How to Grow Instagram: 'Everything Delish' Blogger Gives Tips

Wondering why your Instagram account seems to be at a standstill? Same, y’all, same. Luckily, “Everything Delish” blogger Jamie Milne is here to help you take your account to the next level. The young influencer didn’t gain insight from professionals in the biz — instead, she used good ol’ fashioned trial and error to grow her audience from the ground up. We stan a hardworking #GirlBoss! Now, Jamie is giving Life & Style the exclusive scoop on how the heck we can get more than 11 likes on a pic. (Seriously, help).

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“I am very fortunate that I have been able to grow @Everything_Delish organically to over 156,000 followers and reach over 1.5 million people weekly,” the Toronto native told us. “This hasn’t been easy since I never knew how to take the ‘perfect’ Instagram photo prior to starting ‘Everything Delish’ and have successfully taught myself everything that I know. The number one question that I am asked is, ‘How did you grow to over 100,000 followers?’ and ‘How do you take the perfect Instagram photo?'” Keep scrolling for tips!

1.) Post Daily

When growing your social media, it’s important to be consistent. Whether it’s through in-feed posts or Instagram Stories, you want your followers to be engaging with your content daily. On @Everything_Delish, I usually post one to three times a day, and I’m always sharing my daily routine with my followers. You don’t want to leave them out of the experiences you’re having!

2.) Use Limited and Specific Hashtags

Everyone thinks that they need to use 30 hashtags for their posts to do well. However, that’s not the case! Many people are actually using hashtags that are ‘overused’ (for example, #food, #foodporn, #ootd), and their posts are not being seen. Rather than using generic hashtags, try using 10-15 hashtags that are specific to the photo/video that you’re posting.

3.) Engage With Your Audience

It’s important to respond and engage your followers who are interacting with your posts. I always try to respond to every direct message and comment on my page. The more you respond to comments, the more likely your followers will comment on your photo! People like to know that if they had a question to ask you, they can rely on you to respond.

4.) Post Content That You Truly Like

Rather than post content that you think is ~Instagram-worthy,~ post content that you genuinely like/interests you. Your audience is more likely to engage with your content when they can tell it is genuine. Once you start posting relatable content, your audience will be more likely to “trust” your recommendations.

5.) Put Yourself Out There — Literally!

Although I started @Everything_Delish as a food account, it wasn’t until I started to put myself out there that my page turned into more lifestyle and travel. Once my followers learned who I was and more about my personal journey, I became more relatable to my audience. This was a pivotal moment for myself, as I was no longer seen as “Everything Delish” the food account, but rather Jamie Milne of “Everything Delish.” This was extremely important to growing my presence, as social media can be viewed as a saturated space, and it’s important to have your own niche!

6.) Connect With Similar Content Creators

Don’t be scared to slide into the DM of your favorite blogger/influencer … or even brand! I am very fortunate to have met some of my best friends through Instagram, whom I am now able to collaborate and travel with all the time. Instagram is all about being a part of a community of creators who are able to support each other.

8.) Capture the Perfect Photo

You do not need an expensive camera to take the perfect Instagram photo/video. I started off taking all of my content on my iPhone and still only use my iPhone XS MAX. For me, it’s important to be able to shoot, edit and post all of my content on one device. For editing, my favorite apps are: Lightroom, VSCO and Snapseed.

9.) Be True to Yourself and Your Brand

I left my teaching career behind to pursue “Everything Delish” full time and have never looked back! I love being able to share my experiences with my followers and post content that I genuinely love. It’s important to be true to yourself and your brand and not be competitive with others. Once you stop worrying about if your photo will do well — the number of likes/followers you have, etc. — you will be able to successfully grow your brand and social presence.