competitions.

What you want to do is create a contest specific to your niche and have participants send their submissions via photos or videos on Instagram.

For example, if your blog is about web design, give your audience a challenge. Have them create a single web page that teaches people about the moon. They should submit their photos on their own Instagram accounts. Whoever has the best page design with the best functionalities wins.

Even better, make liking the competition announcement post and following your account requirements for winning.

Just keep the number of competitions you run to a minimum. You don’t want to wind up in a position where they’re the only posts of yours that get any activity.

Here are a few resources to help you out:

16 Creative Ideas For Instagram Giveaways And Contests
How To Do A Giveaway On Instagram That Grows Your Audience

Tip #7: Market products on Instagram

This tip is similar to the tip where we recommended posting product reviews to Instagram, except this time we have data on why this type of content works.

Influence Central interviewed more than 400 women who partake in online shopping and found the following data:

82% claim that social media recommendations change the way they research products.
81% claim product reviews influence their shopping habits.
72% prefer to use social media as a way to verify marketing claims about products they’re interested in buying.
57% use images and videos on social media to finalize their decisions. 53% use testimonials while 51% use reader comments.

It’s clear that product marketing is an effective way to receive more activity on social media. You can market your own products or products you’re affiliated with.

Be sure to read StartupBonsai’s guide on writing Instagram captions if you want to increase your sales.

Tip #8: Create niche-specific life hack videos

The study we mentioned in the previous tip produced another piece of data that may help you create viral social media content:

42% of consumers claim life hack content influences their likelihood of buying products and services.

It’s true. Hashtags containing the phrase “life hack” are quite popular.

When you plan new Instagram content, especially content for products, come up with content that solves a specific problem your audience experiences in a simple way.

For instance, apps like Uber and Lyft solve the problem of obtaining transportation in a quick and easy way. However, this is too broad of a problem. You should instead create life hacks that teach your audience how to save on rides, how to find hidden features and more.

Final thoughts

Knowing what content to create is only half the battle. Creating and actually publishing that content is where the true struggles of running a successful Instagram account lie.

Do yourself a favor and create your account well ahead of time. You’ll save a lot of time and guesswork in the future, and you’ll never be without content to post to Instagram.

Social media scheduling tools work great for this purpose. It gives you two ways to schedule Instagram content. It’s also quite affordable for bloggers, and you can even try it for free.

Above all, analyze your content as you go so you can understand what’s working and what’s not.

Related Reading:

32 Latest Instagram Statistics, Facts, And Trends
How To Get More Views On Instagram Stories
How Many Instagram Followers Do You Need To Make Money?
Instagram Hashtags: The Complete Guide
The Best Times To Post On Social Media
30+ Instagram Tips To Grow Your Audience & Save Time

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. This means we may make a small commission if you make a purchase.

Instagram virus: how to make a popular post

Since the whole world is sitting at home because of one virus, it's time to think about creating your own contagious element - viral content. People are spending more time on social media, so now is the best opportunity to create a post that everyone will share.

A real viral post is, most often, a series of accidents and a fortunate combination of circumstances that allowed the publication to disperse. And although it is impossible to control this, there are aspects that will help your material become quite popular:

Unfamiliar for the target audience

Your subscribers and target audience are used to about the same “tone” of content that everyone follows in a certain niche. Presentation, images, meanings - everything is about the same for everyone. But when clearly different content breaks into this conditional silence, it attracts attention. Remember the same “Pushechnaya” from SETTERS, whose account was not run like a typical bakery. It is not necessary to wait for an occasion and a topic that should burst out all over the world. Getting coverage among your target audience is what is important for commercial social networks, and moving away from the usual foundations will already help to do this.

