5 top tips to ensure your Instagram feed is on-brand

Styling you Instagram

I’m sure you all know the importance of branding. But it’s also somewhere were things can become a little ….well… confused…

Social media can expose us to a lot of potentially ‘grey’ areas. We see a beautiful image and want to share it sooo bad, but really, it’s so off brand its crazy… but alas we post it anyway…. Well I’m here to tell you – Stop! Don’t do it!

Our social media accounts are often the first point of contact for your audience before they click through to your site. This is where you have to show potential customers exactly what you or your brand stands for. It’s the first place to make an impact and create a great first impression.

However you have a super short amount of time to grab your audience and your images will be what shows them if they are interested in what you have to offer or not.

You don’t want to lure people to your webpage only to have them land on your webpage and see something completely different to what the just saw on Instagram, wonder WTH just happened and click off... Bounce rate = 100%.

So in order to make the most of your exposure online and to save you countless time by refraining any non-relevant images, I’ve compiled a list of my ‘Top 5 Rules to Live by’ in order to create an on brand Instagram feed.

Know your aesthetic.

If you specialize in shabby chic furniture and styling, you want to only post things that are similar in style and colour. You don’t want to start posting neons or skulls that don’t really to your products. This also applies for filters. Pick one or two filters (maximum!) that work with your brand and products and use those. VSCO has some great filters and you can find loads of information, tutorials and colour scheme suggestions online about VSCO. I have a Pinterset Board on theming here.

Add whitespace.

White space is your friend. And if you don’t like white utilize images of blocks of colour that work with your brand, so it’s not photo after photo. It’s also a good not to have similar images repeated over and over again, such as close up after close up. Mix it up a little. A formula that works well is 1 close up image, followed by a full length image, followed by white space/block colour and landscape/inspirational image. Then repeat. For my fashion brand, iland co., this would be a picture of a palm tree or white sandy beach. Styling you instagram, see my feed here.

Use a feed planner.

A feed planner where you can view what your feed will look like before you post will change …. Your…life! Some we recommend are schedugr.am, Plann and Later.

Don’t be afraid to delete images that don’t work.

Most of us do it a lot – all the time. Say you have a post about an event that has text all over it and the event has been and gone. It no longer works with the look and feel of your other images. Get rid of it and don’t sweat it.

Use appropriate hashtags.

Don’t start using hashtags just because they are popular and your hoping for some extra engagement when they have absolutely nothing to do with your image.

We can all see what hashtags you use, so if you start using #likesforlikes #hotgirls or #bikinimodels when you post doesn’t relate, it might make you look a little desperate…. just saying!

Don’t be afraid to you use stock images or repost other peoples content. BUT make sure you remove the ‘repost’ white text from the actual image (which may mean paying a small amount for the upgraded app) and refer to the original poster in the comments instead.

Don’t make collages. 90% of People are looking at Instagram via their mobile screen. If you have 3 ordinary pictures you think look better in a collage – they don’t, they just looked squashed and your audience will need to squint their eyes to try and make out what they are looking at. If the pictures are ordinary in the first place, don’t use them at all. Just hold off until you have better images to post.

I hope these tips were helpful and will have you on track to great looking Instagram feeds and an engaged audience. Do you have any additional tips? I’d love to hear them in the comments below.

Happy snapping!

Check out my freebies here for more help.