Your Guide: How To Measure Instagram Engagement
And what you can do to improve it
Nowadays, a pretty feed and a bunch of followers isn’t enough to drive conversions.
If you want to start turning those likes into customers, you need to know how to measure Instagram engagement. It’s the pulse that gauges how effectively your content and brand are resonating with your audience
Great engagement means your audience moves from casual scrolling to committed action. AKA buying your new mineral sunscreen or recommending you to friends and followers.
Engagements and Social Marketing Success
All likes and comments are forms of engagement, but engagement extends beyond just likes and comments!
Instagram engagements offer insight into what your audience actually thinks about your content. So when evaluating the effectiveness of campaigns, it’s reeeeeally important.
Learning how to measure Instagram engagement also guides your future social strategies.
If your last campaign had low interactions, it’s time to adjust the strategic approach for the next one!
Now let’s dive into the different types of engagement, identify which ones are worth paying attention to, and learn how to measure them!
How to Measure Instagram Engagement
All your account analytics live right here ⤵️
Whether you’re looking for the top-performing post from last month or how many people clicked on your profile link last week—you can find it all here.
The first part of learning how to measure Instagram engagement is getting nice and comfy with this area of your account. So poke around a bit and take a look at your analytics!
1. Content Interactions
Content interactions account for every time someone interacts with your post.
We’re talking likes, comments, shares, saves, and profile clicks.
👉 BTW, those are all the main forms of Instagram engagements
Comments create conversations, shares extend your reach and saves show content value. A comprehensive view of these interactions paints a clearer picture of what content sparks interest and connection.
Each segment of these interactions is important, but what you focus on will vary on the time of year, your overall brand goals, and your specific goals for that content piece.
2. Engaged Accounts:
Now this area of your analytics identifies the number of unique accounts interacting with your posts.
Let’s say you’ve got killer content interactions, but few engaged accounts. The engagement there is great! But if you adjust your content strategy to reach more people, you’ll cast a wider net of users to engage with your account.
Diverse engagement signifies broader reach and potentially deeper connections. This is a key metric to track when gauging the widening impact of your content among different segments of your audience.
3. Engagement Rate:
You can actually calculate your engagement rate with a little formula. (Don’t worry, it’s not calculus!)
The magic engagement rate formula:
Engagement Rate = (Likes + Comments + Saves) x 100
Reach
In short, you add up your post’s likes, comments, and shares, then divide it by it’s reach.
So what does this number even mean? It’s the percentage of your audience that interacts with your content. While it’s best to not always be focused on the numbers, it’s a good quantifiable reference when following the effectiveness of campaigns!
4. Tags and Mentions:
Remember when we said all your analytics live in your profile dashboard? Well there’s one that doesn’t. It’s your tags and mentions.
Your tags generally live here ⤵️ and mentions are in your notifications.
These types of engagement give you a feel of how your audience actually interacts with you. Are they mentioning you in comments on unrelated posts? Are they tagging you in their ‘Sephora Haul’ reel?
These great opportunities to engage back and jump into those online conversations. They also show you a genuine, unfiltered glimpse of how your brand is viewed by your audience!
5. Instagram Stories:
Instagram stories are another tool in measuring engagement.
With stories, you can see views, link clicks, and navigation clicks (backwards, forwards, and exiting). So when you’re analyzing your content, don’t forget the stories!
Engagement here tells a slightly different story (no pun intended). Tapping like on a post whilst scrolling is one thing, but seeing the notification for a new story and clicking on it to see what’s being shared is a step further.
Side note: Instagram Story Highlights are a great way to have your brand story, FAQs and more permanently on your page—Don’t sleep on it!
Boosting Engagement: The Art and Science
Now the juicy part: boosting your engagement!
Learning how to measure Instagram engagement is one thing. Growing it is whole other venture. But don’t worry, you’re working with some engagement experts here 💃🏻
Here are a few things to consider when improving your engagement:
Compelling captions in your brand voice that resonate—Here’s where you provide actual value for your followers
Inviting CTAs that prompt action—This urges followers to engage or explore further.
Genuine community management—Always always respond to comments!
Know when and how frequently to post—So your posts are live when your followers are online.
Remember, in the realm of social media, engagement is more than just a metric. It's the heartbeat of your brand's relationship with its audience.
Partner with Scott Social for Elevated Engagement
Are you ready for scroll-stopping content that your audience will love? We sure are!
At Scott Social, we specialize in deciphering the nuances of social media landscapes to cultivate engagement that goes beyond numbers.
Our tailored strategies, knowledgable social media managers, creative graphic and video designers, and adept community management have helped numerous brands foster meaningful connections with their audiences.
Let us craft a strategy that resonates with your audience and elevates your Instagram engagement to new heights!
WRITTEN BY:
Victoria
Copywriter + Social Media Strategist