3 little things I started doing with my instagram and WHAT A DIFFERENCE!

Let’s get something clear right away. Instagram has evolved so much from when it started. It’s also evolved very sophisticatedly. It’s no longer just about the image you post. As much as we’d like it to be.

If you take Instagram seriously, you most likely consider some of the following before you post:

• Are you hashtags relevant, fully effective and consistent with your image?
• Have you tagged all the relevant accounts?
• Have you taken advantage of the location tagging?
• Have you created an image consistent with the rest of your grid?
• Are you optimizing your posting time?

And many, many more.

I’m sure there are many things we all panic think about when it comes to posting. It can actually be overwhelming. I think it’s like that right now, because Instagram seems to be the it place to be and the it place to be noticed.

This really is not a surprise. Visual content is on trend right now and I expect it to go this way for a few years yet. Audiences just retain visual content better, it’s more interesting interactive and of course better presented over text.

So here are three Instagram tactics you just might be missing out on when it comes to your scheduling. I’ll be honest I really wasn’t thinking about certain elements with instagram until I took a step back and revalued my content.

Utilise those emoji’s

Emoji’s help bring more personality into your text. Sometimes having that extra help of a small image just work perfectly for storytelling. You also utilise emojis in hashtags, so have a play around with that because it can be really interesting to see what types of content comes up.

Don’t avoid Instagram stories

Yeah. I’m so guilty of this. It can be an easy Instagram mistake to make because it might be a little intimidating to create a story for your blog or business. Since the feature has launched, it’s evolved and provided extra ways to not only connect and add value to your current audience, but for others who may not follow you to discover you via story hashtags and locations.

I’ve seen so many creative strategies for utilising Instagram stories and I myself have slowly been jumping on the bandwagon to create interesting and fun story content. I actually ran a test where I had a story each day and my following shot up by 100. It was super surprising.

Not utilising the precious window after you post a photo

So, you’ve got your image all ready to go. You’ve done your final checks on your caption and its all done, right? No oh so wrong. I used to just post my photo and put down my phone. until I realised how dumb and unproductive that is.

As soon as you post a photo, your work is definitely not over. I now have a little checklist to work my round for at least 20 minutes after a post:

• Spending time wisely liking and commenting on similar accounts
• responding to all comments
• researching and exploring content on all my hashtags.

Just think about this little lesson I learned: Your followers will be much more likely to post comments if they know that you are reading them and that you will respond to them in a helpful manner.

And thats a wrap! I know these comment may seem as though its not rocket science but trust me I found these little lessons super helpful!