Instagram is a beast. The good kind of beast. It appears to be simple in its presentation, but when you get down to the advanced methods, it becomes a big behemoth.
Instagram is a game of patience and skill, but knowing the best practices will always give you a better start than a complete novice.
Luckily, you’ve got us, and we aren’t going to hold back in educating you on this image-heavy platform! Here’s a list of all the secrets that Instagram won’t tell you!
The Bio
The bio can be considered your second line of defense. Usually, a user would visit your profile to either see similar content that you’ve posted (great work on that post if that’s the case!), or to find our more about you.
Regardless of the reason, the bio is one of the few places you can truly tell them about you. Here’s how you can use it.
- Name + Keyword – Including your name is self-explanatory. Your keyword should be your job role, or company name.
- Category – Associates you with a certain topic. Find the full list here.
- 1st Line: Elevator Pitch – What do you do, and how can you help them? This is where your personal slogan goes.
- 2nd Line: Authority – Your chance to show them you mean business. Do you have 10 years in running a business? Made over $5 million total for clients? Write it down.
- 3rd Line (Optional): Value – Why should they follow you, and not everyone else? Daily tips and tricks? Tell them!
- 4th Line: CTA – Something catchy to make them click the next line, which is…
- 5th Line: Clickable URL – You’re allowed one link in your bio. Make it count.
There you have it, the bio is done and dusted. Laying things out this way gives you the optimal display for your viewers, making the best use of the text available to you. It’s not a lot compared to other social media platforms, but keeping it concise is also a plus, as there are fewer distractions.
Want to see an example of a top-tier Instagram bio, which can easily be replicated? Well, here you go!
Instagram Highlights
Highlights are something that Instagram released a while ago, that offers a different way to post content. It’s actually pretty genius, as they’ve managed to introduce something that a user can just click, and see content.
Because of this, the content is a lot more digestible for a user than sprawling a big timeline of photos and videos. To make good use of them, it requires some thought. Let’s break it down for you!
Understand What You Want To Highlight
A car company posting about their favorite brand of shoes is going to confuse their viewers. So, y’know, don’t do that!
Instead, find out what fits the context of your business. Here’s a list of examples that you can take some inspiration from:
- Behind-The-Scenes – Giving your viewers a chance to see what goes on behind the curtain, is great for transparency, especially if you’re using fancy equipment, or an employee is showcasing their high-level skills.
- Meet The Team – Showing off the people who run the operation is also great for transparency. Many businesses tend to hide behind a logo and only show off their products, but this way, you can let people know that there are humans, just like me and you, working hard and having fun.
- Reviews – It may seem like gloating, but there’s actually a hidden effect for showcasing reviews. If you highlight a review that’s had some effort put into it, it not only shows you in a good light, it also encourages similar reviews, as the reviewers will know you’ll show them off. A win-win!
- Blog – Posting excerpts from your blog is a great way to get some organic traffic, especially if the blog title, or the excerpt itself, is super enticing. As long as you know your target audience, you can do a lot with this one!
- Products/Services – Of course, there’s no harm in letting people know if you’ve got a new product, or a service. Don’t abuse this one, however, as it can come off like you’re hungry for money, and it can turn off potential buyers.
- Events – Speaking at a conference? Organized a charity event? Let people know! Your audience is already following you, so interest will be larger than if you generally advertised it!
- FAQs – FAQs are a brilliant way to answer some eager comments. Either from your support channels, social media comments, you can answer them through a highlight, and place a highlight reel on your profile, permanently.
What Do We Suggest?
Getting into Instagram highlights can be quite daunting without some sort of direction. So let us tell you about a good way to start, that’s universal towards all types of businesses.
Show Off Your Products And Collections
To begin with, creating a collection of highlights that give basic explanations of your products or services, is a great place to start. The collection will appear on your profile, so they won’t go away.
Doing this gets the bare bones of what your business offers, out there. There won’t be a need to drip feed highlights about the products, and you can focus on more engaging topics, like interaction and engagement.
The goal of everything is always making sure that the information people need to see, is not hard to find. It’s quite difficult to rely on timeline posts, as interest lies on the most recent post, due to it appearing at the top of the timeline when people visit your profile.
An amazing example to follow is Grove Collaborative’s Instagram page, which you can find here.
As you can see, their highlights are labelled, and it’s hard to not find what you’re looking for. By replicating this style, you’ll not only look professional, but you’re going to feel professional as well.
Final Thoughts
And there you go. Instagram insider secrets, all laid out flat, and explained simply. From establishing your bio and highlights, this will give you a fantastic start when taking on this social media platform.
To end on a strong note, some basic tips. Post on a schedule, even once a week if need be, and make your images consistent with your brand. With all these tips, you’ll have Instagram mastered in no time!
Please don’t hesitate to check out our other posts. We’re committed to making sure you’re equipped with the best tips and tricks, across all platforms and topics. Let us know how it goes!