Introduction
Musicians can promote themselves in many ways, but Instagram remains a leading platform for producers and content creators. As the third most popular social media platform worldwide with more than 2 million users, it ranks among the top outlets for artists.
TREND PR recognizes this. We also recognize the fact that Instagram can be hard to understand or adjust to, especially for new content creators.
With over 17 years of experience working with publicity and extensive social media expertise, we have the ability to tackle social media campaigns on Instagram to help your work get noticed. Our brand management team will help you grow and amplify your following count.
Contact us so we can help you elevate your social media presence on social media platforms like Instagram.
TL;DR – Best Ways to Promote Music on Instagram
The best way to maximize coverage on Instagram is to create consistent, short-form content with content variety. It’s good to aim for at least three to four posts per week, if not a post every day on the platform. It’s also important to keep collaboration or promotion opportunities in mind. Post content from a variety of angles that showcase behind-the-scenes clips, live performances, new music and engaging storytelling, but be mindful to create engaging and organic content that feels original.
It’s also important to check insights and post when it’s most effective to do so. Post when your followers are most active and engaged with your content. With a well-crafted caption, there’s a better chance you’ll engage with the algorithm and have your posts seen by fans.
What Makes Instagram Unique for Music Promotion
Instagram balances short-form content with established profile building. It’s an ideal platform for music teasers and showcasing your personality, as it can showcase tons of aesthetic visuals, stories, and carousels.
Instagram’s Explore page is visual-forward, allowing creatives who post compelling, clickable content to create dynamic videos that draw users in. Videos should be visually appealing, as users have to choose to engage with posts on the Explore page.
Reels are a primary way of creating engaging fan content. They can reach wide audiences due to their ability to appear on the Explore page, making it important to post them consistently.
Highlights allow you to pin Stories to your profile for future viewing, making it easy to showcase single rollouts or album releases, spotlight polls, quizzes and other interactive tools, or include links to Apple Music, Amazon Music, Spotify and other platforms.
Fans can save songs from Instagram directly to Spotify, so you should add a song to your profile for visibility, or share music snippets via direct message to promote tracks to anyone already connected with your account.
How to Promote Your Music on Instagram
Have a strong, varied profile with unique posts: Make sure that your page is professional looking. You’ll want to have a solid amount of teasers, BTS (Behind-the-scenes) footage, graphics, band photos, and short form reels for your fans to watch, so make sure you’re continuously creating unique content for your platform.
Engage with Instagram’s features: Make sure you have a song linked to your profile, a Linktr.ee or Hoo.be that makes your work easy to access, story highlights, and a plethora of reels for your fans to watch. Instagram is a visual-focused platform, so it’s important to keep in mind ways you can visually hook in profile viewers and strike them with your short form content.
Advanced Instagram Algorithm Tips for Music Promotion
Make sure you’re posting content during the best engagement windows. This can differ depending on your time zone, engagement rate and audience. It’s important to check when your best engagement windows are and schedule posts for those times.
- Sprout Social generally advises that users post in the early morning to afternoon between 10 AM and 3 PM.
Find ways to increase the watch time on your short-form content. Make sure your Reels are engaging and fully watchable by offering more than a single perspective. For example, if you’re posting a video from a recent live show, don’t just share one static angle. Instead, mix in shots and alternative viewpoints to keep the video dynamic and hold your audience’s attention. The more people watch through to the end, the more likely the algorithm is to treat your content as high quality.
Get Verified. Verifying your account is an incredibly easy way to create a professional atmosphere and boost your authenticity. You’ll want to have press materials ready for this, so make sure you’re looking into press opportunities.
Contact music promotion pages directly on Instagram. Getting coverage from promoters on the platform can boost visibility. Reach out to micro-influencers, music curators, magazines, and playlist spotlighters through DMs or email links in their bios to secure additional social coverage. Make sure you target Instagram specific platforms to highlight your page.
Ensure you’re tagging your posts with three to five specific, curated hashtags. Generally, you want to highlight areas of interest that apply to your brand or music. If you’re playing a venue, make sure to tag it. Adding too many hashtags, however, can feel non-organic and make your branding less appealing, but the occasional tag can elevate your post.
