The Dip

If you’ve been on Instagram for a few years, your followers are probably made up of people you know. Friends, family, acquaintances. 

This creates a strange scenario if you’re thinking about posting consistent content to grow your audience.

First, there’s a mental hurdle you need to overcome. I don’t want to spam everyone with annoying promotional content. This is a common thought. But it’s an outdated one. Before Instagram had an algorithm (almost a decade ago), posts showed up chronologically. This meant that if you posted more than once per day, or even daily, people would get annoyed with your “spammy” content. You don’t need to worry about this anymore. Instagram has an algorithm, so if someone doesn’t like your content enough to engage with it, Instagram will stop showing it to them. 

Problem solved.

But there’s another problem: your friends love you. 

When you start posting consistent content, many of your friends will be excited, and will flood your early content with comments, likes, and shares. They’re excited to see someone they love chase a goal. This is a problem because your videos aren’t for them. If your content is for a niche, most of your friends aren’t in that niche. So, inevitably, eventually, they’ll stop engaging with it. 

This creates an early boost of engagement, and then a sharp drop off, as your content is only served to people who aren’t really in your target audience. 

This dip is where most people quit. They’re not seeing the engagement that makes it worth it to keep creating, so they stop creating just before they reach their ideal audience. 

Consistent creation is well worth it when you’re doing it for people who are hungry for what you make. But this only comes after an initial spike, and an extended dip, while you figure out how to reach these people. 

If you can get through the dip, well, then, you’ll have a shot at growing an audience and monetizing it. You’ll have a shot at your dream. 

Will you get through this dip?