📈 Instagram analytics unveiled for artists
#02 or how to finally understand your growth
Hi growth artist,
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In today’s Missive:
1/ Introduction
2/ You already have all the answers.
3/ Vanity metrics
4/ Relativity
5/ 3 major relations
6/ The exception that proves the rule
7/ Conclusion
8/ ✨Growth gems of the week ✨
1/ Introduction.
One morning in April 2020, I finally reached the 100 followers necessary to unlock my creator analytics (I know, it's cute...). I was so excited, thinking I'd discover some magical data to boost my art account.
At the time, I had already understood something important: creating good art is necessary to grow, but not sufficient.
I needed to learn to understand Instagram's algorithm to make it work for my art.
And for that, I had to learn to dissect these analytics.
However, when I finally got to explore my dashboard, it was a disaster: I found lots of numbers that didn't seem to mean much to me. Among all this information, which ones were really relevant to help me grow?
Over the past 4 years, I've tried many things, fallen into many traps, and pursued the wrong metrics many times... but thanks to that, I can write this missive for you today.
Welcome to edition #02 of the Growth Missive, where I help you decode your Instagram analytics and use them to grow your art account.
2/ You already have all the answers.
One might criticize Instagram for being secretive about its algorithm, but the platform gives us almost everything about the performance of our art account.
So, no matter what question you have about your growth, the answer is probably in your dashboard.
The challenge lies in interpreting it.
Personally, I spend an average of 10 minutes on my dashboard every day. Non-growth artists might think I'm just obsessed with numbers.
But for those who have cracked the code, analytics are no longer just numbers but answers to our questions.
Why did few people like this art Reel?
Why am I not growing anymore when last month I gained quite a few followers
Why aren't people subscribing, is it because they haven't seen my profile or have they seen it and not liked it?
All the answers are right in front of you. In your analytics.
You just have to learn to interpret them to know which metrics are truly important for your growth.
3/ Vanity metrics
As an artist on Instagram, the first thing we tend to pay attention to is likes.
How many people liked this drawing?
Why do so few people like my work?
Of course, I fell into this trap. I've spent afternoons feeling down because the post I just published got only 10 likes and just one lonely comment, probably posted by a bot.
Yet today, it's the last metric I look at. And to be honest, it's the last thing that helped me grow.
Why? It's simple: the number of likes and comments only has value in comparison to other data. Alone, it means nothing. It's simply the result of other truly important factors that you should focus on.
And these kinds of analytics, which everyone thinks are important but in reality tell you nothing about the health of your art account, are called vanity metrics.
Because on their own, they are in vain.
Because 700 likes on a small art account means something different than 700 likes on a big art account.
So from today on, I want you to stop vain comparisons and focus on what truly matters: yourself.
4/ Relativity
When I first started dissecting my analytics, I was searching for an absolute truth: which number should I follow, improve, optimize to grow? Until I realized something: the power lies in relativity.
For instance, on Reel 1, I have 327,000 views and 17,695 likes. At first glance, it might seem like a well-performing Reel. However, Reel 2, despite having significantly fewer views, has more interactions.
Connecting these different numbers allowed me to understand that here (Reel 1), I probably needed to improve the caption and/or the storytelling of my Reel to generate more interactions.
You'll understand: no metric is completely useless, but none of them is sufficient on its own either.
Today, I've developed the habit of not reacting emotionally to raw data. Instead, I seek to connect different data points to draw lessons that will help me grow my account.
5/ 3 major relations
When properly put in relation, all metrics can help you improve your art account or your content. But there are three correlations that I use every day:
1️⃣ Engagement Rate.
If there's one thing you should focus on mastering, it's this: engagement rate. Instead of just tracking likes and comments in isolation, I advise you to always consider them in relation to the number of people who actually saw your art. The engagement rate will give you an idea of how engaging your content is and how healthy your current community is. Achieving an engagement rate of 10% or above? You're doing super great. 🌟
2️⃣ Follower - non-follower
The second thing to watch closely is the rate of non-followers viewing your art content. It's important to know what percentage of your content's viewers are actually not following you. The higher this percentage, the more your content resonates beyond your current audience; which is extremely beneficial for your growth! Improving your engagement rate frequently helps to increase a low non-follower rate.
3️⃣ Profile visits/follows (conversion rate)
The last crucial relation is your account's follower conversion rate. This rate is calculated by dividing the number of followers gained by the total number of profile visits during the same period. By determining this ratio, you'll understand the percentage of people who, after seeing your content and visiting your profile, choose to follow you. Naturally, the higher this percentage, the better. You'll find that this ratio is the crux of growth because having millions of views is meaningless if no one decides to follow you in the end.
6/ The exception that proves the rule
I've lied to you a little.
Yes, the greatest quality of a growth artist is being able to put in relation data to understand the health of their account.
But there's one metric that breaks the rule: watch time.
It's the average amount of time that viewers spend watching a content (Reels, Carousels, stories...).
On Instagram, it's the only data that tells Instagram directly, without any relativity, if your content is engaging enough for people to stay on it.
So, when it comes to watch time, I want you to stop overthinking and constantly seek to improve it using these tools:
Vary the length of your content and see what performs best.
Add a strong and enticing hook in the first 2 seconds of your Reel.
Create mini-hooks throughout your Reel
Use a satisfying looping effect
Write an engaging caption that people will want to read.
Your goal: keep people engaged with your art for as long as possible.
7/ Conclusion
If I were just another Instagram guru, I'd simply give you a list of metrics to follow.
But I want you to learn to think and grow on your own.
That's why it's important for you to become a growth artist, to distance yourself from conventional wisdom, and to learn to think smartly about Instagram.
It starts with reconnecting with your stats, stopping to hate the numbers you see, and learning to see them as valuable source of information!
Except for watch time, that's something you need to work hard to improve no matter what.
That's all from me.
See you next week.
Léa.
8/ ✨Growth gems ✨ of the week.
Here are this week's topics:
Instagram news // Carousel post within the Reels feed Instagram is testing a feature that lets you see carousel posts in the Reels feed. This option, already available on TikTok, might become a regular feature on the app. Which is fantastic news for artists! Carousels are a time-saving and enjoyable method for presenting our art, so I’m glad that they are being showcased more prominently on the platform.
Instagram tip // Try out music photo post Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, recently shared some tips for creators wanting to grow on Instagram. A lot of his advice was about photo posts, which now represent half of all content viewed on the platform. In this post, I'm summarizing his 3 tips to make your photo art posts even better.