Instagram has fast become the most important social media platform to be on for small businesses. Instagram is the main platform where new customers find me, and those customers always tend to be my ideal audience. This is because the work I share on my feed is work that I am passionate about and work that I want to get more of. Because of this it is a lot easier for me to talk about the content that I am sharing with purpose. I am able to target my ideal customer by using this content intentionally in order to connect with them.
Here are 5 simple steps to get you on the road to putting the right content out ASAP.
No more putting up content willy nilly just because you feel you have to put something up. Let's get started!!!
1. Plan out and schedule your Content to go out regularly
I used to post an instagram post every day with whatever I fancied at that time (or whatever looked nicest amongst my feed). This isn't necessarily wrong, but I have found a way to share content that is far more effective than sporadic posts that might just look aesthetically pleasing.
I have found that if I sit down and plan my content to go out, weekly/fortnightly (or whatever works best for you), then I am able to come up with a strategy to share content that actually serves my ideal audience. What do they need to hear about this month? Are there any special occasions coming up which might warrant a special offer or a specific product that might help them at this time? Christmas, Valentines, etc.
If you have put out a special offer then you can also post reminders throughout the month. Remember, your audience might have missed your initial post or need to be reminded about it several times before they actually purchase.
2. Pay attention to the design of your Instagram
If you are using an app to schedule your posts, it will most likely have a "preview" mode where you can check how the layout of your upcoming posts will look. This is an excellent way to make sure that your instagram looks and feels the way you would like it to to your potential customers. Remember that your instagram feed is your shop window. How do you want people to feel when they first visit your feed? Do you want a very simple, clean feed with your main brand colour swirling through, or do you want a vibrant burst of images and quotes to depict a fun, exciting brand? Have a think about this, design a week's worth of posts and check you are happy with the layout before anything goes out.
3. Include a "Call to Action" in every post
What is a call to action? A call to action is a phrase that is used to tell your audience exactly what action to take and how to take it.
Instead of posting a nice photo and describing what is in the photo or what you had for breakfast, decide what you want to achieve with this post. Gain more followers? Partake in a competition? Buy a product?
Remember to always include a call to action in all of your posts. This means asking your audience to interact with you in every post. Examples of this might be:
- Tell us a story of a time you have....
- Hands up if you like...
- Leave an emoji here if you agree
- Share and follow to enter
4. Share a personal post every 9 squares with a photo of yourself
When we initially start following someone on instagram, our immediate reaction is to look for a photo of the account holder. We are looking for a connection with them. Who are they? what are their values? What are their hobbies? Where do they live?
All these things play a part in who you are and what you are offering. Your audience want to connect with them and it is your job to allow them to do just that.
Sharing a personal post about yourself every 9 squares means your new followers won't need to scroll past months and months of content of your business or products for a post you did of yourself once last year.
This is where your brand photography comes in. You want to make sure that all the photos that you are posting of yourself include heaps of personality. Every detail down to the environment, colours, clothing brands you are wearing, and props all need to be about who you are and what you stand for.
5. Rotate your top 5 subjects to write about
Coming up with content can be tricky. What do you write about and when? I find the easiest way to do this is to come up with 5 subjects that you want to talk about within your business and constantly rotate these.
For example, mine might be:
- Weddings
- Branding
- Portraiture
- Mentoring
- Personal
It is always important to keep one of those subjects as a personal post. As I have mentioned in my previous point, you should be posting about yourself every 9 squares to show your face and a little personal post about yourself.
These subjects don't always have to be in the exact same order, I mix these up depending on what I want to talk about at that time, and if I have a special launch coming. However, it does give you a general guideline to what you have and haven't spoken about for a while
So there you have it. 5 simple ways to get you using instagram in an effective way asap! Get started today, don't look back, and before you know it your insta feed will be on point and your followers will know exactly who you are as a business, what you offer, and what you stand for!
Enjoy x
