5 Do's and Don'ts of Instagram
Today I’m talking about my 5 Do’s and Don’ts of Instagram. These 5 tips are what I absolutely adhere to on my Instagram account and are industry standard at this point. Instagram is changing so often that it may feel so hard to keep up with everything. However, if you follow these tips you’re setting yourself up for success on this platform!
Dos
Be consistent: It is completely imperative that you stay consistent on Instagram if you’re looking to grow your audience. The instagram algorithm ranks posts in the timeline based on engagement. So If you are not consistent you will not show up in your audience’s timeline because your audience isn’t engaging and ultimately your posts will get buried.
Edit your photos before you post: If you’re running any kind of professional Instagram account, you absolutely need to edit your photos before you post. There are no shortcuts here. (Watch my IGTV video on how I edit my instagram photos using VSCO!)
Provide value: Gone are the days where you can just post a pretty photo and watch the likes ROLL in (unless you’re an established brand). If you are not providing any kind of value to your audience why should they stick around? Instagram users are extremely savvy and truly want to follow accounts that are adding to their lives in a positive way. Whether your vertical is motherhood, business, wellness, beauty, or styling adding tips to your content offerings will add value to your audience’s lives.
Post on Instagram Stories regularly: How many of you check out Instagram Stories first before even scrolling through your timeline? Let me guess, a lot of you! This is exactly why you should be posting to your Instagram Stories regularly so you can show up in your audience’s Instagram Story timeline often! Share behind the scenes of your day, Instagram accounts you’re loving, quotes, or a recipe you're cooking that day! Make it fun and unscripted because your audience wants to see behind the curtain!
Engage with your audience: If you are not responding to comments and DMs on Instagram, you’re really missing out on an opportunity to connect with your audience! It’s important to respond to the people that take the time to leave a comment when they could have easily just scrolled right past you.
Don’t
Have a vague Instagram Bio: If your instagram bio is extremely vague you're essentially turning away potential followers and customers. If I can’t figure out who you are and what you do within one minute of visiting your account I’m not following you. I know I’m not alone on this one. So make sure you add details to your bio that will attract your ideal audience and customers!
Follow and unfollow to grow your account: Don’t do this, there is no shortcut to gaining an authentic following on Instagram. This method is completely spammy and annoying to everyone. Don’t be that person. Instead of obsessing over hitting 10k on Instagram, work on cultivating a highly engaged community! I promise you that an engaged target audience of 3k (or under) will serve you much more than a following of 10k filled with bots and random people.
Slide into a Brand’s DMs: Do not I repeat DO NOT slide into a brand’s DM with a serious collaboration inquiry ever. I see this a lot where influencers reach out to brands and simply write “let’s collab” which is not only a HUGE no-no but a HUGE turn off. Brands take their marketing very seriously and appreciate influencers that take them seriously as well. Would you email the HR manager at your dream job and simply say “hire me”, I think not. You can however reach out to a brand via DM and ask for the appropriate contact for the person that handles influencer collaborations. Only do this after sharing your love for the brand organically and receiving a response from them thanking you for the love. However, DO NOT send a random pitch via DM. I promise you it will be lost in the thousands of DMs or simply deleted because #aintnobodygottimeforthat.
Get caught up in having a perfect Instagram grid: Back in the day having a beautifully curated Instagram grid was the top way to get noticed but boy has that changed. Obsessing over the fact that two selfies are posted next to each other or the overall organization of your images is not only a waste of time but your followers BARELY notice that. Instead, just make sure your feed feels visually consistent by utilizing the same filter when you edit!
Post just to post: We all have those days where we don’t have anything to post but, don’t post just to post! Doing this is not going to serve your audience value at all! It’s better to post when you have quality content than post for quantity purposes. Schedule one day a week to batch create content for your instagram so you don’t hit a posting roadblock too often.