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Figuring Out Instagram

Social media marketing, advertising, and growth

Andy Black

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Just wondering, Andy....are you using everliker?
I’m not using any tools at the moment. Trying to do everything by hand to understand what’s going on.

I’m so new to IG I wouldn’t even class myself as a consumer.

I’m picking up bits of knowledge here and there from you guys, and from observing my own frustrations with posting.

I followed a lot of people the other night in the business/celebrity space, so I could be a consumer for a bit. I’m trying to immerse myself for a while so I’m more of a native than a tourist.

I’ve skimmed through some of the IG threads in TFLF, and most of the good advice in them went in one ear and out the other - because I had no experience with the platform.

I’ve deliberately kept away from trying to learn how to “build audiences”, or “generate traffic”. Partly because I hate those phrases. Partly because I want to figure stuff out on my own. And partly because I want to learn by producing not consuming.

I’m having a look at Buffer to schedule posts (and upgraded my account to a business one to take full advantage of Buffer’s ability to buffer up posts and then post them to a schedule.). I’m looking forward to automating it that way because posting from my phone only when there’s a WiFi connection has gotten old very quick.

I’m much more amenable to using follow/like tools now. I can see the platform is rife with them. It’s so common place that people likely struggle to start from ground zero without a bit of a jumpstart.
 
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This is cool, The path I’m trying to go requires a lot of social media posts. I didn’t even think of purchasing a domain name ASAP. To much faith in humanity I guess. I’m curious how you set up an email capture feature on IG? Best of luck. And love the thread.
Thanks @LoneWolf21.

The link in my bio leads to a lead capture form. Like the simple IG funnel I found this morning and outlined above.
 

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Very nice journey Andy, thanks for sharing it with us. Will be looking at your findings and insights.

I saw you mentioned you had a lead capture, what are you offering in exchange (if anything)? What are they signing up for?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

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Very nice journey Andy, thanks for sharing it with us. Will be looking at your findings and insights.

I saw you mentioned you had a lead capture, what are you offering in exchange (if anything)? What are they signing up for?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
We went for something super simple and quick to get launched.

Below is the squeeze page.

Someone suggested it wasn't very enticing, but I don't care at this stage. We've not proved anyone's even getting to the page yet, so why fix that part of the funnel?

Step 1 was to create my first ever IG post.

Step 2 was to get views/likes/followers.

Now we’re getting likes and followers it's time to put Google Analytics on the landing page to see if we're even getting visitors.

Note that we launched without GA installed. Why delay launching to put on tracking when we're not getting visitors yet?


Current squeeze page:

upload_2018-4-25_18-38-27.png
 
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We went for something super simple and quick to get launched.

Below is the squeeze page.

Someone suggested it wasn't very enticing, but I don't care at this stage. We've not proved anyone's even getting to the page yet, so why fix that part of the funnel?

The first step was to create a first post, then to get views/likes/followers.

Now I'm getting likes and followers it's time to put Google Analytics on the landing page to see if we're even getting visitors.

Note that we launched without GA installed. Why delay launching to put on tracking when we're not getting visitors yet?


Current squeeze page:

View attachment 19229
Makes perfect sense, love that approach
 

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Makes perfect sense, love that approach
Thanks. Part of the reason I’m documenting this is to show this approach in action.

I don’t use IG. I’d never posted on IG. I haven’t taken any courses. I won’t read any books. We worked through a simple launch list and got going.

Producing beats consuming.

Wisdom is earned.

(Hmmm... another quote to post?)



We did link the form up to an ActiveCampaign list and added one automated message. You could argue that was unnecessary.

I don’t see any point writing more than one automated email at this stage, but I thought it worth welcoming anyone motivated enough to signup when the offer isn’t very enticing.
 

