How to join "Instagram Engagement Groups" to go Viral!

What are Instagram Engagement Groups and could they be the answer to your Instagram prayers? Let me give you an overview of what I am going to cover in this post.

First of all, I am going to de-haze the crystal ball on what DM and Engagement groups really are and why they could impact the engagement rate of your Instagram posts so your posts go viral by showing up on Instagram’s explore page.

I cover the different kinds of groups such as:

DM Groups
Facebook and WhatsApp Groups
Instagram Engagement Groups
Automated Instagram Pods

An important part of this whole process is finding engagement groups which actually work so I will go through the process of how to join and find groups which match your niche.

Further, I really want to discuss the pros and cons of DM and Engagement Groups so you can make an informed decision on whether this is something you want to implement or not.

Let’s dig in deeper.

What is an Instagram Engagement Group?

(Disclaimer, any of these strategies have an inherent risk of Instagram shutting down your account. Additionally, Instagram is going strong against finding automated bots and any other kind of external services which go against their terms and services. I really caution you to use strategies like this and please also read the section “Reasons for not using Instagram Engagement Groups”. I am not endorsing any of these strategies)

Instagram Engagement Groups/Dm Groups can be any kind of group of people who gather to like, comment and promote each other’s posts.

Groups can be anything from 15 to 1000 and above members, depending on which medium is used to connect with each other.

The purpose of participating in Instagram engagement groups is to get your post into the “Top Posts” or the “Explore Page” section on Instagram and gain a lot of organic growth from there.

Check out why engagement is so important to grow your account and start a viral cycle in my in-depth post on “How to go viral on Instagram” here.

But, before I head into some strategy tips I want to make a quick distinction between “DM Groups” and “Engagement Groups” and why one or the other might be a better strategy to use.

1. What are Instagram “DM Groups”?

Instagram “DM Groups” or sometimes also called “Instagram Pods” are private Instagram groups you can open in the messages section of the app itself.

Basically, 10-15 people come together in this group to share likes and comments on each other post. This will increase the engagement and potentially the reach of your post so you appear on specific “Top Hashtag Pages” or even Instagram “Explore Page”.

You can join various groups at the same time potentially getting hundreds of likes on your new post, however, this can be very time consuming as the whole idea is to reciprocate likes. When you receive all these likes on your posts you will have to like and comment on a hundred other posts as well.

How to Join a DM Group

If you want to join a DM Group try typing in for example #instapod in the Instagram search function and find a post with the respective hashtag. Then send a direct message to the person who posted and ask if they have an open DM Group you could join.

Check out Facebook Groups and ask around in your niche-specific groups. There are weekly threads where you can share your posts and receive likes and comments or get informed on where you could join a group in Instagram itself.

Also, don’t miss to download my FREE INSTAGRAM PDF GUIDE on “How to Get the Perfect Instagram Feed” here:

2. What are “Facebook” and “Whatsapp DM” Groups?

There are also Instagram Pods within private Facebook groups or WhatsApp groups you can join and work very similarly as DM Groups.

Basically, the group owner creates a post where you can drop a link to your new posts and all the other participants will like and comment on your post. You will in return like and comment on their posts. To find Facebook and WhatsApp Groups head to the “Find Groups to Join” section below.

> For even more Social Media Hacks? and fun inspiration on Traveling the World?, Popping up the Bubbles? and Cute Puppy Pics?, come and say hi?” on my Instagram account “whatskatieupto” HERE! <<

3. What are Instagram “Engagement Groups”?

An “Instagram Engagement Group” is basically the big brother of DM groups. They are hosted on secondary apps such as Telegram Chat App (similar to Whatsapp). Compared to DM groups there are hundreds to thousands of people in one group and I am sure you can see the potential of this many people engaging with your post. There are a lot of advantages to engagement groups vs dm groups such as:

Bots

Instagram Engagement Groups which are hosted for example on Telegram are regulated by bots. This means the rules which you have to follow such as giving alike to everyone who likes you are being checked by the bot. If you don’t follow the bot rules you will be kicked from the group. This helps to make sure that everyone participates and not just drops his link and leeches.

Timing

Another advantage to DM groups is that engagement groups on Telegram are time-specific. You and other group members commit to a specific time you will be online to engage in a post. Timing of when your post is getting a lot of engagement is crucial when you want to go viral on Instagram. I go into a lot more details on the timing of engagement in my post “how to go viral on Instagram.

Size

There are hundreds if not thousands of people in certain engagement groups and this within the potential of so much more likes and comments than you could ever get from a DM Group. However, always remember that you will be required to reciprocate with each of the accounts within that thread which could be a lot of work.

How to join and use Instagram Engagement Groups on Telegram

This will vary a lot depending on which group on which platform you will join. I like the video at the end of the section to get a grip of how this system works in general:

Download the Telegram App here
Join specific Groups via invite link (see list of groups in next section)
Read the Group Rules CAREFULLY
Join the round at a specific time
Drop your Instagram handle
Like everyone else’s posts
Complete the round

Here is a video I love on that topic if you want more info on the process :

4. What are “Automated Instagram Pods”?

Now we have talked about Instagram Pods, Facebook, WhatsApp, and DM Groups as well as on Telegram, let’s close this off and cover “Automated Instagram Pods”.

So far all likes and comments within the group were coming by real people clicking your post and giving likes etc. This is a huge hustle because you yourself have to put in the work and reply the favor of commenting and liking everybody else’s posts.

This is where “Automated Instagram Pods” come in. You basically join the group and once you post new content the pods and all members of said pods begin automatically liking and commenting on your posts.

An example of this you can find HERE.

(Disclaimer: I have not used or tried any of these services or other automatic pods and I am not providing an opinion on whether this works or not, is healthy for your account or if it is going against terms and services of Instagram)

Find Engagement Groups to join here:

Fuelgram is the world’s largest engagement group platform where lead influencers exchange likes and comments to improve their Instagram performance. Just add your account, join the groups and watch your likes grow!

Here is a list of where you can find Groups on various platforms such as AIgrow (automated bot groups), Telegram Groups, WhatsApp Groups and Instagram Pods on Facebook.

Check out this directory within a separate Telegram Group. To view this download the app, create a user account and follow the link to view the different groups. Many of them require you to meet specific measure such as 10K followers but I would definitely check it out.

BoostUp Social offers a variety of free engagement groups hosted on telegram. They have a community of several thousand members.

Reasons for not using the Instagram Engagement Strategy

I personally was part of some DM Groups in the past but stopped because it’s a lot of work to follow and engage with these posts. I love using Instagram but I could never keep up with the rules and posts, nor was I willing to always be available to like and comment all the time. This is exactly how you get burned out and overwhelmed and it’s just not for me.

I have personally checked out some of Engagement Groups on Telegram but never had the nerve to follow all these rules, finding good engagement groups which take time and effort and seems to be key to making this strategy work. I have also never used automated AI Pods.

Another objection comes from Jenna Kutcher, and she actually has a super interesting podcast episode on why Instagram pods might be hurting your business you can check out HERE:

Her main points I agree with are:

You are constantly comparing yourself to other people’s content instead of focussing on your own uniqueness
It’s anything but authentic
You are following and receiving likes by your competition instead of your ideal client.

Please also read my disclaimer at the beginning!

I hope this was useful and I would LOVE TO HEAR YOUR OPINION IN THE COMMENTS, yey, ney, hey…let me know!

xx Katie

Also, don’t miss to download my FREE INSTAGRAM PDF GUIDE on “How to Get the Perfect Instagram Feed” here:

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