With its emphasis on photos, Stories, and Reels – all visual media – and more than 2.3 billion monthly active users worldwide, Instagram has become a hub for social media users to take in exciting locations and experiences from all over the globe.
For those same reasons, it’s also become a hub for travel influencers!
Social media exerts a powerful influence on people when it comes to travel. According to one Statista survey, 75% of respondents said that they were influenced to travel to a specific destination by social media. That’s more than the number of respondents who said they were influenced by tv, news, and friends and family!
If you’ve decided to take the plunge and create an Instagram account focused on travel influencing, then you’re entering a niche with a ton of potential for growth and fame! But how do you reach the right audience and increase your Instagram travel account followers?
8 Ways To Draw More Followers To Your Instagram Travel Account
In case you’re struggling to build your travel fanbase, our social media experts have got you covered! Here are 8 proven strategies you can use to get more followers to your travel account on Instagram.
1. Find a Unique Travel Subniche
In case it hasn’t hit home already, travel is one of the most popular content niches on Instagram. As such, there are already hundreds of thousands of travel influencers and travel accounts out there.
It’s impossible to compete with them all, but that’s also not the goal. Rather, the goal is to provide a unique perspective in a travel subniche, so that people who are interested in that subniche will want to follow you.
A subniche is a niche within a niche.
The beauty of having so many different travel subniches is that Instagram users can follow the ones they’re specifically interested in. This is great news for influencers because it’s easier to appeal to a specific interest than it is to appeal to a broad one like “travel.”
Focus on finding a travel subniche that you’re interested in and already has an audience. Then, create content that fits within that subniche and market it to your target audience with relevant keywords, hashtags, and geolocations.
2. Network with Other Instagram Travel Influencers
Earlier, we mentioned that there are already quite a few travel influencers on Instagram (more than quite a few if we’re being honest). But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it may even help you get more followers.
Let’s explain how.
Once you’ve decided what your account’s travel subniche is going to be, look around at other influencers who are creating similar content to yours and successfully building their followings. Instead of viewing them as your competition, view them as potential allies. After all, you’re all creating amazing content – but you can help each other, as well.
Try to connect with those other travel influencers and create a network. Then, if the opportunity arises, pitch ideas for collaborative posts or Reels. This way, you can market yourself to their fans, and vice versa. It’s a situation where everyone wins, and the prize is more followers!
3. Work with Travel Brands
Travel influencers who land sponsorship deals with travel brands typically have more credibility and a better reputation than those who don’t. Users see their content and think that if they’re working with brands, they must be trustworthy authorities on travel. Those reasons alone can be enough to prompt a follow.
As you produce more content and grow your following bit by bit, begin reaching out to brands that are associated with travel. (Even better, try to connect with companies that are tangential to your specific travel subniche!) You may get rejected at first, especially if you’re just starting out, but don’t give up. The rewards of improving your account credibility and increasing your follower count are worth the effort!
4. Give Travel Tips and Recommendations
Part of the reason why Instagram users look for travel content is to get tips and recommendations for their own trips.
Sure, they enjoy looking at pretty pictures and watching fun Reels, but they also want to go to those places themselves. And because of that, they want to know where to stay, what to pack, how much money they can expect to shell out, and all the other nitty-gritty parts of travel that the beauty of sunsets and filters tend to obscure.
If your travel posts alone aren’t getting you the follower growth you’re looking for, try creating more content about your personal tips, recommendations, and hacks for traveling. Make it your goal to help your followers (and your future followers) have as pleasant a traveling experience as possible, thanks to your expert knowledge.
Remember that statistic we shared in the beginning of the article, about more people being influenced to travel by social media than any other marketing channel? This is where that comes into play. It’s time to get your influence on!
5. Invest in a GoPro and Film Your Travel Adventures
If you want to make your Instagram travel content more exciting, consider investing in a GoPro or a similar travel camera.
A GoPro is small, waterproof, and the perfect companion for outdoor adventures. The footage you’ll shoot of you hiking down a trail, rappelling off a cliffside, or strolling through the streets of a new city will get you more follows from users who enjoy a raw, unfiltered, first-person travel perspective.
6. Use Travel-Related Hashtags
Hashtags (words with a # in front of them) are what Instagram uses to categorize different types of content and show them to users who have indicated an interest in them.
If you aren’t using hashtags in your Instagram captions already, you need to start! This is one of the easiest ways to ensure that your posts reach your target audience.
Social media experts advise influencers to use a mix of broad and specific hashtags that are all relevant to your content. For travel influencers, this may mean including the more generic #travel hashtag along with a specific one related to your subniche (like #luxuryhotels, if your subniche is luxury travel).
Experts also advise not to use too many hashtags. Instagram itself recommends you use no more than 3-5 in a single post. Use more than that, and the Instagram algorithm may get confused about where to rank your posts and which users to show them to. It may even perceive your post as spam content – a situation you want to avoid at all costs!
7. Create Travel Guides in Your Story Highlights
One thing that can help a travel influencer stand out to their target audience and gain more followers is travel guides. Having travel guides showcases your expertise and experience in your niche, as well as your unique voice.
You can create travel guides on your Instagram profile for everyone to see by using Story Highlights. This is a feature where you can build multiple collections of Stories that you posted in the past. You can also name your Highlight whatever you want.
In case you were wondering, there’s currently no limit on the number of Highlights you can make. That means you can create a travel guide for every trip you’ve ever been on, providing you posted travel Stories about them, of course!
Not sure how to create a Highlight? Here are the steps for Instagram users on Android and iOS mobile devices.
Step #2: Tap Story Highlight. Step #3: Tap all the Stories you want to include in your Highlight. Step #4: Tap Next. Step #5: Tap Edit cover and select a cover photo for your Highlight, as well as a title. Step #6: Tap Add to complete. Repeat this as many times as you like to show potential new followers how well-traveled and brimming with great content you are! As more people have become familiar with social media, and Instagram in particular, they are becoming aware of how many fake people there are out there on the internet. It’s laughably easy to be fake as a travel influencer. Dozens of filters exist that can make the locations in your photos look more vibrant and beautiful than they really are. You can also hide a lot of flaws or undesirable features in your content with cropping, photoshopping, and clever posing. Worst of all, though, influencers often promote brands that they secretly don’t like or believe in, just because those brands are signing their paychecks. In a world of fake influencers, you have a huge opportunity to stand out and attract more followers by simply being authentic. Don’t try to sugarcoat your travels or your experiences with filters and deception. Instead, build a strong, loyal following with honesty and integrity. According to Zip Recruiter a typical travel influencer based in the United States makes $39,955 per year. With the right strategies, growing your Instagram travel following is a cinch. Use the methods we shared in this article to increase your followers and take your travel Instagram accounts to new frontiers of influence and success!
8. Be Authentic
Frequently Asked Questions
How Much Do Travel Influencers Make?
Conclusion
