OH social media, how we love you and how sometimes you make us want to throw our phones at the wall, am I right?
If you’re using the ‘gram as a tool for your biz, this one’s for you! Tune on in to see how you can make Instagram work for YOU and what you should be avoiding when trying to connect with your audience!
DO’s
Show up as your true, authentic self!
This doesn’t mean you have to showcase every part of your life, but whatever you’re looking to promote (i.e. a product, service, etc) do that genuinely.
I feel like there’s this misconception with social media that you have to share every part of your life. That’s not true! Show only what you’re comfortable sharing with all of the followers you have. Say you’re selling home decor items - be all in when chatting about home decor items, and how they can uplevel your home and how to organize certain pieces and how to use certain pieces to brighten your home, etc - but you don’t have to share personal details about your family or friends if you don’t want to!
You can share 2% of your life - but share that 2% in the realest way possible, ya feel me?
Pick Your Audience
If you’re in business, you’ve probably heard the term ideal client. This is the ideal type of person you’d like to sell your products or services to. When creating your ideal client, give them a name, a job, where they live, where they work, what they like to do for fun, what brands they love, how they speak, what words do they use - Picture this person as if she/he’s standing right next to you! And then, only speak to that person.
It’s okay to niche yourself down to have a super specific kind of client. When I first started out I knew all of this to be true, but I still didn’t want to leave anyone out. That was wrong of me! My brand does not serve every kind of bride, and that’s okay! Just like know that we jive really well with certain types of people and friends, so too do brands.
Think about Nike, what kind of client are they serving? They’re not trying to reach the chefs of the world, are they? NOPE! They’re looking for energetic, athletic individuals who love a challenge. “Just do it”
So don’t be afraid to pick a specific audience and talk directly to them!
SHOW YOURSELF!
Guys, it is proven over and over again that we live in a world now where people are more drawn to the person behind the business. Why? Because it develops brand trust. And millennials are more focused on brand trust and brand loyalty than any other marketing generation.
So, if you’re a small biz on the ‘gram, be sure to show your face every once and awhile! Rule of thumb is at least once every 9 posts. Why? Because when someone clicks on your feed, they should be able to instantly know who the owner of the company is and learn about you!
Don’t believe us? Here’s some resources to back this up! https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelfertik/2019/02/14/how-to-get-millenials-to-trust-and-respond-to-your-advertising/#4abb502d6c81
Still don’t believe us? Test it out! Post a pic of yourself and see how it does! Did you get more likes and comments on this one than you have on others? Not to say we told you so, but….
Photos with your face and/or your person GET MORE LIKES and MOVE HIGHER IN THE ALGORITHM. Audra's husband has tested this. I’ve tested this.
BE CONSISTENT AND ENGAGE!
Adding this into one big grouping cause they’re veryyyyy important if you’re trying to work your biz on the ‘gram!
Do you guys remember when Instagram was simply chronological? You’d see everyone’s posts in the order they shared them and you’d never miss a beat! Well, long gone are the days of chronological posting and we’re now in a world that focuses on engagement.
Simply put, Instagram shares posts that are deemed relevant to them. So, how do we make sure our content is relevant? Be consistent. Post often. And be sure you’re commenting, liking and sharing other people’s posts, too! You may be wondering how interacting with other people’s content can help yours, but the truth is in the puddin’ peeps! Instagram feeds off of engagement. So, if you interact with others and post often, people will in turn, interact with you!
I.e. respond to the first few comments. Set a time for 10 minutes a day to scroll & like & comment on other’s photos. Even if it’s just a few emoji’s the connection & the sentiment will go a long way. To staying in their hearts & minds of your followers. And to driving you higher in the algorithm.
DON’T
Don’t try to serve EVERYONE
Alright friends, this goes hand in hand with our message on ideal clients - but we’re serious here. Think about life off the ‘gram. Can you attend every party? Can you cater to everyone’s needs? We KNOW this ain't true. So it’s not true online either. Trying to serve every type of person is going to confuse your audience and leave you with crickets. So just avoid this, k? Trust us!
Don’t be silent on your stories!
Instagram has gifted us a nifty little treat that’s EXCELLENT for showcasing your brand message.
Instagram stories integrate two of the most important advertising elements today and that’s SHORT CLIPS and VIDEO. Our attention spans are short, ya know? Create Cultivate reminds us that we have 2.7 seconds to captivate someone’s attention. 2 SECONDS!! And the Digital Marketing Institute tells us that the best way to do that is through, you guessed it - video! Bonus points if you put your face on video ;) And you’ll be checking off branding boxes left and right!
Don’t avoid captions!
Before you started your biz, you most likely had a personal instagram account. Right? You’d post family pics, your fave foods, anything that made you smile! And ya know what, it didn’t matter if you simply used emojis as your caption or didn’t say anything at all!
In business, it matters. It 100% matters. The photo you place on your feed is only a hook. It gets people to stop their scroll. Sometimes, it’s even that 2.7 seconds we chatted about earlier. The photo is the hook and the caption is all that juicy stuff! It allows you to build your brand trust, communicate your message and speak directly to your ideal client. It’s where you can dive deep and share what you’re selling, how you can improve someone’s life, how you can fix a problem they’re having. Whatever it is! So don’t leave it out!
Be true to yourself here. If you’re punchy & silly & quick do that. If you’re wordy & well thought out & touchy feely do that.
Don’t belittle your follower account
Ok friend, have you ever taken a look at your profile page and sighed because you want MORE followers? I’m gonna suggest you stop doing that…
Remember, that follower account you’re hoping to grow - there’s actual people behind that number. So let’s say you have 1,000 followers. Imagine yourself speaking to a room of 1,000 people. Uh...that’s kind of a big deal! The stakes just got a little higher huh? Don’t worry about the numbers!
Because truth be told, those numbers don’t always directly relate to customers. And that’s what you’re trying to get, right? More customers to buy your service or purchase your product! I much rather have 500 loyal followers who purchase my services, than 5,000 followers who aren't engaging in my posts or interested in my services.
Some of our favorite Instagram tools:
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