Getting on Instagram’s Explore Page is coveted by many brands due to the unique nature of the page—which offers custom recommendations for each user. If you appear on a user’s Explore Page, it’s because you have similar interests, not due to advertising dollars.
If you want to know how to get on the Explore Page, keep reading. We’ll give you all the tips and tricks you need.
Instagram will have an estimated 1.44 billion users by 2025.
Focusing specifically on how to get on the Explore page is essential because Instagram’s Explore algorithm caters to each of its billion users’ unique interests. If you end up on a user’s Explore Page, it’s more likely that they’ll follow you, which helps build your brand and gain new followers.
You can also see more engagement on your profile and improved conversions (if you’re selling a product).
How does Instagram create a unique page for its many users? It focuses on different actions a user takes, like:
What content a user interacts with
Accounts a user followers
Posts that are similar to a user’s interests
How engaging a post is (likes, comments, saves, sharing)
If a user interacted with the post’s owner before
Instagram’s Explore algorithm uses machine learning and incorporates all of the above to narrow the eligible posts for that user. Of course, that would still leave thousands of posts, so it then takes all those potential posts and narrows it further, considering user likes and selection of “see fewer posts like this.”
Those actions finally narrow it down to what appears on a user’s Explore Page. The algorithm will also pick one post from an account to prevent the Explore Page from being filled from a single account.
Here are eight tips to improve your chances of getting on the Explore Page on Instagram.
Before you set your sights on the Explore Page, optimize your Instagram profile. Optimization makes you look more professional and makes it easier for other users to find you.
Use keywords that relate to you. For example, if you are or want to be a fashion influencer, you would add words like “fashion,” “outfits,” and “influencer.” You can even add any of your favorite brands that you frequently wear.
Ensure your profile picture is clear and consistent with your branding on other platforms. You should also add contact information, like a website or email address.
Perfecting your profile makes it easier for Instagram’s Explore algorithm to identify which users want to see you on their Explore Pages.
The next step is to determine your target audience and what they like. You can set up multiple posts with different keywords and hashtags. While hashtags aren’t as important as they used to be, they’re still an excellent way to categorize your posts.
You can start with these top five Instagram hashtags:
#love
#instagood
#fashion
#photooftheday
#photography
Create various posts to know which format suits your brand best.
Once you have a good amount of data to work with, you can determine the demographics of your target audience. Knowing the demographics will help you narrow down your posts to get better engagement—a factor for being chosen for a user’s Explore Page.
Finally, it’s time to start focusing on content creation. Knowing your audience, you can tailor your content to their tastes. Decide what content you offer: Helpful, eye-catching, or funny? Creating consistent content will make your entire account more attractive to other users.
Examine your posts and ask yourself:
What posts are most popular? (regular posts, giveaways, Q&A)
What hashtags did you use?
What format did you use? (image, video, carousels, etc.)
How many comments and likes are there?
Why did this post work so well?
Are there any accounts I can partner with?
Depending on the answers to these questions, you’ll know what direction to take your content.
Part of creating engaging content is trying different formats. Instagram has many options for their posts.
At the moment, Reels is a focused feature on the platform (it even has its own page) and therefore shows up in people’s Explore Pages. Reels are Instagram’s version of TikTok videos, and having the platform’s focus means it could be easier for you to be on different pages. The same Reels video can be on the Reels Page and the Explore Page simultaneously.
The Reels feature has had a usage increase of 57.4% and an impression rate of 33.83% in 2023.
You can also use Stories, carousels, or even Instagram Live. Creating a wide range of content gives you a better chance of being seen by new followers. But always keep on top of what format the platform is prioritizing because it’s constantly changing in the social media sphere.
Another way to keep your account growing and increase your chances of landing on the Explore Page on Instagram is to build a community that consistently engages with you. However, you must genuinely want to cultivate a community. People are savvy and will sense if you’re doing this just to gain followers.
Engage with your followers by replying to their comments. In posts, ask plenty of questions so followers will comment with answers. Engagement will benefit you by allowing special streams when you hit a certain number of followers.
Learning how to get on the Explore Page requires you to do things that aren’t as fun as content creation—and analytics is one of those things. Luckily, if you’ve looked through your posts to determine what’s popular, you’ll be familiar with analytics.
That’s right; analytics tell you what type of post is doing the best, what post is your best performing, and what content gets the most engagement.
But there’s more to analytics than just content metrics. Analytics can indicate the best time to post, how much your audience grew within a certain period, and what keywords get the most attention.
Analytics will tell you when your followers are online. Knowing follower activity is essential because it offers a greater chance of engagement. Instagram’s algorithm tends to prioritize timeliness when it comes to when your post will appear on followers’ feeds.
If you post at the right time, your post will be the first thing followers will see when they open Instagram. Being seen sooner rather than later will increase engagement, which is crucial in how Instagram decides what goes on the Explore Page.
If you post while your followers are offline, your post could get lost within their feed, leading to them not even seeing it.
Sometimes, no matter how hard you work on organically growing your Instagram account, you aren’t hitting your goals. You may need a little extra help. If you aren’t getting on the Explore Page, consider buying an Explore ad.
It’s essential to note that when you purchase an Explore Page ad, your post won’t appear on the Explore Page. Instead, when a user clicks on a different post from the page, your post will be part of the list of similar posts.
There are two ways to reset the Explore Page on Instagram. The short way is to simply refresh the page. You do this by pulling down the page when you’re at the top. It’s the same way you would refresh any webpage on mobile.
The longer way to reset Instagram’s Explore Page requires effort. You must tell the platform what you don’t like seeing by clicking “not interested” or “see fewer posts like this.” These actions will let the algorithm know you have no interest in that type of post, which will better curate posts for future use.
As you can see, there are many options for how to get on the Explore Page. But it does require much time and effort. If you’ve tried all these tips and your account is still stagnant, Superviral can help.
Work with Superviral and get more views. You’ll get more likes, more eyes on your account, and hopefully more engagement. All this attention will increase your chances of getting on the Explore Page on Instagram.
If you want more helpful tips, check out our blog and partner with Superviral to get more Instagram followers!