Pitfalls to Avoid in Promoting Your Music on Instagram
Posting without consistency. Sporadic posting makes it harder to build momentum with the algorithm and with fans. A predictable rhythm is more effective than random bursts of activity. It can be difficult to be consistent, but it’s worth it to develop a loyal follower base.
Over-promoting your music. Constantly pushing new singles or shows without mixing in personality-driven or interactive content can feel repetitive and turn followers away. Balancing direct promotion with fan engagement and other organic forms of content will generally be more sustainable and effective in the long run.
Purchasing followers. New fans may notice a discrepancy if you have 1,000+ followers but struggle to get consistent likes on new posts. While it’s harder in the long-run, it’s better to have an organic follower base that actually engages with your posts.
Only posting through one medium. If you’re only posting static graphics of your next show and not using reels, story features, videos or other types of content, then you should try adding some variety to your current content strategy. It’s important – not only algorithmically, but also visually – to include different types of content on your page. Graphics from upcoming shows, reels, story posts, and other content should be varied but specific to your branding.
Neglecting aesthetics. If you post content that doesn’t visually engage with your audience, there’s a likelihood that you’ll lose some of that following. Low resolution, blurry images are unlikely to engage with your fanbase. High quality images that cohesively match up with your branding are an essential to your social media presence, especially on Instagram.
Ignore fans or engagements: Ignoring fan comments, not replying to direct messages, or not engaging with other content creators will hurt your social media page in the long run. Your Instagram thrives on engagements — via commenting on others posts or replying to comments on yours. Make sure you’re regularly engaging with your followers, leaving comments on other bands posts, and looking out for opportunities.
Transform Your Instagram Strategy with TREND
TREND PR has a multitude of strategies for approaching Instagram engagements and outreach, with a multi-faceted, organic approach that considers your branding and “artist ecosystem.” From brand identity curation to outreach, we do the heavy lifting for you. Let’s discuss some of the biggest questions musicians have about Instagram strategies.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are some frequently asked questions about music promotion on Instagram.
Can I Get Featured on Top Instagram Music Promotion Pages for Free?
It can be hard to get on music promotion pages for free, but it is possible. It depends if your music organically fits the page’s brand or if you’re already creating content that’s trending and rapidly growing. It’s unlikely for a top instagram music promotion page to feature an artist for free unless they think that artist has a buzz.
You’ll most likely have to pay for promotion for a page with over 50,000-100,000 followers or more on Instagram, even if you are trending or popular.
It’s important to target micro-influencers and leverage your relationships to ensure features on different music promotion pages.
What Are the Best Hashtags to Promote Music on Instagram
As a general strategy, you’ll want to mix hashtags that read broad groups with specific, curated hashtags to reach your target audience. Disc Makers recommends using a maximum of five hashtags per post, with popular tags like:
- #Newmusic
- #livemusic
- #band
- #singer
Alongside genre-specific hashtags, for instance:
- #hiphopmusic / #hiphopartist
- #indierock / #indieartist
- #popmusic / #popartist
The more niche your tags, the better!
What Budget Should I Plan for Instagram Music Marketing?
Even if you’re planning a DIY campaign, it’s smart to have a clear budget in mind. Hiring a professional videographer, for instance, typically costs between $125 and $450 per video. You’ll also have to consider scheduling tools like Hootsuite and Buffer, caption editors or editing platforms such as Canva, and other subscriptions like an Adobe pro account.
If you want to invest in Instagram ads, it can cost between $0.25-$2+ per click or $0.03 – $0.11 per engagement. That can run anywhere from $500 to $5,000 depending on your audience.
Conclusion
Even if you’re just starting out as an independent artist, there are several ways to grow your reach and build your brand on Instagram. While there isn’t a single approach that works perfectly with Instagram’s algorithm, there are tried-and-true strategies that can help you expand your audience and increase engagement over time.
If you’re ready to elevate your Instagram strategy, reach out to us. We’re here to support you through every stage of the process, from developing a clear content plan to optimizing your posts and growing a genuinely excited fanbase.
