Curating the picture perfect grid that is visually and aesthetically pleasing requires time and effort. We’ve all found ourselves debating (internally or sometimes, very loudly in public) whether or not to post that one outlier of a picture that is perfect but doesn’t quite seem to fit our theme. As an influencer, here are a few tips on how to use the popular social platform to grow your personal brand.
1.Instagram stories are a great way to share content in real time. Launched late last year, the feature is reminiscent of Snapchat’s popular interface. However, Instagram allows you to embed links within each story, allowing you to promote content either from your own blog or elsewhere. This is a great feature to use if for instance, you find yourself in charge of a brand’s social account for a limited period of time (Instagram takeover). You can link content back to the brand’s page as well as your own, pushing viewers.
2. Impressions are important as is finding out whether your posts are even reaching your intended audience. To ensure you’re kept in the loop, Instagram is rolling out a free analytics tool, “Stories Insights” within the Stories feature for business profiles. This will allow you to see the reach, impressions, and even exits for each story.
3. Like Snapchat, Instagram stories is planning on creating ads for stories. This would be a great way to partner with brands as you’re more likely to reach your target audience across a variety of different platforms.
4.“ Content is King.” Creating varied and appealing content that sets you apart in a market saturated with beauty bloggers and Youtubers will allow you to create a niche and loyal fan following. An Instagram account with a specific theme that sets you apart from the rest is an ideal way to grow your audience. For instance, upload pictures with lighter tones and backgrounds for the summer and spring seasons and darker, more autumnal colours for the cooler months.
5. Creating good content means your viewers are more likely to use the new ‘Save’ feature to bookmark posts. With Instagram’s new algorithm affecting the way your viewers see posts, the better content you create, the more likely they are going to bookmark your posts – which in turn will have an effect on the algorithm. In short, better posts = more bookmarks = more visibility.