Almost a decade went by since Instagram was launched. The platform hasn’t lost its appeal. At the moment, it has over 1 billion monthly active users. Most of them check their feeds on a daily basis, engaging with friends, influencers, and brands.
The community is massive, so it’s not easy to get noticed there. Do you want to level up your social game? Maybe you intend to become an influencer in fashion, medicine, sports, art, or any other category you’re skilled at. Maybe you intend to use Instagram for marketing purposes. But even if it’s only for personal use, knowing how to post on Instagram will make you more popular. That’s never a bad thing.
To learn more about the sizes of photos, stories, and videos for the platform, check this guide here. It’s useful for complete beginners, who need to cover the basics. When you get through those points, you’ll need to broaden your knowledge on how to post to Instagram. We’ll give you a few tips that work wonders!
How Do I Post on Instagram? 5 Tips for Sharing Great Content
1. Focus on Real Experiences
After scrolling through your feed and seeing some awesome posts, you start wondering: “how do I post on Instagram and compete with all that?” You might be tempted to copy your favorite influencer. They talk about the meaning of life, the universe, and all kinds of meaningful stuff. You can do that, but you’ll be one of the many users who focus on such content.
You can engage people on a deeper level when you share a personal experience.
- The visual content (photo or video) must express the personal experience that you’re about to share through the description. When you go on trips, do exciting things and write about the way they changed your point of view. Skydiving may spice up your summer vacation a great deal. Plus, it will give you something to write about.
- Instead of simple photos, share adventures and life experiences. Accompany them with a personal text in the description. The text that goes along with your Instagram posts is as important as the visual.
2. Use Different Instagram Post Formats
If you follow a particular pattern with consistency in colors and design, you may create your own brand on the platform. However, consistency may easily blend into the area of boring. You’ll notice that your Instagram posts are losing traction over time.
It’s best to spice things up with a variety of formats. You can still maintain consistent brand imaging, but through various posts:
- Photos
- Videos
- GIFs
- Stories
- Carousels
- Live sessions
Instagram Live is a particularly useful tool for establishing expertise in a certain category. If you hit a creative block and you’re wondering what to post on Instagram, you can contact a knowledgeable person in your niche and conduct a live interview. You can show up and answer questions from your followers. They may get too personal, but you don’t have to answer the questions that make you feel uncomfortable. Lives give you a nice opportunity to form a personal connection with your audience.
3. Use the Storytelling Method
If we had to choose one best way of how to post on Instagram, storytelling is it!
Do you follow Humans of New York on social media? Brandon Stanton, the photographer, became famous through his emotional photographs accompanied by unique stories of people from all around the world.
A larger narrative has to be unique enough to grab and hold the reader’s attention. You can make it unique through humor, seriousness, or any other approach that would awaken emotions. The narrative has to be true, raw and inspiring.
You might be wondering: how is this tip different from the first one we shared? These don’t have to be your own stories. When posting on Instagram, you can focus on other people’s experiences as well. If you’re trying to promote a brand, you can feature some of your employees and give a glimpse into their personal lives.
4. Express Your Opinion on Relevant Issues
Once you become influential in the community, posting on Instagram will come with a responsibility. Let’s say a scandal occurred in your industry. When Alo Yoga was called out in social media for limiting its influencers, the community was all over the most popular yogis: “What’s your opinion on Alo Yoga? Why won’t you get into the discussion? Why aren’t you using your voice to change things for the better?”
Your followers may demand an Instagram post that addresses a relevant issue. If you don’t feel comfortable sharing something, you don’t have to. If you don’t have an opinion, do your research to form one. When you’re ready to share, be respectful and non-offensive.
If you get stuck and you don’t know what to post on Instagram, quick research into the most current drama in your industry may provide you with answers.
5. Engage Your Followers
When wondering how to post on Instagram, you should abandon the “me me me” approach. Yes; your profile is about you. But no one is interested in following your personal journey one Instagram post after another. Eventually, they will get bored with your content.
That’s why you should always relate to others when sharing.
“I have anxiety. How do I post on Instagram to talk about that problem without making it all about myself?” The answer is simple: share your own story, but in a way that helps others. Ask your followers to talk about their own experiences and share tips that helped them overcome the state. Even though it’s a personal issue, you can create a community around it. Invite your followers to comment on each Instagram post with their opinions, feelings, and whatever comes to their mind.
Is There a Universal Rule on How to Post on Instagram?
What’s the secret? How do some users become extra popular and others don’t even when they try the same methods?
There are no specific rules on how to post to Instagram. You need to be yourself, and that will always lead to uniqueness.
In the tips above, we shared a few tips to teach you how to post on Instagram. They work, but you have to spice them up with your personality. The Instagram community is hungry for differences, so show them what makes you different from everyone else.