How to boost a post on Instagram in 12 steps

Creating high-quality content is time-consuming and crowds marketing budgets. That makes it increasingly frustrating when a post doesn’t take off.

Strategic content promotion is one way to ensure your posts reach a wider audience and generate the engagement necessary to drive conversions. Whether you’re trying to make money on Instagram from brand sponsorships or drive more traffic to your online shop, you’ll need a bigger audience to succeed.

Read on to learn how to boost a post on Instagram to maximize your promotion budget and reach more users.

How does Instagram promotion work?

Instagram promotion is a type of social media marketing that converts regular content into paid promotional content. When you pay to promote or “boost” a post, it appears in the feeds, stories, and Explore pages of those who don’t follow you, like a paid advertisement, exposing your content to a broader audience.

You can customize each Instagram ad to target specific audiences based on location, age and other specs, ensuring that promoted content resonates with its recipients. And promoted posts fulfill numerous marketing objectives, like guiding potential customers to external platforms, building brand awareness and improving conversions.

What types of Instagram posts can you boost?

You can promote any post type, such as:

• Photos
• Reels
• Stories
• Carousels (multiple images or videos within a single post)
• Shoppable posts (with product tags)

How to boost an Instagram post: 12 steps

You’ll need an active Instagram professional account to promote content on Instagram. Then, follow these steps to turn any piece of content into an ad:

1. Open the Instagram app
2. Visit your profile page
3. Click on the content you want to promote
4. Tap the blue “Boost post” button
5. Select a goal (more profile visits, website visits, or messages)
6. Press “Next”
7. Define your audience (automatic or customized)
8. Press “Next”
9. Set a budget and duration
10. Press “Next”
11. Review beneficiary and payer
12. Press “Confirm”

Then, your post undergoes a final review from the Instagram team before going live. And you can pause an ad anytime, halting its promotion and payment.

Why can’t I boost my post on Instagram?

If you’re unable to boost a post or create an Instagram reels promotion it could be one of two reasons:

1. You’re not using a professional Instagram account. In this case you’ll have to convert your personal account into a professional account to create promotions.
2. You're not the page’s admin. To create promotions, you need to be an admin of the Facebook account that’s connected to the Instagram professional account. To fix this, ask the admin of the Facebook page to upgrade your status for full access.

4 benefits of promoting an Instagram post

Unless you go viral, boosting your brand or business through organic account reach is challenging. Content promotion offers an alternative way to amplify your posts regardless of your follower count and current engagement rates.

Here are four more reasons promoting on Instagram can benefit your brand.

1. Increased brand awareness

Even top-notch content needs a nudge in the right direction to get the recognition it deserves. If you’re selling products or attracting brand sponsorships, your success lies in the number of eyes on your content, as purchases first require brand awareness.

Promoted content instantly broadens your reach and introduces your brand to a fresh audience. When users resonate with boosted content, they’re more likely to explore your brand’s offering and share what they like with their followers, further increasing your brand awareness. Even if they don’t click on your ad, they’re more likely to recognize your brand name or product later on.

2. More traffic to where it needs to be

You can add links to promotions to drive traffic to your blog, online shop or other external platforms. And each promotion can feature a call-to-action button that appears as a clickable “Learn More” or “Shop Now,” leading to your URL of choice.

You can even direct users to specific product pages or your entire catalog if you’re running an online shop or guide viewers to an online blog. Choose your objective and link it.

3. Increased viewer engagement

Promoted posts amplify your content’s reach, increasing its potential for earning more likes, comments and shares. As these interactions build up, your content gains momentum, reaching an even greater audience and further boosting engagement.

4. Advanced targeting

When creating an Instagram promotion, you can fine-tune parameters to reach your target market. This advanced targeting leads to higher engagement and conversion rates, as your promotions reach users most likely to resonate with your content’s message and aesthetic.

7 tips for effectively boosting an Instagram post

You can promote any piece of content to a larger audience. But if you want your promotion to be successful, here are a few tips to keep in mind.

1. Consider your target audience

Ask yourself who you’re trying to attract to your brand, considering where they live, their interests and what content types they might respond to best. These answers guide your choices when designing your promotion and ensure you reach your marketing objective.

2. Select a high-quality and informative piece of content

Although your profile grid probably includes various posts that assist visual appeal, selecting content with a clear brand message is best. Your choice should show the best of your brand while remaining relevant to the rest of your content. When promotions are relevant, users are pleased with what they find on your profile rather than confused by the inconsistency.

Remember: This will be many users’ first time interacting with your content and learning who you are, so quality is paramount.

3. Promote top-performing posts

Your personal favorite content won’t always be your audience’s. Before promoting a post, dive into engagement metrics to identify top-performing posts, choosing high-performing content that aligns with your campaign.

4. Use carousel posts

Carousel posts let you add several images or videos to a single post, creating an enhanced snapshot of your message. Create a post with multiple photos related to your campaign and promote it to hopefully snap your target audience’s attention with more imagery.

5. Curate your landing pages

You want users to spend time where they land, not leave immediately.

No matter where your promotion leads — be it your profile, product page, or website — it should create a positive first impression that engages the viewer. Before launching a promotion, ensure landing pages are spotless, cleaning up unappealing content from your profile grid and checking that your website runs smoothly and is easy to navigate.

6. Leverage product tags

If you use Instagram Shopping features, promoting posts featuring product tags is a great way to generate interest and direct customers to purchasable items. You can create several promotions with different products and develop specific targets for each, or use a carousel that shows a glimpse at a range of products.

7. Promote a giveaway

Giveaways are an effective way to reel in new followers, especially if one of your giveaway rules is to follow your account.

Make sure that prizes are clearly illustrated with engaging imagery and text. Use bold text on the image that clearly states you’re hosting a giveaway, write a concise caption and show off what you’re giving away.

Boosting posts to build your brand

Propelling brand visibility and engagement requires knowing how to boost a post on Instagram. An effective promotion can significantly impact your content’s trajectory, steering it toward an audience likely to enjoy and engage with it.

And there are countless other ways to grow your brand using social media. To level up your Facebook game, learn how to connect your Instagram and Facebook accounts to benefit from mutual posting. And to spread the love, you can always share others’ stories on your IG.

You can also try switching up your Instagram bio to give potential followers a clever introduction to who you are, and optimize your link in bio with Linktree to direct visitors to every crucial brand platform.