The Top 10 keys to success on Instagram

Well, to tell you the truth I wasn’t really keen on going on Instagram for a long time. The idea of communicating merely with pics didn’t really sound so alluring to me. However as I kept on reading about it and what it is capable to do, especially for one’s business, marketing and social media marketing, I slowly but surely got interested in it.

For the sake of this blog, I have also made the decision to start following a gazillion accounts ( more top 10 blogs about my findings coming up soon!) and by following this many accounts I have both willingly and unwillingly started to categorize and make difference between good, better and worse quality ones. To be more clear there are accounts which entertain, things which are plain boring and things which are annoying.

Thanks to the fact more and more smart phones now have a high-level quality cam, Instagram does make more sense now, than a few years back. And it’s high level marketing when being used properly. This in fact is also my guide to successful social media marketing, specifically for instagram where photos are the key tools you are working with. And business or not, we all market ourselves over there.

There aren’t that many instagrams which are overall entertaining out there, although I keep on searching in order to find them and present them to you later on in multiple categories. Up until then, I thought to write a fun list on my Top 10 dos and don’ts in my humble opinion. I want to hear what you think, which your favorite instagram accounts are and why you like Instagram.

PS: These are some pretty quality Instagrams which I’ve pasted, you are all welcome to follow them 🙂 comprehensive post on fav Instagrammers coming up SOON!

1. DO post colorful content 

I like colorful content. This means interesting, quality photos. In my opinion one doesn’t have to post pics all the time, but when they do, let them look good, be interesting if not surprising and entertaining. Because that’s the name of the game. All in all, not the same stuff every single day, because who needs to see that in real?

2. DON’T Post the SAME DAMN photo all the time!

It’s been said a thousand times that all ladies need to find the best angle for making the best photo ( or selfie) of themselves. But noone EVER said, that they only and exclusively need to do photos of themselves from that same angle all the time. It honestly feels like looking at the same photo over and over again! Annoying and depressing. Especially because the number of women doing this is still depressingly high. Of course this is also meant generally. Everything is cute but only up to a certain point. Everyone needs to time their posts. If you do a cute animal shot or vid, please do not follow up with 10-20 animal shots, vids or gifs. Be creative.

3. Say no to notorious oversharing

I bet you also do have that one (or more) friend who shares the same pic on all his/her social media. Please, don’t do it. I know it’s easy. But the reason I change feeds is not to see the exact same photos on all the social sites all the time. It’s straightup annoying. Try to share one here the other one there, this makes your feeds all the more interesting. I also tended to commit this act, but never again. This is especially true for Facebook sharing.

4. DO be creative and reinvent yourself from time to time

People want to see something else or something new from you. Even if you are doing this for business purposes, there are ways to let people get a glimpse in your private life or home or freetime activity, because we love that, especially if it has anything to do with the work you do, especially when its arts or design. Come up with sharing new things from time to time. Sharing the same type of content is very boring.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXYZQxojU_wvL3J4nwN4vUCFzuuxhSvXyxWtbk0/?taken-by=szanpan001

5. DO write a meaningful message for your posts

The message is almost as important as the photo itself in my opinion. Also it’s these two which can elicit a good conversation, the space which is for asking, sharing and so on. I prefer when people write a few good words under the photos they post. Just to show that they care.

6.  For anyone who wants to do a business on Instagram: don’t force it or push it

Don’t let all your posts become a straight up advertisment and do not chase people to buy from you. If your posts are quality, creative and represent your products well, customers will come. Try to post different content too however, some from your prite moments or anything that differs. Do show people you like to share your photos, memories besides being or having a business. Or people will feel you don’t care, all you want is the money. And don’t send out DMs.

7.  Only post food pics if you are really good at taking food pics

Many may not know but specialty pics, such as food pics, which need a very particularly high quality cam, experience and light really do need that extra skill and experience to look really good.

I understand it’s fun to make pics of the food you are to eat but PLEASE don’t do it, if you are not good at it. Otherwise your food, whatever it is or however yummy it is, will look like dogfood or worse. Now, don’t get mad at me I really appreciate you wanting to share what you had for dinner before eating it, the sad thing is, these pics will very often turn out to be simply awful.

8. Make sure of the quality at ALL times

Now, with all these high quality cams it’s way easier than it used to be. So, use the quality to your advantage and make sure you only post good quality stuff over there. Quality is first! And instagram is in fact also a very important part of SEO.

9. Don’t go overboard with the quotes, sayings, hashes

I like some quotes here and there but too many quotes are simply dull and can make someone feed look rather hollow. Inspirational quotes can be great but make sure you don’t post too many and if you do, make absolutely sure you pair them up with an outstanding photo/picture/collage. I believe it’s wise not to overdo hashes either. I personally believe the hashes #blessed #inlove and all those similar are quite manipulative and it’s my personal preference to avoid these.

10. Be careful with the vids

Don’t go overboard with videos. Not everyone has the internet or the time to watch them. Only do video if it makes a good sense. And if you do, call attention to it in form of a separate photo. If you would like to go stronger on vids go ahead, create a youtube channel. This way you can cross advertise either your own brand or yourself, or both.

+1 Don’t be rude

I could also simply say don’t be an a**hole. But in order for everyone to understand what I mean let me tell you a few examples to rudeness on social media:

• wanting to generate attention on yourself, your business/blog/whatever in someone else’s feed.
• trolling in comments
• sending out ads in DMs – spamming
• do not be on social media solely for monetizing reasons. People will feel that and will steer clear from your account.

Let me know if there is anything I’ve left out from this list and I hope you liked it. Let me know what other sorts of posts you personally like or dislike. I am working to create a couple of favorites lists for all of you in the near future.

PS: privacy concerns: make you account private if you are keen on posting family photos.

Let me know if you would like to learn more about Social Media Marketing or Search Engine Optimization.

And if you feel like feel free to follow me on Instagram: on @szanpan001.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXYPjFODh8Mo8JPJexzbMbPiphEi1yjQYjLfbw0/?taken-by=szanpan001