Right now, Instagram is one of the most popular media platforms in the world.
This may or may not change in the coming years. But right now there is very little downside to investing time into the platform. There is an opportunity to reach a lot of people.
And even if Instagram goes out of favor, the skills you build for yourself as a marketer can be used in other ways. Ways we can’t even consider right now.
So here are a few tips for success on Instagram…
#1. Post A LOT More
This is really the key to everything. When it comes to content, no matter the platform, you’re going to benefit from creating a lot of content.
Most things in life are volume games. The more you do, the more you learn and the better you become. There is no way around it. We like to think there is some kind of silver bullet, but there never is.
For example, Dolly Parton, arguably one of the most successful songwriters of all time once said that she’s had to write 5,000+ songs for 5 that were big hits. Those are not good odds. But that’s the reality.
Are you willing to do the same with your Instagram marketing? Can you aim for 5,000 posts? Because that’s the kind of commitment it’s going to take to be successful.
#2. Entertain + Educate (Don’t Sell)
I say this mostly because the tendency is to sell too much. You can still sell on Instagram. You can show your products. But the tendency when you think that way almost always results in too much selling. And people get turned off by that really quick.
For 99.9% of what you post, focus on either entertaining people or educating them. If you’re able to do both at the same time then you’re really doing something that can win.
Don’t post a pic of a t-shirt and ask for people to buy it. Post a funny picture of you spilling chocolate pudding on the shirt. Then post another pic of you getting the stain out.
Entertain and educate.
#3. Consume, Copy, Innovate + Experiment
Creating a lot of posts on Instagram is taxing. You’ll have to come up with a lot of ideas. If you’re struggling to do that, consume a lot of content on Instagram. Copy what others are doing and innovate on what you’re seeing. Add your own style. See where you can be a little different. If you see something working in another industry, do the same thing in your industry.
Try, try and try some more.
Experiment.
There really aren’t any tricks for finding something that works. You have to try a lot of different things and learn along the way.
Conclusion
Everybody wants there to be a couple quick tips that will make posting on Instagram easy and successful. But that’s not reality. It’s a volume game. Look at any successful account on the platform and you’ll likely see thousands of posts. And if not, the account probably started on another platform with thousands of posts and they applied their experience to Instagram.
It’s a big commitment. But if you can get past that you can make it work.