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First of all fantastic thread .
Is there a tool to find bots from real follower ? If not dont you think there is a need to fulfill ?(On any Social media platform)
 
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First of all fantastic thread .
Is there a tool to find bots from real follower ? If not dont you think there is a need to fulfill ?(On any Social media platform)
There is no defined tool that can tell you if an account is a bot or not, you must determine that for yourself by doing investigative work. Instagram has algorithms in place that can detect if an account is portraying bot-like activity(Mass following/unfollowing users, mass commenting, etc.) .
If you trigger an of these alarms, Instagram will typically apply a ban on the account temporarily, or sometimes make it harder to discover your account when people use the search bar (less engagement with other users).

However, Instagram's algorithm isn't always spot on and effective, but I don't think there is enough of a need to fulfill here. Not many people are too interested in getting rid of bots on social media, in fact, many accounts buy bots to follow them! in order to gain more followers(albeit fake).
 

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Didn't see you mention anything about IG Business Insights, but just in case, there's a lot of things that can be clicked in there, to further delve into details. A lot of things look unclickable there but it's not lol
 
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Hey andy.

Was doing a bit of research when you mentioned that you were seeing less engagement when you didn't add hashtags.

I came across this article which may be helpful to you.
Complete Instagram Hashtag Research for Any Niche With JARVEE

The main points are:

  • #1 You’re not using targeted hashtags for your niche.
    Before starting using hashtags as a growth method for your Instagram accounts, you need to conduct a thorough research to identify the best performing hashtags for your target market. You want to attract only those users that are interested in what you have to offer. The best approach here is to do a hashtag research before starting using them with your posts so that you maximize your reach. In this tutorial, we will learn exactly that: how to find the best hashtags for your business.
  • #2 You’re using the most popular Instagram hashtags or generic ones like #love, #happy or #dog
    This might be counter-intuitive, but sometimes using the most popular hashtags might not be such a great idea. Even if they are targeted, you might get a few likes or followers, but soon enough your posts will be buried by the avalanche of new posts that keep appearing under this kind of hashtags. So the second tip is to look for those tags with medium and even low popularity, where your posts can get the chance to be featured in the famous top 9 section. The idea is to stay longer on the first page of those particular hashtags and get discovered by more people in the process. Getting in the Top Posts sections can even result in a huge network effect and make your posts go viral on Instagram.
  • #3 You’re not using 30 hashtags with all your posts
    With each hashtag that you’re not using you’re missing out on a considerable Instagram reach. Think of all those people that are searching for each tag to discover new content/brands/people to follow. This is actually Instagram’s recommended method to grow your account and expand your reach: using all the allowed 30 hashtags with your posts. If you’re worried that it looks a bit spammy, you can just add them to the first comment on your post. This way your caption will look nice, and your message will be easy to read.
  • #4 You’re not “cycling” your hashtags
    Just like with every other aspect of a marketing campaign, you need to test your hashtag, try new ones and see if you’re getting better results. Using the same hashtags for all your posts might even make them inefficient after a while. The strategy here is to have a cheat sheet of about 60 – 100 hashtags and rotate them with your posts.
  • #5 Using branded hashtags can be a double-edged sword
    Using branded hashtags is a good strategy when you are already a popular brand. Otherwise, it will just take the place of some other more useful hashtags, that could bring you more potential followers and clients. And, of course, you don’t want to promote another brand by using their branded hashtags.

    It then continues on recommending tools to find relevant hashtags but you have to sign up.

    So i then found this tool called Display Purposes which allows you to do this without signing up and its very simple to use.

    Display Purposes | Photo Hashtags for the Modern Trollop

    Hope that helps!
 
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Andy Black

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Thanks for the input and tips guys.

I suppose they’re all real accounts, it’s just that some are using bots to follow/unfollow and like/comment.

I’m bored of IG as a platform already. It could be the vertical I’m in of course, so I may go follow some food or gardening related stuff from my personal account.

If I read one more lame inspirational quote I’m gonna poke myself in the eye with a rusty fork.

And Grant Cardone is all over my feed with selfie videos. I’m gonna have to unfollow the dude.

I still want somewhere to post quotes as they come to me. I still want to understand IG as a marketing channel.

