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Want to learn how to use Instagram to build your business?
Whether you’re writing a blog, starting a business, or promoting a cause, Instagram is great for building a fan base and sharing short consumable material such as photos, stories, and videos.
Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger created Instagram in 2010. Facebook bought Instagram for around $1 billion in 2012, and by 2018, it was worth an estimated $100 billion. It’s now one of the biggest and most popular social media platforms.
Keep reading to learn how to use Instagram to grow your blog and business. You can also get the complete Soulful Social Media and Heart-Centered Sales bundle here.
Features of Instagram
Instagram is good for building a fan base and sharing short consumable material such as photos, stories, and videos.
Key features include:
- Profile (business profile recommended)
- Posts (traditionally square, although I recommend vertical)
- Stories (last for 24 hours)
- Instagram Live (last for 24 hours)
- IGTV (your own evergreen channel)
- Inbox (direct/private messages)
Instagram Profile
For many people, Instagram is a mystical, magical creature where the influencers live. You don’t have to be a big influencer to use Instagram, nor does it have to be difficult or scary to use. One of the most basic ways that you can build your following on Instagram is simply by being yourself. Show up, share your work, and connect with people.
It’s free to create a business profile, which I recommend doing so you can get access to the back-end analytics and other business features. If you want to have a separate personal profile to post pics of your kids or dogs or whatever, then do that. Keep your business profile focused on your business.
Everything that’s listed in your profile should let viewers know who you are and what you do. This includes your:
- Social media handle (username)
- Name / title
- Bio / description
- Call-to-action (CTA)
- Website or URL
Have fun with it. The wonderful thing about social media is that you can add fun things like emojis and still be 100% professional.
Instagram Posts
Your Instagram posts are what make up your “feed,” or the bulk of your profile. Your posts appear in other people’s feeds if they’re following you. They can also be discovered across Instagram if you’re using hashtags.
Traditionally, Instagram posts have been square. However, Instagram now allows for vertical (portrait-style) posts. I recommend using vertical posts because they take up more room and stand out in people’s feeds. Try to stay away from landscape (horizontal) posts because they get easily lost.
You can get as creative as you want with your posts. Some people like to do a grid or pattern on their Instagram feed. If you like doing that and can keep up with it, awesome. Otherwise, as long as your posts are consistent in terms of colors, filters, and quality, your feed will look cohesive.
If you’re not sure what to post about, share what’s going on in your business. You can share excerpts from your blog posts or even promote your products or services. Have fun, be creative, and don’t force it. If it’s fun and exciting for you, it will be fun and exciting for your audience.
Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories are different from regular posts in that they only last for 24 hours. This means each day, you get a new opportunity to share something different or unique that you wouldn’t normally share in your main feed. Stories have some added features including GIFs, emojis, stickers, fonts, and sound and video. The quick turnover of Instagram stories makes it a great place to share time-sensitive info, including sales or promo.
Instagram Videos
Instagram has several different ways to share video. You can share a video as a post, go live, or upload it to your IGTV channel. What you talk about and how you share your videos depends on you and your business. Try to keep your videos short (3-5 minutes) and be sure to include a call-to-action (CTA) at the end.
You don’t have to do videos if you hate doing videos, but most people do enjoy watching them. Be sure to include captions if you share a video, since people often watch on the go and don’t always have their headphones with them.
Direct Messages (DMs)
Like Facebook, Instagram has a built-in messenger system where you can send private messages (also known as PM’s, or DM’s for “direct messages”) to other users. And, also like Facebook, if you’re not following each other on Instagram, your message will get filtered out. This can also prevent creepy strangers from filling up your inbox, which is a good thing.
Growing Your Instagram
The more you engage with your target audience, the more Instagram will recommend similar people. These recommendations will show up in your feed, and can also be found in the main menu under “Discover People.” You can also search for folks based on topic or niche by using the search feature. Another way you can find users just like a particular person you’re following is by clicking the down arrow at the top of their profile. This will open up a list of people who are very similar to that specific person.
Following/Unfollowing
Following someone is a good way to let that person know that you’re interested in what they do and would like to connect. However, an even better way is to like, comment, and engage with their posts. The more you engage, the more likely that person will be to follow you back and engage with your content.
Resist the urge to follow/unfollow people. If you don’t know what that is, follow/unfollow is when you immediately unfollow someone as soon as they follow you back. That’s rude, and that’s really no way to create an authentic following. You can, however, unfollow someone if they don’t follow you back within 2-3 days. If they’re not interested in you or what you do, there’s really no reason to keep following them. And, of course, if someone unfollows you first, you can certainly unfollow them. No hard feelings. It just means you two aren’t aligned with each other.
You can manually keep an eye on your followers. However, if you have a larger account, I recommend using an app like FollowMeter to track who hasn’t followed you yet, as well as who’s unfollowing you.
Increasing Engagement
Removing people who aren’t aligned with your mission and vision (i.e., anyone who’s not your ideal client) can also keep your engagement rate high. As nice as it is to have big numbers at the top of your profile, having a high engagement rate is much more important and profitable in the long run. So don’t be afraid to remove bots or creepy guys from your followers list, to keep your following focused and on point.
Need more help? Get the complete Soulful Social Media and Heart-Centered Sales Bundle HERE.
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