Want to make sure you’re nailing your content strategy? In this blog I’ll be sharing with you the mistakes you need to avoid in your Instagram content. And to avoid making these mistakes in the future, I give you some advice on how to fix them!
Keep reading and take note of any you think you’re doing right now. We want to avoid these as they could have an impact on your content performance, and it will look like you don’t know what you’re doing.
Mistakes to avoid making in your Instagram content
Let’s dive right in!
- Using the same hashtags in every post
Before you go running round the house panicking about finding different hashtags for every single post, don’t worry. Apart from branded hashtags, you want to avoid using the same 30 (or however many hashtags you’re using) in every post. It won’t help you grow your account or reach new audiences. Hashtags don’t do all the work for you, your content does that, but they do help push your content out there to new people and potential ideal clients.
My advice would be to spend some time each month or quarter to review your hashtags and research more. Make sure you keep them categorised under each content pillar in your business and add them into a spreadsheet or keep them somewhere safe so it becomes easy to choose them when creating new content. If you really want to get on top of your hashtag research, I highly recommend investing in Flick.Tech. Flick is a great system that helps you analyse and review your hashtags in great detail. It makes the process easy for you, giving you accurate analytics of each hashtag you use in your content and allows you to group the hashtags you want to use regularly. Click here to check it out.
- Not making use of all content formats
Instagram now has different types of video, grid posts, guides, collaboration posts, stories, live video…the opportunities for creating content are endless! This can be a little overwhelming at first but choose one format to start with, that you may not have tried yet, research into how your competitors are using them, and have a go.
Let’s take reels, for example. We all know how big reels have grown since Instagram released the feature in 2019, and they are a great way to grow your account and reach new audiences that don’t even know you exist yet.
And don’t forget to take a look at your existing content and repurpose it using a different format. This is an easier way to create content for your socials, just by using the content you’ve already created and that resonated with your audience.
- Using too many CTAs
Calls to action need to be included in every single piece of content you post but stick to just the one. Having too many calls to action will confuse your audience and they’ll end up not taking any action because they won’t know which route is best for them to take. It’s overwhelming when you are asking a lot of your audience, so keep it simple and stick to the one.
- Speaking to too many people in your content
The aim is to make your readers think you’re speaking directly to them, as if they were in the same room as you just having a conversation. Read this blog back to yourself, who am I writing it for? YOU. There’s no ‘everyone’ or ‘they’ or ‘people…it’s all about you.
- Wrong keywords or no keywords at all
Instagram content is now searchable by keywords, so you want to be making sure you’re constantly using keywords you want to be searchable by.
How to fix these issues? It’s simple. Do a content audit of your most recent posts to find out if your content plan is working and targeted towards your dream client. If you don’t know where to go to do this, click HERE to download my FREE content audit! It helps you understand if your current content plan is spot on, or if it needs some work, and I show you how you can fix any issues.
Being present for your business on Instagram is a no brainer, especially if that’s where your audience is hanging out. But what if you don’t like Instagram? It’s not your zone of genius, you may not want to spend your time on social media creating content, and simply want that extra time to spend with family and friends… well, keep reading as I dive deep into six benefits to outsourcing your Instagram.
In 2021 alone, there have been more than a billion monthly active Instagram users! But what if you don’t enjoy the platform? Don’t get me wrong, choosing to outsource your Instagram can be daunting. It’s such a big part of your marketing strategy that you don’t want to get wrong, especially if you run an online business. And there’s three things that are probably stopping you from investing…the time it will take to hire & onboard an Instagram manager, the investment each month to have this addition on your team, and how much trust you need to handover your Instagram platform to someone you haven’t worked with before.
BUT, with these slight negatives come so many benefits to outsourcing your Instagram. And actually these aren’t negatives, they quickly become positives which is why I’ve mentioned them below as part of some of the benefits.
So here’s six benefits you may not have thought of around outsourcing your Instagram (that you should probably consider).
Six Benefits Of Outsourcing Your Instagram
#1 Allows extra time to focus on your zone of genius
The time you would initially spend on Instagram engaging, creating content, researching hashtags, monitoring your competitors…the list goes on, this is now extra time you’ll get to either relax, spend with your family, or work on your own business. It’s a no brainer.
#2 Cost effective as you’re delegating a task to someone who is skilled in that area so you’ll get better results
Social media isn’t a fast game, and I think that’s why it puts people off the investment initially as it takes time to see results from hiring an social media manager
#3 Less likely to have burnout and compare yourself with your competitors online
Instagram, and any social media platform for that matter, can become a toxic place for many reasons. Spending less time on any social media platform can prevent burnout, and also less comparison with your competitors. Stop getting wrapped up in what other people are doing and focus on your own business. Competitor research is definitely needed, but having someone in this profession who knows the best ways to do this without any distraction is the best way forward.
#4 It can reduce your stress levels
Knowing someone is taking care of the Instagram element of your business can be such a stress relief. You can then put more of your focus and energy into the things that you want to work on, which Instagram would usually consume the time of.
#5 You will get better results
It’s like with any job you want to hire someone in, there are people out there that specialise in specific areas, know the job inside out and can guarantee better results than if you were to do it yourself. It works the same with Instagram managers; you can feel confident we know what we are doing, and will probably introduce a better strategy/content plan than what you already had.
#6 More time to spend with your family/friends/doing what you love
If you already have the time planned out for your own business, and you just want to outsource your Instagram because you hate the platform, or simply don’t know how to use it to its full potential, then it’s a great solution as it means you’ll then get more time to spend doing what you love with your family and friends. How good would it feel if you finished work everyday at 3pm to spend the afternoon/evening in your family’s company? Pretty damn good, if you ask me.
So what are you waiting for? I get it’s probably another big step in your business but just read over those benefits again, list out the pros and cons and you’ll come to an answer.
My advice to you is;
- Don’t rush into anything just because it’s cheap, there’s a deal or you saw one good result and you’re ready to sign. Hiring an Instagram manager shouldn’t be a quick decision, like with any hire in your business.
- Back to my point above, don’t go for someone purely because of price. Look at their results, talk to people they’ve worked with before/currently working with, ask for their portfolio, jump on a call with them and make sure they have a caring attitude and really want to get to know you, not just your business. If this is going to be a long term hire, you want to make sure the relationship will be strong and positive.
- Make sure they are present on their Instagram. I’m not sure about you, but if I were in a different industry and hiring an Instagram manager, I’d want them to have a presence on the platform too and make sure they’re using the platform to it’s best ability.
If this is something you’ve been thinking about recently and ready to take the leap into hiring an Instagram manager for your business, don’t hesitate to reach out. I’d love to chat with you and talk more about you, your business and the process of working with me.