Understanding it as a consumer through immersion is tiring me out and making me feel ... I dunno... jaded?

I’m going to go to a coffee shop and try and post my first automated post via Buffer.
 

Andy Black

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Hey andy.

Was doing a bit of research when you mentioned that you were seeing less engagement when you didn't add hashtags.

I came across this article which may be helpful to you.
Complete Instagram Hashtag Research for Any Niche With JARVEE

The main points are:

  • #1 You’re not using targeted hashtags for your niche.
    Before starting using hashtags as a growth method for your Instagram accounts, you need to conduct a thorough research to identify the best performing hashtags for your target market. You want to attract only those users that are interested in what you have to offer. The best approach here is to do a hashtag research before starting using them with your posts so that you maximize your reach. In this tutorial, we will learn exactly that: how to find the best hashtags for your business.
  • #2 You’re using the most popular Instagram hashtags or generic ones like #love, #happy or #dog
    This might be counter-intuitive, but sometimes using the most popular hashtags might not be such a great idea. Even if they are targeted, you might get a few likes or followers, but soon enough your posts will be buried by the avalanche of new posts that keep appearing under this kind of hashtags. So the second tip is to look for those tags with medium and even low popularity, where your posts can get the chance to be featured in the famous top 9 section. The idea is to stay longer on the first page of those particular hashtags and get discovered by more people in the process. Getting in the Top Posts sections can even result in a huge network effect and make your posts go viral on Instagram.
  • #3 You’re not using 30 hashtags with all your posts
    With each hashtag that you’re not using you’re missing out on a considerable Instagram reach. Think of all those people that are searching for each tag to discover new content/brands/people to follow. This is actually Instagram’s recommended method to grow your account and expand your reach: using all the allowed 30 hashtags with your posts. If you’re worried that it looks a bit spammy, you can just add them to the first comment on your post. This way your caption will look nice, and your message will be easy to read.
  • #4 You’re not “cycling” your hashtags
    Just like with every other aspect of a marketing campaign, you need to test your hashtag, try new ones and see if you’re getting better results. Using the same hashtags for all your posts might even make them inefficient after a while. The strategy here is to have a cheat sheet of about 60 – 100 hashtags and rotate them with your posts.
  • #5 Using branded hashtags can be a double-edged sword
    Using branded hashtags is a good strategy when you are already a popular brand. Otherwise, it will just take the place of some other more useful hashtags, that could bring you more potential followers and clients. And, of course, you don’t want to promote another brand by using their branded hashtags.

    It then continues on recommending tools to find relevant hashtags but you have to sign up.

    So i then found this tool called Display Purposes which allows you to do this without signing up and its very simple to use.

    Display Purposes | Photo Hashtags for the Modern Trollop

    Hope that helps!
Rep+. Thanks for this.

Interesting if IG recommends using hashtags to grow an account. I thought it was vaguely spammy and was trying not to use too many.

It makes sense to tag your post based on getting it in front of people who might find it useful.

I’ve been neglecting the hashtags but will up my game on this first before messing with Buffer.
 

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Thanks for the input and tips guys.

I suppose they’re all real accounts, it’s just that some are using bots to follow/unfollow and like/comment.

I’m bored of IG as a platform already. It could be the vertical I’m in of course, so I may go follow some food or gardening related stuff from my personal account.

If I read one more lame inspirational quote I’m gonna poke myself in the eye with a rusty fork.

And Grant Cardone is all over my feed with selfie videos. I’m gonna have to unfollow the dude.

I still want somewhere to post quotes as they come to me. I sill want to understand IG as a marketing channel.

Understanding it as a consumer through immersion is tiring me out and making me feel ... I dunno... jaded?

I’m going to go to a coffee shop and try and post my first automated post via Buffer.

