Jill from Home at Rose Cottage/Rose Cottage on the Road speaks to us about all things Instagram.

Jill gave great advice on how to get your Instagram looking and feeling right for your brand.

First thing to consider 

What type of account should you have?

Personal which is for creating content for friends and family

Business Account which will give you full access to all of your insights and the shop function. Limited access to music.

Creator Account which is for creating content for followers and brands – gives you full access to music.

First Impressions

Instagram Handle – avoid underscores and numbers unless its in your business name.

Profile picture – Use your logo or professional photo of you.

Instagram Name – Include key words that sum up your business.

Bio - Who you are / what you do / achievement / call to action.

Bullet points and emojis are good way to break it up.

Live Link -  for your Website or linktree.

Highlights - Make sure they are relevant evergreen content such as

– Who you are?

- What you do?

- Reviews?

Use Canva to design your highlights. Canva is better used on desktop. Free tool to create templates for all your social content. It's amazing.

First 6 photos – Make sure those first 6 photos show a good variety of what you do and your products.

Natural light is always the best light when taking pictures. Perhaps use canva to frame a photo to reinforce brand identity.

How to make content engaging.

Use a variety of the features

• Stories
• Grid Posts
• Reels
• IGTV

Always educate, entertain or inspire. Think about these things when posting content. The imagery is so important.

Ask yourself who is this content aimed at, what is the purpose. 

Reels.

Reels are getting huge reach and making you visible on the discovery tab. 

Short up to 30sec max video.

Not an extension for your stories - it needs to bring value or entertain someone. 

Use the apps Inshot or Quik to create your reels in the beginning. 

Reels will continue to be pushed out for 2 weeks after you post.

How to grow your following?

Reels are the easiest and quickest way to grow.

Don't become so consumed by growing your following that you forget about your existing audience. 

What to avoid?

Do not copy other peoples content. Yes take inspiration but recreate it in your own style. Be yourself. 

Engagement should be genuine and making real connections.

Don't constantly ask people for shout outs, only people who you have a genuine engagement with. Don't rely on shout outs for growth.

Be real, authentic and genuine. 

How to stay motivated?

Make a plan with goals for the month and then create content around that.

Stick to the plan. 

Use Google Calendar to help plan your content. 

3 tips for businesses who are struggling to grow.

Create a reel.

Be present on stories consistently and use stickers to make the stories more interactive. Polls, questions, slider bars and quiz are a good way to make tour audience to feel part of your business. Great for market research.

Utilise your grid like your shop front with a good variety.

If you need any further help with this then contact 

Instagram: Home at rose cottage

Rose Cottage on the Road

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