If you’re posting regularly to an Instagram account with beautiful images and you still aren’t seeing growth, then you might understandably find yourself feeling very frustrated. Perhaps Instagram just isn’t right for your business, you may think. Perhaps you’re doing something wrong?

Unfortunately, the fact of the matter is that organic growth on Instagram takes time. With that said though, here are five tips that can  help you to grow Instagram account or page bit more quickly.

1. Use Portrait Orientation

Taking photos with portrait orientation is generally considered the best practice in Instagram marketing. If not, then you should at least choose square images. This way, your image will stay on the page longer while the users are vertically scrolling, meaning more engagement and hopefully more likes.

2. Post at the Right Time

Posting at the right time of day has been shown to be hugely important when it comes to your Instagram success. This way, you maximize the number of people who are awake and who are using the app. Research suggests that posting some time between 10 am and 3 pm on a weekday will net you the best results. BUT this doesn’t account for global time differences. If you’re aiming for a global audience, then posting at 6 pm GMT might just be the smarter strategy.

3. Post Frequently

How frequently? Ideally, you should be posting 2-3 times per day. This will ensure that there is a steady flow of content on your site and that it doesn’t seem as though the page has been abandoned. What’s more though, is that posting this regularly will mean almost all of your viewers will see at least one image from you per day.

4. Use Hashtags

Hashtags make a big difference on Instagram, so make sure you use them often and use them well. One of the most important tips is to use as many as possible (30) in order to maximize your chances of a big hit. Find the sweet spot in terms of popularity too – 30,000 is a good number of posts to see.

5. Choose a Look

Many accounts are all over the place, with every image they post looking completely different and the end result being a page that has no consistency. Making sure the majority of your images have a consistent look – even picking the same filter for every photo – can prevent this issue and help people to better understand what you’re about and whether they should follow.