I feel exactly the same way when it comes to instagram. I think the platform as a whole presents a level of narcissism and a "look at me" culture which is hard to swallow.
If you look at the most popular accounts it pretty much consists of models, celebrities, fitness enthusiasts and playboy millionaires.
That pretty much sums up what people look up to in the world. *Sigh*
 
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Stats this morning
  • After posting the 8th post (see below).
  • And after I unfollowed a lot of people... trying to unclutter my feed.
upload_2018-4-26_11-36-49.png


Day 7, Post 8
  • Trying a slightly different layout, where I add some more copy into the image.
  • I still can't get Buffer to do this automatically even though I'm using a business IG profile. It came up as a reminder in my phone to post it.
  • I ended up adding 25 hashtags by hand using the IG app on my phone. I chose ones with between 25k and 200k posts (the IG app shows the number of posts as you type in hashtags).
upload_2018-4-26_11-37-37.png

Logging off IG until I check in tonight.
 

Andy Black

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Quick update:
  • I decided I didn't like putting my thoughts into the image itself as I did in the last post. I find I edit my take on it a few times before I'm happy, and I can't do that if my take is in the actual image.
  • I redid that post, then realised I'd misquoted Dan Norris in an earlier post, so archived that one and redid it in Canva.
  • Then thought I might as well redo the first (Mother Theresa) quote now I've settled on a template.
  • I'm still trying to get Buffer to automatically publish to a schedule. It's sending me a reminder instead, and then drops me into IG ready to post. I'll figure this out.
  • Here's what it looks like with posts all using the same template:
v8j8sUP.png
 

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I'm still trying to get Buffer to automatically publish to a schedule. It's sending me a reminder instead, and then drops me into IG ready to post. I'll figure this out.
I've only ever used an automated post scheduler like buffer once before, but, I'm pretty sure it's supposed to do this. That's as "automated" as it's allowed to be. Posting the photo, caption, hashtags, etc. for you would be against Instagram TOS. Therefore it only fills everything in for you. You have to be the one who physically hits "post" as a workaround to the TOS.
 
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Andy Black

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Day 8

Yay! I finally got Buffer to post to my IG feed automatically.

My mistake? I'd setup a Buffer account on my phone using a different email address from the one I was using on the desktop. Duh. They were kinda synched (to Instagram and Facebook), but the settings weren't correct between the Buffer accounts of course.


This means I can do this from my desktop, and can batch up a few to go over the weekend so I don't have to do them manually then.


I'd still like to do them kinda manually, or at least be watching for alerts around the time they post.

It's interesting that I'm getting less insta-alerts now that I'm not using the big hashtags. Maybe everyone using bots isn't focused on those smaller hashtags?



Here's what got posted today at 9:47am:
upload_2018-4-27_9-56-52.png


Here's the Buffer schedule. I've removed the later 3 in the day as I only want to post daily. With the free version of Buffer I can buffer up 10 posts.

VRZdBEe.png




I've only ever used an automated post scheduler like buffer once before, but, I'm pretty sure it's supposed to do this. That's as "automated" as it's allowed to be. Posting the photo, caption, hashtags, etc. for you would be against Instagram TOS. Therefore it only fills everything in for you. You have to be the one who physically hits "post" as a workaround to the TOS.
Hmmm... I didn't know it was against the TOS. Will go looking for that. Seems odd that it would be with all the bots out there. Surely content creation is something IG wants more than anything?




EDIT: I've just Buffered up a couple of posts for the weekend. I might add some more so they can keep going till Thursday as I don't want to post again till then.

Here's what it looks like in the buffer:
cxnuVl8.png



EDIT2: I've just buffered up 6 posts:
  1. You Don't Learn Until You Launch.
  2. Landing Pages Don't Convert, People Do.
  3. Tell me what you've done and I'll tell you who you are.
  4. People listen to experts, they follow leaders.
  5. The person who'll run with the ball is the person who catches it.
  6. Show, Don't Tell.
 
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Hmmm... I didn't know it was against the TOS. Will go looking for that. Seems odd that it would be with all the bots out there. Surely content creation is something IG wants more than anything?
Yeah I would definitely do some research on that when possible. I only ever used a scheduling application once but that was a long time ago and it wouldn't actually post for me and when I contacted the help desk they stated that it was against Instagram TOS at the time. Maybe that has changed though.
 