News agenda

You can take both public news and touch on a topic from your industry. Well-executed situational content always gets enough attention. This works because the news itself already has some traffic and interest, so it would be appropriate to enter this stream and get some of the coverage for yourself. The main thing to remember about three points:

- do not touch "black" topics (or be careful with them, as there is a high risk of running into negativity)

- respond quickly (no one will pay attention to the situation in the old way of information, so do not delay the implementation of such content) Battle with a competitor

This does not mean conflicts and unreasonable attacks on colleagues in the shop, but rather friendly jokes. Everyone is familiar with the confrontation between car brands, fast food restaurants, mobile operators and others. Albeit not on such a scale, but this technique can be used on your own. The audience likes to follow the development of such stories. Therefore, conflicts between bloggers are so popular on the Internet, and most films are built on the struggle of two sides. In marketing, there are even known cases of artificial conflicts for the sake of PR. So the option works.

Post design

Since we are chasing reach, the publication should look attractive. No one will share a post with a worse design than WhatsApp congratulations. Here again we take into account the tastes of the target audience and decide whether we want to stand out with the presentation. If yes, then do not forget to explicitly indicate whose post this is. If you remember about the same “Pyshechnaya”, then the product itself was everywhere in the photo - donuts. If they are removed, then such content will not even be thought that it belongs to a bakery.

Visibility of the post

The title and image should reflect the "sharpness" of the topic and develop it in the post itself. Otherwise, the publication will be scrolled, and your attempt to make a viral post will look like an uncertain answer from a schoolboy in an undertone. How exactly to highlight it is up to you, but the idea itself is worth keeping in mind.

Touch the emotions

Here you should mainly use either joy or anger/indignation. In the first case, people will share because of "look how funny/bold". In the second, the user's personal opinion will serve as motivation, where he will show in every possible way how he does not agree with the author or simply indicates an alternative view. The former are easier to work with, but the latter can bring more reach due to the activity under the post.

Total

The purpose of such a post, most often, is simply to get attention for your brand. But it is much better if the publication also has an additional purpose: to sell, inform, benefit, and so on. Having done all this correctly, the post will not only spread across the network, but will also affect other indicators.

how to make Instagram viral?

By Milena Anderson Reading 4 min. Views 5

Short answer

There is no surefire way to make your Instagram posts go viral, but there are a few things you can do to increase your chances.
First, make sure your posts are interesting and visually appealing.
You can also try using popular hashtags to reach a wider audience.
And most importantly, be patient: it may take some time for your posts to become popular, but eventually they will if they are good enough.

How to make Instagram videos go viral with the best tricks of 2021 | Reels Video Viral Kaise Kare Genuine Tutorial

How to make your Instagram videos go viral (0-5 MILLION VIEWS?! !)

How do Instagram videos go viral?

It's not easy to go viral on Instagram, but there are a few things you can do to increase your chances. First, make sure your video is creative and interesting. Then make sure you post it at the right time of day and use the appropriate hashtags. Finally, promote your video on other social networks.

What is the most popular video on Instagram?

There is no single answer to this question, since it largely depends on the preferences of the person and what he is looking for in the video. However, some of the most popular videos on Instagram include creative, funny or inspirational videos. Ultimately, the best way to determine which video is the most viral is to simply ask your followers which ones they like the most.

How many video views are considered viral?

There is no single answer to this question, as it can vary depending on the type of content, the platform on which it is distributed, and a number of other factors. However, the video, which has been watched by millions of people, is generally considered to have gone viral.

How long does it take for a video to gain views?

There is no single answer to this question as it can vary depending on the quality of the content and how well it sells. However, it can usually take some time to watch a video because people need to know it exists before they can watch it.

How to get 100,000 reel hits?

100,000 drums can be obtained either by buying them in the store, or as a reward for completing levels in the game.

Which picture did you like the most on Instagram 2021?

As of 2021, the most popular image on Instagram is a Kylie Jenner post uploaded in February of that year. In the picture, Jenner and her daughter Stormi Webster lie in a flower bed and have gained more than 18 million likes..

How to go viral on Instagram 2021?

There is no surefire way to go viral on Instagram in 2021, but there are a few things you can do to increase your chances. First, make sure your content is high quality and interesting. Try posting something new and different that hasn't been seen before. Second, use hashtags to reach a wider audience. Third, interact with other users and build relationships. And finally, stay active and consistent.

How to make your video popular?

There is no universal answer to this question, as the best way to make your video trending will depend on what type of content it contains and who your target audience is.