{"id":5826,"date":"2020-10-26T10:49:50","date_gmt":"2020-10-26T10:49:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/colibriwp.com\/blog\/?p=5826"},"modified":"2022-03-24T07:20:21","modified_gmt":"2022-03-24T07:20:21","slug":"top-5-wordpress-instagram-widgets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/colibriwp.com\/blog\/top-5-wordpress-instagram-widgets\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 5 Instagram Widgets for WordPress and Hacks to Drive Traffic to Your Website & Instagram"},"content":{"rendered":"

You may want to add your Instagram photos and videos to your WordPress website using an Instagram widget for different reasons. For instance, if you are <\/span>setting up a WordPress website<\/span><\/a>, you may want to provide visual content for your website to attract more traffic. Moreover, you may want to lead your website visitors to your Instagram account to grow its engagement.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When you have an active Instagram account, it can mean that you have a reasonable number of photos and videos. Showing this valuable source of content on your website can positively affect your website appearance and provide good content for it. For instance, if you are an eCommerce company or a brand and you want to <\/span>organize a website<\/span><\/a>, you can add Instagram posts related to your products to your website.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So, let\u2019s introduce the WordPress widget and its difference with a WordPress plugin first. Then, we will teach you how to add an Instagram widget to your website. After that, you will get to know with 5 free Instagram plugins with which you can add widgets. Finally, we will introduce some Instagram hacks<\/a> through which you can grow your engagement organically.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What Is a WordPress Widget?<\/span><\/h2>\n

A WordPress widget is an element that can be added to your website for different purposes. It enables you to add different functions to your sidebar, header, or footer <\/span>without any need for coding<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For instance, if you have a WordPress website and an Instagram account, you can easily use WordPress Instagram widgets to add your content into the sidebar, header, or footer of your website. WordPress developers can use these powerful and flexible tools to create innovative websites.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What is the Difference between a Widget and a Plugin on WordPress?\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Both widgets and plugins function similarly. But they are different when it comes to their roles on a website. A plugin differs from a widget in terms of its much greater role. While plugins insert some functions that are not normally there on a website by default, widgets have a smaller role and they provide specific and certain features.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Widgets differ from theme to theme. If your theme does not have an Instagram widget available, you will need to use a plugin for that.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How To Add an Instagram Widget or Plugin to WordPress Website?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Here we will tell you how to put your Instagram photos and videos on display on your website using the Instagram widget.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Widgets can be installed in 2 ways in WordPress.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. In your Dashboard, go to Appearance-> Widgets. <\/span>\"WordPressYou\u2019ll now see all the widgets made available by your theme.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \"Screen<\/a><\/div>\n

    If you want to activate one, just drag it to the right-hand side area, and choose your location: footer, header, sidebar (it depends on the options your theme has.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"drag<\/p>\n

    2. Install widgets using the Customizer (my favorite one!)<\/span><\/p>\n

    From the WordPress dashboard, go to Appearance->Customize. Inside the Customizer, on the left-hand side, scroll until you reach \u201cWidgets\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

    The same thing as above applies, the widgets are limited to your theme\u2019s offering.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"Screen<\/a><\/div>\n

     <\/p>\n

    3. If there\u2019s no Instagram Widget available go ahead and install one of the plugins we recommend in the next section!<\/span><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    What Are the 5 Best Free Instagram Widgets and Plugins?<\/span><\/h2>\n

    In the following, we introduce the top 5 Instagram widgets for your WordPress website:<\/span><\/p>\n

    #1 Smash Balloon<\/span><\/h3>\n

    Probably the most popular Instagram plugin is <\/span>Smash Balloon<\/span><\/a>. You can create several Instagram feeds on your website which means you can import the content of multiple accounts. The size and the number of photos of the feed that you want to import. One good feature of Smash Balloon is its Load More button that allows your visitors to load more content. The plugin is also mobile responsive and fits your website on any device.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"Smash
    \n#2 Enjoy<\/span><\/h3>\n

    Using <\/span>Enjoy<\/span><\/a>, you can embed an Instagram feed to your website for free. It gives you a photo grid and carousel options. Enjoy enables you to embed your hashtag search results and the content of Instagram business accounts. In addition, there is a Lightbox effect that lets your visitors see a bigger version of the content that you have imported.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"Enjoy<\/p>\n

    #3 WPZOOM<\/span><\/h3>\n

    WPZOOM<\/span><\/a> is a free Instagram plugin that gives you an Instagram widget on WordPress with so many features. The widget can be added to the sidebar, footer, posts, and pages on your WordPress website. You can choose the layout of the Instagram feed that you want to import in the form of one to three columns. The full-width mode makes it possible for you to add a horizontal banner on your website which displays Instagram content<\/a>. In addition, you can choose the number of photos, their size, and your desired spacing between the photos in the widget.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"WPZOOM
    \n#4 Feed Them Social<\/span><\/h3>\n

    Feed Them Social<\/span><\/a> is capable of importing from a range of social media such as Facebook Pages, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and YouTube. So, in addition to Instagram, you can share the content of your other social media on your WordPress website.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"Feed<\/p>\n

    #5 Spotlight<\/span><\/h3>\n

    Another free Instagram plugin for WordPress is <\/span>Spotlight<\/span><\/a>. Using the Spotlight plugin, you can design the appearance of your Instagram feed and embed it on your WordPress website. The grid layout by which your Instagram content is shown is responsive. So, it can customize itself on devices other than PC. The photos on the layout are clickable thanks to its hover effect.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"Spotlight<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Top 8 Instagram Hacks in 2020 to Get More Website Traffic<\/span><\/h2>\n

    As there are <\/span>over one billion active users<\/span><\/a> on Instagram, the importance of leading a portion of this huge traffic to your Instagram account comes to the light. The first step is to learn some strategies to enhance your Instagram account. Here are some hacks for Instagram that help you get your Instagram working. Hacks are some strategies that have been proven to be effective through time and testing and are based on facts and metrics.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    #1 Use Instagram Analytics<\/span><\/h3>\n

    Instagram analytics is your lighthouse on the way to your Instagram marketing strategies. They can define which strategies that you have applied to your posts are doing well. Moreover, they can tell you what day or time is the best for posting. To access analytics, you need to switch to a business account.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    #2 Find Inspirational Ideas\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

    In addition to viral trends, you can follow the ideas of your competitors in your niche for inspiration. However, it does not mean that you should copy their ideas. It is great if you add your own creativity to their ideas and build up a new concept for your posts. Here is a list of factors that you should consider while checking other ideas:<\/span><\/p>\n