10 Cool Instagram Tricks to Take Your Account to The NEXT Level

Social media is everywhere and it’s impossible to avoid it these days, especially if you work in media, or want to build a successful business. Everyone is on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Periscope, Facebook, etc. But not everyone knows how to use all of them well. Usually people concentrate on one thing, and use all the other social media just because they feel like they have to, but without really knowing how to use it to its full potential. Today, let’s talk about Instagram and some cool tricks to take your account to the next level.

1. Goals
First things first, you have got to pick a goal. Are you planning on making a personal Instagram account to promote yourself as a brand or is this a business account to promote certain products or services? You can’t mix the two. Like can you imagine random selfies on a business account? That would not work.

2. Theme
You’ve got to pick a theme, and by that I mean choose a certain style or color scheme. All of your pictures don’t have to look the same, but they do have to look cohesive together. So when people go to your profile they can see at a glance that you’ve got your sh*t together.

3. Quality
Your pictures have be of good quality, otherwise nobody will like them. You don’t have to use a DSLR (even though a lot of instafamous people shoot on fancy cameras and upload those to Instagram), but do choose the highest quality of picture on your phone. The better the quality, the more crisp and professional the pictures will look.

4. Lighting 
Photos taken with an iPhone can look amazing and very professional if the lighting is good. While you can attempt to set up lights, it’s always best and easiest to just use daylight to your advantage. No matter how hard you try, photos taken in the evening indoors will look much more grainy, that’s just the truth.

5. Editing
Don’t be afraid to edit your pictures. Yes, occasionally you will just take a picture that’s perfect and you can proudly say #nofilter. But for all the other times – editing will save you. Having said that, Instagram filters are crap. Just go into setting and adjust brightness, contrast, saturation, etc to your liking. Apps like VSCO and Snapseed are great too.

6. Audience
Think about what kind of audience you want to attract and what they’re interested in and try to cater to them. Or if you have a specific niche interest – stick with it. Believe me, your audience will find you, you just need time.

7. Consistency
Being consistent is key to getting a following. You can’t expect people to remember who you are if you post irregularly, a couple of times a month or whenever you feel like it. Create a schedule for yourself and try to post at least daily, preferably a couple of times a day. But don’t post 10 pictures at once, 3 pics throughout the day is plenty.

8. Timing
Speaking of your audience, think about where they live, what time it is there and when are they most likely to check Instagram. You want to post your pictures at those times, when people are on their phones. There’s no use posting in the dead of the night, when everyone’s asleep. No one scrolls that far back in their feed.

9. Hashtags
Hashtags are convenient and can help your photos get featured and attract more followers, but only if said hashtags are relevant. Have a look around Instagram, check out your favourite profiles and see what hashtags they use. There’s a lot of different communities on Instagram and they all have their hashtags. Find the ones you like and that are similar to what you post and use those. And please, for the love of god, don’t fall for that #followback bullsh*t.

10. Tagging
If you like flatlays and you’re using various products in your photo – tag the brands on Instagram. For example let’s imagine you’re into makeup and you post a lovely flatlay of your favourite products, you can clearly see a Clinique face cream and a Too Faced eyeshadow palette in the picture – tag those companies. You never know, you might get featured on their account.