Top 10 Instagram Do's & Dont's for Business Pages

Instagram is currently the go to social media platform for individuals and for advertisers in 2022. The brand image has to be maintained on these social media platforms where the end consumers have a direct access to the page feeds. Many brands have simply got it wrong in getting their social platforms right.

In this post, we will list out top the Top 10 do’s and dont's while starting an Instagram business page.

The Do's

1. Instagram handle and profile image

Have a proper Instagram handle which represents your brand. Please try to avoid special letters between handle names like - _. Choose a name which directly identifies your brand. Similarly with the profile image it has to be the brand logo, anything else will not look authentic.

2. Create a Content Calendar

Irrespective of whether you are a small business or a known brand, before clicking on that Instagram sign up button please get a content calendar in place. In simple words 'create a content posting calendar'. Creating a content calendar initially might look like a daunting task but once done it is going to make your Instagram work smoother. Maintaining a social media page is no easy task and creating a content calendar will help in planning as to when and what content needs to be posted. This calendar will also help in getting all your content in one place. Here is a template attached for your reference just in case you are looking for one.

3. Focus on Creating Engaging Content and not Chasing Followers/Likes

The focus should be on creating engaging content which is not only relevant to your TG but also stands out in the ocean of content. Brands are hardly doing this. The brands needs to create more consistent engaging content for the platform. Just do not post anything just for the sake of filling with the calendar and achieving your target of weekly posts. If the content is engaging enough then it will take care of all your analytics what you are looking for. Do put up stories even if you are short of posting for the week. Stories are very engaging and helps keep up the momentum. Run various contest/activities which engages the user. Make the user take some action on your posts instead of just liking them. Make them comment and share the posts. That's not an easy task but that's what this is all about.

4. Go with the Trend

Currently Reels are a major trend on how we are putting out the content and it is not surprising that around 2 billion people are interacting with reels every month. The numbers will be much higher by the end of 2023. If Reels are trending then 70% of your content on Instagram has to be in reels. If a brand is not creating reels for Instagram then probably many things will start falling out for them if they are expecting higher engagement numbers from traditional posts. Many brands do not like some of the trends but unfortunately on this platform you simply cannot ignore them. Just keep it simple and go with the trend.

5. Use a Title Hashtag

Using a title header hashtag works well in helping the viewer in what more you are trying to communicate in a descriptive way. The title hashtag sets the tone of the entire content. For example, a post caption starting with the hashtag #CelebratingSpirits

It is always recommended to use caps on the first letter of the words to make it look more appealing even if the hashtag has zero tags since you will be covering hashtags with the maximum tags at the bottom when the caption finishes. The title hashtag makes the viewer understand what’s that one message you want him to remember after seeing the post.

6. Thumbnail for Reels/Videos

Many brands are creating engaging reels but the thumbnails are not that great and hence once it gets features on their profile feed it becomes a misfit. You can always change a thumbnail later on but why to give any more time to an already posted content. Please be thumbnail ready which goes with all the other posts around it

7. Tags/Mentions

Always tag/mention people on your posts. It increases the distribution of the post. Always do relevant tags/mentions who are associated with the posts. Unneccesary tags/mentions are a waste of time.

8. Good Relevant Caption/Put up Stories

Caption is a key part of the content you are putting out. You can make the audience understand better by putting up a caption which can also have many important information like a store address or product details or talking more in detail about the post or any other info that can be embedded in the caption. Captions are important and time needs to be given while doing this. Captions are words which represent your brand language. Keep this in mind when next time you are creating a caption. While doing everything just do not forget to put up stories. Stories are an engaging medium within the platform and brands/businesses should take full advantage of the same. Any no. of stories put up (till a certain number) is always fine as long as the content is engaging. In case of posts, too much posting can be really spammy and there could be few unfollows as well.

9. Find your Niche, Theme or Style

Stand for what your brand is for and find that theme or style that best suits you. You will discover that once you have spent enough time on Instagram posting and will ultimately know your style and if you have pre decided what would be your niche or theme then stick to it and let the results speak instead of leaving it mid way.

10. Do Not Give Up

There are plenty more do’s than just 10 so lastly do not give up on Instagram whether you are chasing followers, engagements or virality. Be clear with your objective of what exactly you want to achieve through this platform. Building an Instagram page takes a lot of time and effort and you have to be patient. Do not chase the Instagram fame, just keep putting the good work out there and do not give up.