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Day 14

The last of my buffered posts has been posted.

13 posts, 63 followers, 15 following.

I've watched the followers go up, then go down. Seems to be hovering around 60 now.
I used exactly the same hashtags for all the buffered posts. I'll experiment mixing them up.

On a flight and coach on Tuesday night I dumped over 100 quotes and lines into a Trello board.
I'll grab some and buffer them up tonight for next week.

I think I've had my first genuine comment. All the rest look like auto-comments.
 
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Day 15 (just)

12 posts, 61 followers, 15 following

...

I've removed the Mother Theresa quote again as the orange background was too light for the white writing on it.
It also got me down to a nice grid like so:

upload_2018-5-4_0-4-13.png


Because I want to go black and white from now on and see how that looks.

Even choosing a colour slows me down, and I blatantly fail at doing that too (see the light green Dan Norris quote that someone pointed out didn't have a high enough contrast).

3 black and white ones buffered up just now to go till Monday morning.

I've copied someone else's hashtags who does crappy motivational quotes and has a big following. I presume he knows what he's doing so I'll just piggyback off his research.



EDIT: FML... I've had two genuine comments. The rest look like auto-comments. Can I turn off commenting? Seriously, what a waste of my life sifting through them to find a genuine comment so I can reply.


EDIT2: Feck all traction on IG at the moment. I'll keep going as is till I've done 30 posts and then look at those bot things.

I'm delighted I've started saving all those quotes knocking around in my head though. I'll keep doing this even just for that.
 
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I’ve been meaning to drop all my favourite business quotes somewhere for quite a while, but didn’t know where.

I'm interested to see your Instagram progress, Andy, as I've never used the service at all. But I'm curious why you didn't go with Twitter for the quotes?

Also continuing to listen to your interviews... an incredible amount of great specific tips and helpful observations in them! Revising my restaurant directory idea based on your discussion of how nobody wants to subscribe to a directory, they just want the leads to show up! I don't know if there's a better place than this thread, to follow up on what I appreciate in your podcasts.
 
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You could use an Android emulator such as BlueStacks to have all possible mobile functions available, even on your PC.

I hope this question doesn't derail Andy's thread, but Jon, I wonder how this works. Does your BlueStacks installation have its own virtual phone number or something? How do apps you install in the emulator have their own unique location, comparable to apps installed on a particular device?
 
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Maybe it would help to write how the quote helped you in the caption? Or share a story that explains the quote with a real-life example?

I love that. Will keep reading to see if Andy went with that approach. I had been thinking of having a section of my business blog with quotes, starting this month, but didn't want to just be an anonymous meme factory. Your post adds a lot of value, by inspiring me to look at how I can add value to those quotes.

I like your weekly publishing schedule too. Was going to ask if there are tools for that, but it looks like Andy's already got examples for us of how that works in Buffer.
 
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  1. Follow the accounts that liked their photo.
There's one goal to this, follow people who engage with post(likes), because at the end of the day, engagement is what matters!

Cool tip, thank you!

I see lots of crap comments on blog posts. I know for myself, when I get active with blogging later this month, I intend to delete comments where there's no way to see that the comment was unique for the post. As an example for this thread:

"Great tips, I was looking for something like this post." - GONE.
"Thanks, Andy, for the explanation of how to set up Buffer to schedule Instagram posts." - GOLD

The first comment could have been put on anything... and probably has been spammed lots of places. The second shows that the commenter is responding to this particular author and post.

At least, this is what seems to me like the train out of Westworld.
 
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Hey Andy, good progress so far. It’s looking good.

Just a general rule, dark font color goes on light background. Light font color goes on dark background.

I hope this helps. I love the quotes.
 
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Thanks for all the likes, reading, and responses (with real comments!).

Funny you mention Twitter. I was chatting in another group about whether Twitter is a better place to post short quotes. I’ve not really used Twitter either, and my conclusion was to do both, and maybe even post to LinkedIn, a Facebook page, a blog, and various other places. Basically create once and publish everywhere.

