Travel accounts are very popular on Instagram, but in the modern, crowded social media sphere, it’s important to have a specific niche. Today, many travelers are interested in Scandinavian countries for their wide variety of sights, scenery, and activities, from swimming to skiing to fjords to the northern lights. With the competition and Instagram user base growing each day, expert Ronald A. Harris says you may realize that you need both incredible, real pictures and cheap Instagram likes to improve your metrics. Here are some tips on how to develop an Instagram travel account about Scandinavian countries:

Focus on high-quality photos of unique Scandinavian attractions

Although you can take high-quality photos with some smartphones, you might consider investing in a top-of-the-line digital camera for more options, as well. It’s important to be able to capture the beauty of the scenery in a variety of locations and lighting situations, but equipment is only part of the equation. Also consider brushing up on your photography skills so you can learn about framing and other techniques. For example, take a look at this beautiful picture of the Northern Lights captured by @nordic.norway. The photographer managed to capture both the Northern Lights and the idyllic village below them, with both in sharp focus. Finish up by using a professional editing app like VCSO or Adobe Photoshop Lightroom to get your pictures in the best shape possible.

Remember to motivate your viewers to engage with a call-to-action (CTA)

Some people think of CTAs as being “salesy” but they don’t always have to promote a website, product, or service.

• A CTA can also just inspire people to comment by asking, “What do you think? Let us know in the comments.”
• You could ask your audience to share their own photos of the location you’re currently posting about, or even have a contest for “the best picture taken in Oslo,” etc. This is a particularly good way to stimulate engagement as most people like to share their own content.
• If you do have a blog or website you want to promote, you can make your CTA about “see link in bio.”
• “See link in bio” is used a lot though, so try not to make these promotional posts more than 20 percent of your content.
• The important thing to keep in mind is to encourage people to stop scrolling and interact with your post, whether it’s liking or commenting.

Include some videos

About 91 percent of Instagram users watch videos on the site on a weekly basis, so it’s a good idea to take advantage of the popularity of video content. Your video stories should include content that wouldn’t work as well in a still photo, like this delightful post of frolicking reindeer from user @scandinavian_vikingsaint. Short videos are fine – many successful reels are 30 seconds or less. However, you should use a mixture of lengths to see what works well for you. Some topics may lend themselves to longer videos, such as showing your hike up a mountain.

Carousel posts are another must-have for your account

Although video is popular, carousels return the highest engagement of any post type on Insta, and for accounts of all sizes. This is especially helpful to those with smaller accounts who are hoping to grow an audience. There are several ways to do carousels:

• You can do a time-lapse series, showing the same place over time, like this Northern Lights carousel post.
• You can also do a carousel of pictures of different things you saw or did in one location.
• Another option is to focus on a theme like a color or activity, or photographing an object in multiple places. Additionally, you could do the same selfie pose in different locations if you like being on camera.

Don’t forget to diversify your posts

Carousels are great, but you should do at least a few of each kind of post – stories, live, feed, and IGTV – each week to keep things interesting. This helps draw in a wider variety of people, and some may engage with specific types of posts more than others.

Get personal with your audience.

Sharing personal stories and details help build a bond with your viewers on IG, and they’re more likely to comment or heart your posts if they feel a connection with you. It isn’t necessary to share every detail of your life, but occasionally showing some emotion in a live reel or a picture can help make your content much more relatable.

Use the right hashtags.

Insta allows 30 hashtags per post, and by using all of them, you optimize your photo’s chances of being seen. This is important because IG’s algorithms favor content that already has engagement, so it can be difficult getting even your current followers to see your pictures at first. The more hashtags you use, the easier this will be. In general, you want to choose hashtags with a lot of traffic – IG shows you how many times each hashtag has been used recently when you type it in to help with research. Here are some hashtags you might consider for your Scandinavian travel account as they apply to content:

• #scandinavia
• #igscandinavia
• #iceland
• #faroeislands
• #finland
• #denmark
• #sweden
• #norway
• #oslo
• #helsinki
• #copenhagen
• #stockholm
• #torshavn
• #reykjavik
• #bergen
• #lapland
• #visitnorway
• #visitsweden
• #visitdenmark
• #visiticeland
• #visitfinland

Also focus on what people need to have their own Scandinavian journeys

Not every picture has to be a breathtaking view or a heart-to-heart chat with your fans. People who follow travel accounts often appreciate practical advice, like what to pack for a trip to the fjords, the best time of year to visit a location, things to look for in a souvenir shop, etc. At first you can start out with items you like and use, and as your account grows, hopefully you’ll be approached by brands who want an influencer to talk about their products.

Remember that growing an audience takes time

It can be frustrating, but organic growth rarely happens overnight (despite what you may have seen on TV shows where characters go viral accidentally, without even trying). In the real world, building a following is a slow and steady process. Having great content that you publish regularly (at least once a day is ideal, but 2-3 times weekly is all right to start out) can help. However, the website’s algorithms still promote the accounts and content that are already the most popular. In order to speed up getting the growth that you need, you may want to consider acquiring real, cheap Instagram likes on your pictures.

These tips should help you put your travel Instagram account about Scandinavian countries on the map. And remember, always have fun with your content, and your audience will too!