Alright today's blog is going to be a little different than the usual. I see a lot of Instagram accounts (whether it be businesses, brands, or personal pages) not set up properly. So rather than writing about how you can audit your own Instagram page and make the proper updates yourself, I've decided to make a pitch deck with real examples from clients I work with.
why conduct an instagram Audit?
make it easier for people to find you
make it so they like what they see when they do find you, and they decide to stay
and finally to make them like what they see so much that they decide they want to be a follower (whether thats fans, customers, clients, potential partners etc.).
these steps are in order of what I personally notice first when I look at an account or their page
01: The Profile Pic
In the top example: we kept all the brand elements but rearranged them to best fit the parameters for an IG profile pic
In the bottom example: we kept the most unique brand element and eliminated the rest. this helps them stand out visually while still symbolizing their brand
why: it's one of the first things that people notice about your page so make it count and make it stick out. If you're a personal brand tied to your own self image then definitely use a recognizable pic of yourself. Your brand's name will be used in your username and in your bio, no need to be redundant and use it for your profile pic too.
02: Name/Bio/Links
notice how the @username, The Page Name, and the @threads handle, are all in sync. There’s no confusion. it’s not a different username for TikTok vs. Instagram vs. Twitter etc. they’re all the same. Be uniform across all platforms if possible.
it’s extremely clear WHO this page is for, and WHAT this page (company, business, brand) does.
we have a clear Call To Action that accompanies the appropriate link. It’s not just a link with no context. Your CTA can be as simple as “check out my website” but if people don’t know where the link leads to, they’re probably not going to click it.
Our highlights can be used for different topics or service offerings but they need to be clearly organized. If you have a podcast use this to showcase clips of your podcast. If you have a blog... if you do real estate, and investing, and finance tips create a highlight for each and separate your thoughts accordingly.
PUT YOUR BEST FOOT FORWARD. Pin your 3 best posts - whether that’s your “most viewed,” or the best highlights of your career, or 3 things new visitors should know about your brand
03: Thumbnails / Covers
THUMBNAILS / POST COVERS MATTER! maybe we need to repeat this one more time for the people in the back... THUMBNAILS / POST COVERS MATTER! these 2 pics are of the same account (our instagram account) 1 year apart.
Which videos are your eyes more drawn to? Which posts seem more interesting? More valuable?
The harsh reality is that, the cover of your post is just as important as the post itself.
Because if it doesn’t attract someone to stop and watch, what’s inside the post is irrelevant.
04: Your Content
We could do a whole other blog on this one slide. And maybe we will! But for now we'll leave it at this...
Most of the time it’s not what you say but HOW YOU SAY IT
if you’re a videographer and you want to showcase your skills, don’t make a bunch of posts talking about your video equipment, or editing technique, SHOW US
if your a lifestyle brand don’t flood our feed with product pictures. Show us the achieved lifestyle one gets by using/wearing your products
Red Bull does an amazing job of this
Red Bull sells energy drinks (we all know this), but look at their page...
not 1 single can of Red Bull is seen when you pull up their page on Instagram
that’s because Red Bull knows that the lifestyle sells more than the product itself
sell the outcome, not the product
SHOW US!
Now hopefully you can take this check list and these examples and apply them to your own page! If you ever have any questions about your page or your social media strategy don't hesitate to reach out. We love to help!