so what’s my 1 Instagram trick?
Well, let me ask you some questions first: have you ever been scrolling along in Instagram (if not, what’s stopping you? It’s good market research!) and noticed a great post that caught your eye? You stop, look at it, read the caption, and then give it a like or maybe even decide to comment on it if you’re feeling vocal. But what else do you do? Now really think back to a post that interested you. Perhaps you were told to “click on link in bio” but before going that far, what did you do? You simply checked out the person’s/company’s profile/bio, right? It’s only natural to want to see what someone’s all about before you click on a link they want you to!
In someone’s IG bio, you see their picture and read their blurb (sometimes with an abundance of emoji’s) and get a sense of who they are. But what else do you do? To make this fun, feel free to pause right now and go to your Instagram and scroll and click on a profile that interests you, but make it one that you haven’t ever clicked on before. If you don’t see any profiles that you haven’t already clicked on (other than sponsored links), click on a profile on which you haven’t spent too much time. Then observe your actions. I’ll wait.
Okay, welcome back! (Even if you didn’t go anywhere.) What did you find yourself doing? Did you scroll the individual posts in the profile? If not, I would say you weren’t all that interested in that company or person! Okay, now go back to that profile (or one that you ARE interested in) without clicking on any individual posts. Looking at the montage of all their images there, do you see any patterns (things they tend to post about or a style they tend to stick to)?
You literally see the ‘big picture’ about that Instagrammer, don’t you? As I look at the IG profiles of a few people and companies, I see that a famous actress is all about her dog and knitting (@therealkrystenritter), that a company targeting entrepreneurs posts inspirational quotes (too many examples to name here), and that a brand strategist/graphics guru uses the same color palette and visual style on one topic, graphic design (@graphicsgrrrl). What, you haven’t followed me yet on Instagram? Well, please do that now! I’ll wait.
Okay, welcome back! Oh, you mean you didn’t stop reading this to go take action? Hmm. See, we intellectually know we need to take action in order to start making positive things happen for ourselves and our businesses, yet we put things off because of the overwhelm. Believe me, I understand! So one quick action to take right now is to follow me on Instagram @graphicsgrrrl. And for extra credit: follow me @graphicsgrrrl on all social media platforms: Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube.
For visual reference here, this is a screenshot of my Instagram profile:
Notice a pattern? And this time I mean not just recurring themes, but the literal visual pattern that my posts form? Neat, right?!
Are you wondering how I got them to perfectly tile? Well, I’ll admit, it took some forethought. Specifically 6 posts of forethought. And while I’m at it, let me admit something else: I came to social media a little later than other folks. I spent a lot of time following others and observing with my artist eye before jumping in because I not only wanted to use social media, I wanted to use it purposefully to represent my brand well. And I encourage all of my students, even if you’re not a graphic designer, to strategically think before you take action. But, please, take action! Like right now:
Download your FREE template to design seamless tiles of your next 6 Instagram posts here:
Don’t have Illustrator? No problem, click on this link and get a 30-day trial absolutely FREE!
I am going to be doing some FREE webinars showing how I create my IG posts and you’ll need Illustrator for them. If you’re not already on my webinar list, sign up here:
I will show you exactly how I design for the “Instagram 6” as I call it!
But let me address why I craft my IG posts in this way.
First, I do it to be different. I’m trying to stand out. Aren’t you? If you’re not trying to be unique and stand out, I question if you know just how unique and precious you are? So let me you: there is only one you and you have a lot to offer this world! (Sometimes we need to be reminded of that.)
Second, I do it to keep myself on track. I have a schedule of blog posts, events and offers that will go out and I want to promote them in a unique way on different social media platforms. By designing my Instagram posts in this way ahead of time, I’m sure to release pertinent information in a timely fashion.
Third, I do it for the “big picture” effect that remains in my profile, well after individual posts. I stumbled upon the “big picture” when I started to do research on my favorite IG accounts. Since I was a late adopter, I found myself scrolling down profiles to learn more and more about them and it occurred to me that all the images could form a pattern! Content that someone posts gives you a sense of who they are overall—which is why it’s crucial to keep the majority of your posts to your niche. People are creatures of habit and they want to know where to reliably go to see cute cat pictures or recipes for smoothies or knitted pieces. You already know that focusing your message and hashtags around your passion helps your followers find you. Now, take it a step further visually, and understand that all your posts, when viewed from the macro level on your profile, tell your story in a more holistic way—and that serves as another way to reinforce your services, your business, or yourself!
