As I have said before, I spend too much of my time wondering if my meal is “Instagramable.”
Sure, that is not really a word…but it should be.
The fact of the matter is that Instagram is not only about food and has blown up to a full blow social media outlet.
If you are new to Instagram, need more followers, or just looking for some general Instagram tips…you are in the right place.
Here are a seven tips to keep you on track…
Complete Your Bio
How do your followers know who you are if you never tell them? While a picture is worth a 1,000 words, words are also worth…well….words.
With not a lot of space you need to find a way to explain to your followers (and potential followers) who you are, what you do and how that can help them. Pro Tip: Make sure to link to your website!
Posting Times Matter
On average, your photos/posts have a shelf life of 4 hours…less than the allowed time for a Rice Krispy Treat to hit the floor.
Don’t worry, they won’t disappear in that time, but that is the average time is takes for a post to become buried in someone’s feed. This means you need to post when people will see your posts, sounds pretty simple, huh?
Typically, this means posting around work hours with an emphasis between the hours of 4pm-6pm. But, play around, find what times work for you and then stick to it!
Keep Your Posts Relatable
You’ve drawn them in with your bio and gotten their attention by posting at the right time, now you have to keep it. So, keep a few questions in mine when creating posts.
What does this have to do with my business or brand? Does the photo tell a story? Would I find this interesting?
You have about 3 second to capture their attention—make it count. Remember: they followed you to see a limes (cool stuff), not lemons (stuff on other people’s feeds).
Use Your Captions
Keep it short and interesting.
But seriously, keep it short.
Instagram only shows the first three lines of your caption, so while you have 2,200 characters, the first three lines are what matters.
Engagement is key. Ask a question. Offer an insight that is unique to your business. Tell a funny story. Think of it as a mini headline.
Hashtags
Speaking of short and interesting, keep your hashtags to a limit of 3-5 per post. Really.
Admit it. You’ve seen the Instagrammers that post an entire paragraph of only hashtags. Admit it. You lost interest or better yet, got annoyed. Don’t be “that guy” or girl.
Use a few trending hashtags along with 1-2 that are unique to your brand and leave it at that.
Not sure what is trending? Ask Google (he knows everything)!
An Eye for an Eye
May make the whole world blind, but a like for a like, a comment for a comment and a follow for a follow will make you more followers.
You have to engage in order to be engaging and if you want comments on your photos, dish a few out of your own—but, remember to make them meaningful. Nothing is worse than a cliche, “great photo.” Make your comments count!
Reward your Followers
Let’s face it, we are a society that loves positive reinforcement and that includes Instagram.
Reward your followers for engaging. Did they post an awesome photo that is relatable to your business, repost/regram it and give them photo credit (you might need to ask permission first).
Looking for more helpful tricks and tips for Instagram and other Online Marketing Strategies? Tune into Be the Lime Podcast.
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