5 Tips to Grow Your Instagram Account by the Duchess of Islay
My two most frequently asked questions on Instagram are “What’s your favorite whisky?” and “How can I grow my whisky account on Instagram?”
While I don’t have one specific bottle I love more than any other, I do love Instagram more than any other social media site. Facebook is not as user friendly, and the people on TikTok are typically too young to appreciate good whisky. Instagram is a sweet spot for spirit aficionados to take the time to pour up a dram, and then leisurely scroll through whatever interests them. Although the platform is going through major changes, these 5 tried and true tips will help connect you with more whisky lovers right now.
- Put yourself in front of the camera. It doesn’t matter what you are posting – a reel, video, story or post. The people that consistently put their face in the photo with their whisky create a relationship with followers. You might be rolling your eyes, but there are tons of Instagram whisky accounts with 20k+ followers that are run by men that look like they just finished cutting down a forest of trees for the past 3 months, sustained by a diet of straight up full-bodied beer and cheese. People want to see the person behind the bottle. Give it to them.
- Spend time on your captions. You don’t have to be a whisky expert, or a historian. I’ve been highly entertained by whisky accounts that pair whisky with music, movies, mental health, travel, or personal journeys. If you have something to share with people, do it! Stick to that format and people will keep coming back, because they know what kind of information they will get from you. They are going to want whatever you offer.
- Do a reel at least once a week. Instagram really wants to see you use their tools they have spent months/years creating and they will push your content to more people if you use it. Take a reel of you opening a bottle and pouring whisky in a glass. Add a song and you are done. If you follow tip #1 sit in a chair like Nick Offerman and drink to a song. 30-60 seconds and you are done. Reels will be taking over more of the platform in the future, so jump on that band wagon right now.
- Be consistent. Figure out what you have time for and stick to it. 3 posts a week + 1 reel and 1 story per day will keep your content current. Instagram gives more weight to people that regularly post on their platform.
- Key words and hashtags should be relevant and specific. Gone are the days when you could put #dogs in your whisky post and get more exposure. Stick to whisky related hashtags and but sure to include those words in your caption. Lower level hashtags (such as #singlemaltscotch vs. #whisky) also get pushed to the top of the explorer page and this is where you want to be if you want to increase your followers.
This isn’t necessarily a tip, but most of all, be patient and enjoy what you are doing. Your enthusiasm will come through as great, entertaining content to your followers, and you will build real relationships with some amazing, like-minded people.