5 Tips To Grow Your Bookstagram

This applies to everything in life, not just bookstagram. If you are consistent you are bound to get noticed by the platform. 

FOCUS & SUBJECT

Consistency is important in various areas. For bookstagram, I believe the primary point of consistency is focus and subject. The focus as the term bookstagram suggests is books. That’s the starting point. If the content isn’t predominantly about books, I think it’ll be tough to pass off as a bookstagrammer. Sure, it’s everyone’s prerogative to post what they want but posting 90% photos of your cat and 10% of your books will attract a larger following of pet lovers. Your focus will determine your following.

EXAMPLES OF CONSISTENT THEMES

The way most bookstagrammers achieve a consistent theme is through filters. They edit their photos with photo editing apps such as VSCO or Snapseed. Often they’ll apply the very same presets to give their photos similar moods.

BENEFITS OF FIXED THEMES

Determining a theme for yourself draws a lot of benefits. Applying a fixed style across all photos gives rise to a cohesive feed. Someone who is new to an account will much more likely tap the “follow” button. When the feed looks great as a whole, your followers will gobble up your photos for eye candy. Fixing a theme gives you the recognition factor when your photos show up in others’ feeds. When others recognize you, they’re much more likely to interact and comment on your photos.

On a creative level, some might feel limited by using the same filter over and over again. Others may grow bored. Yet keeping a theme also gives focus and direction. Over time you learn what looks good and you’ll come to frame your photos even before you pick up your camera. Knowing what you want to photograph can save a lot of time.

TIME

Find a rhythm. Whether you post daily or twice weekly, try to stick to the schedule. Posting a photo then disappearing for weeks on end alienates you from your followers. There are so many people posting photos every day, that long gaps will cast you into oblivion. In order for others to notice you, you need to be a consistent presence on bookstagram. You want others to remember you.

On the other hand, avoid posting a lot of photos in one go. Spread them out over a few days. At the very least, post one photo every few hours. Clogging up others’ Instagram feeds isn’t cool. Yes, hauling ten books is a great cause for excitement. Still, refrain from posting ten photos in a row. Round your book stack up in one photo or post a book haul photo a day.

If your output of photographs exceeds 365 photos a year, then post two or three photos over the course of a day. Pace yourself. Make sure that you neither overwhelm your followers nor fall into a posting drought. A good way to stay consistent is through. That way you can prepare ahead of time and still get to post even when you’re busy with life.

Continous learning to hone your art & adapting to changes. 

Like anywhere else building genuine connections with genuine people goes a long way, Connect with them on a human level, not on a superficial level. 

TALK TO PEOPLE

I cannot stress how important it is to talk to people. It’s called SOCIAL media for a reason. It’s called a Book COMMUNITY for a reason. Engage with people and not just try to get noticed by a big account. Talking to the people who actually follow you allows them to get to know you better. Commenting on posts also helps start those conversations, but you have to be relevant. What you’re trying to do here is build a relationship with people. This is why YouTube stars do so well. You’re talking to someone and sharing a little bit of your life with them.

The book community is quite big and we love to talk. We talk about books, book reviews, bookstagram, new books, reading, reading life, whatever. There are so many topics to choose from, so write about them in your posts, talk to the people who comment, and don’t forget to talk to others outside your circle. You can easily expand your reach if you open up.

I strongly advise not asking for shout-outs or how to get more followers or how to get free books. These kinds of conversations aren’t genuine and you might be curious as to how that happens, but it’s not the place to do it (unless the bookstagrammer says otherwise).

Be respectful

This has got to be the biggest piece of advice I can provide you. BE RESPECTFUL. There are A LOT of opinions on books here and that stirs a lot of emotions. If you want to get noticed and be a respected member of this community (and most importantly, be respected for your opinions on books), you need to understand that there are going to be a ton of differences in opinion out there. Reading opinions, genre opinions, political opinions, lifestyle opinions –it’s all going to be different, but the only way for our community to thrive is through respect.

If you don’t agree with a review, let them know privately or discuss the book in an adult way together. Do not call someone out for not liking a book and in return, do not call someone out for calling you out.

I feel like this is unique to bookstagram because we’re not trying out some yoga pants or a new matcha drink and sharing our opinions on it. These are BOOKS; they take time to read, time to process, and then time to actually come up with something to say about them. A lot of effort goes into forming these opinions, so speak to people in the same manner you want to be spoken to. Share your thoughts and feelings in a respectful way. Don’t shame anyone for the kinds of books they choose to read or their opinions on it.

You don’t have to love every book that comes out. You’re more than welcome to hate on books, but there’s a way to criticize a book you didn’t like that doesn’t upset others or the author. Books take a lot of hard work and dedication to write and authors appreciate feedback that critiques the book but doesn’t bash it to death with a sledgehammer. Bashing a book doesn’t explain at all why the book didn’t work for you. It doesn’t give other readers a sense of how they’ll feel before they read the book. Reviews are meant to be informative and critical, not hateful.

Something else to keep in mind is that not all bookstagrammers are alike. There are bookstagrammers dedicated to solely YA, fantasy, romance, literary fiction, diverse fiction, or LGBTQ fiction to name a few. There are non-fiction accounts. There are accounts dedicated to only reading library books. There are even folks who write notes in the margins, bend back their covers, or even dog-ear their pages. There’s so many variants that it makes it easy for anyone with a very specific interest in books to find their people. However, none of these groups are invalid for their interest. No person should shame another for only reading romance or dog-earing their pages or only borrowing from the library. Like I said before, there are a lot of differences in our group and if we want to keep bookstagram a community where everyone is welcome, then we need to keep these in mind.

And yeah, perhaps stirring the pot gets you followers and likes and all that, but do you really want to be remembered as the person who calls out folks who don’t like the books you like? To me, that doesn’t feel like a good PR move.

Post content that is either inspirational/educational or entertaining. And always aim to help the audience or solve their problem. 

Aim to build trust Er credibility among the audience, not just chase numbers. If a method/practice doesn't sit well with your heart don't do it. 

Look at your analytics

Not just the numbers. Don’t care about how many followers are left or how many you’ve gained. Don’t even look at your likes. Look at your content. Make some overall summations on what your followers like and don’t like about your photos. What photos tend to do better on your page? What doesn’t? How can you improve the photos that don’t? You have to remember that Instagram is still an aesthetics game and sometimes serving what your followers like will help to boost those numbers. While we’re all here for the bookish thoughts and to share our love of reading, we also have to keep in mind that Instagram on the whole is entirely visual. Folks are scrolling through their feeds casually. Sometimes they don’t even read your captions, so see what captures their eye.

For me, a lot of my followers and outside of my group love photos of open books. They love seeing me in my “natural habitat” reading a book with a cup of coffee in a cozy corner of my home. They always respond to photos where I’m in it. They don’t like just the cover or any of the ones that I put more work into the photo. LOL. This is good for me to know because then I can make content that will engage my followers and make them hit that like button. It makes it easier for me to plan a book photo session and how I want to stage my book.