The Dont's

1. Don’t Spam Hashtags

In many posts there are long lists of hashtags used, half of them used for unknown reason which the publisher only knows. Please only use relevant hashtags. It is a myth that the more hashtags, the better visibility. Only handful relevant hashtags needs to be used. For example, if it’s a new year post please do not start with using all the hashtags like #hny #happynewyear #happynewyear2023 #2023 #newyear #newyears #welcomenewyear

Only choose the hashtags which identifies with your posts and obviously has decent mentions. With many brands have seen that the hashtags are bigger than the captions. In some cases, there can be no captions and only hashtags so use it like the entire post depends upon it. Do not spam the posts with too many hashtags.

2. Do not Post Low Quality Images/Videos

Posting low quality content and videos will create a negative impression about the brand. Delay your posting but avoid posting blurry photos or extremely low resolution videos just for the sake of posting. Always select quality over quanity. If the audience is not able to see the posts properly on their feed then posting any content would be a waste of time and effort. Please avoid this mistake at any cost. The posts can be low res good quality but has to be visible.

3. Do not Ignore your Followers

The whole point of putting in the effort was engagement. Time and again we have heard of this word, so ignoring your followers comments or messages would be a big mistake. There are going to be some unwanted comments/messages which you can choose not to reply but here we are referring to the positive and the neutral ones.

4. Don't use Google Search Images or Steal from Somewhere

Instagram is a platform to share your own content. You can always use a motivational quote wallpaper if you want to or put up a picture of a global event happening around you but when you are putting it up on your wall, simply do not copy paste it. Using your own content is always recommended on Instagram and as a brand do not ever copy other's content which can put you in a spot. If it's a meme fest sort of a thing then we completely understand but other than that just put in that effort and be creative!

5. Don't buy Instagram Followers

If you simply want to buy Instagram followers then you should continue reading this blog as it might change your perspective. Buying Instagram followers categorizes your account at a risk of getting blocked in the future due to high bot accounts. More than that there would be zero engagements with the purchased followers. The whole point is to engage the audience and post super content and hustle and build that Instagram page. Many of the influencers are buying followers and it's happening in the market at a very rapid pace. It's all the numbers game and people are just taking shortcuts and putting up the numbers. Buying Instagram followers is like buying an award for which you are not nominated yet. Let Instagram Ads do this task for you by promoting your best content. That best content will reach out to your desired audience and if the content is great then they will have no choice but to follow you if they are curious or like something about your brand. Busying Instagram followers will never reflect your brand as as a legitimate account worth following.

6. Don't put your Profile on Private

The Reels amplification will not happen, anyone else other than your followers can't check out your posts, your posts will not be visible in the Instagram discover area, your stories can't be shared publicly. To simply put it, you will just be missing all the Instagram fun!

7. Don't avoid Instagram Ads/Analytics

Do not avoid Instagram ads. A brand not advertising on Instagram will lose a great opportunity of capitalizing the enormous resources of the platform. There is absolute value for money for the advertisers on Instagram and it is suggested to use it to achieve the brand's objectives on the platform. Analytics is another tool within the platform which gives great insights and many simply ignore it. Basic Instagram analytics should always be checked upon and tracked.

8. Don't overuse Filters

Filters are the reason why Instagram got so popular early on filters were the distinctiveness that everyone remembered. In case of brands, filters should be used very carefully as most of the content are pre-edited. Over usage of filters can look very amateurish. You have to filter out posts where you want to use them and choose the right filters by trying out many options.

9. Don't put Links in Captions

Links in captions are not clickable. Either put it in your bio or put up a Linktree link where you can host multiple url's. Putting links in caption does not make sense as per the Instagram logic so it's better to avoid it.

10. Don't bore your Audience with 20 Stories

Don't create a situation where the lines at the top will turn into tiny dots. Stories anywhere between 1- 6 is fine. For exceptions covering an important event, a little more than the defined numbers is still OK but too many stories will get the audience really bored and they will lose interest.

I hope these tips have been helpful! Did I miss any of your Instagram do's and dont's? I’d love to hear them!