I specifically started on Instagram because I’d literally never posted. I wanted to create a progress thread showing how I attacked something I had no experience of.

It may well be that Instagram is completely the wrong place to post business quotes that a busy business person will see and resonate with. It seems that way to me just from my experience consuming on Instagram. I dislike it intensely.

Like yourself, I’m also tempted to delete all cr@p comments. I’m tempted to block comments entirely so I don’t waste my time trawling through auto-comment-spam just so I can find a genuine comment. Life’s too short.

Hmmm... and as usual I’d be tickled to do the opposite of what everyone recommends.


I will keep a daily posting rhythm up for a while yet. I’ve noticed that changing up the hashtags brought a few more followers.

Apparently I can get more insights in my IG business account if I reach 100 followers, so I’m curious if/when I get there just by being relentless.

(Relentless is such a great word btw. It’s something I aspire to.)


I’ve just checked and I’ve got 14 posts and 73 followers.
 

Castro

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Like yourself, I’m also tempted to delete all cr@p comments. I’m tempted to block comments entirely so I don’t waste my time trawling through auto-comment-spam just so I can find a genuine comment. Life’s too short.
If you find yourself constantly trying to block auto-comments on photos then you will come to find yourself HATING Instagram a lot more. Especially when your accounts grows bigger there will be a point where the comment section can become too much to constantly monitor. I would agree on deleting malicious comments though (those that link to scam sites), although I find that those aren't very common at all.

The comment section can play a BIG factor in the growth of your account. That's where people @tag their friends, many of which will become new followers.

I’ve just checked and I’ve got 14 posts and 73 followers.

Great start! One trick I would recommend is to create a photo which reads something along the lines of.. "Tag someone who will become successful" or "Comment your favorite quote below" etc. Anything that pushes your followers to engage in the comment sections is a good way to have people tag their friends in the comment section in addition to engaging with your posts.
 

Andy Black

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If you find yourself constantly trying to block auto-comments on photos then you will come to find yourself HATING Instagram a lot more. Especially when your accounts grows bigger there will be a point where the comment section can become too much to constantly monitor. I would agree on deleting malicious comments though (those that link to scam sites), although I find that those aren't very common at all.

The comment section can play a BIG factor in the growth of your account. That's where people @tag their friends, many of which will become new followers.



Great start! One trick I would recommend is to create a photo which reads something along the lines of.. "Tag someone who will become successful" or "Comment your favorite quote below" etc. Anything that pushes your followers to engage in the comment sections is a good way to have people tag their friends in the comment section in addition to engaging with your posts.
Good points, thanks.

A milestone for me will be the first time someone tags their friend. Unless it’s a bot then that would be a tiny indication what I’m producing adds a bit of value to Instagram.

Ha... I’ve just had someone tag me for the first time. To read some unactionable motivational quote.

EDIT: I had thought of doing a Monday morning, 1st of the Month, and 1st of the Quarter post asking people what they’re doing to make a sale, or what needs to happen for them to be happy with progress this period... Maybe white background and black writing to stand out.
 
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I’ve just had someone tag me for the first time. To read some unactionable motivational quote.

I'm curious to see if you'll find action-focused, business-minded people on Instagram. I'm not on it, but I have some friends who are, and they sometimes forward what they posted or found there. Based on those examples, it always seemed to me to be a place for fun, jokes, gossip, and narcissism. Will you catch people in a frame of mind where they could really get into what you have to offer? Or will your serious ideas be as popular as a tax seminar in the ice cream parlor? I'll see if your experiment leads to followers who become good clients for you!
 

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I'm curious to see if you'll find action-focused, business-minded people on Instagram. I'm not on it, but I have some friends who are, and they sometimes forward what they posted or found there. Based on those examples, it always seemed to me to be a place for fun, jokes, gossip, and narcissism. Will you catch people in a frame of mind where they could really get into what you have to offer? Or will your serious ideas be as popular as a tax seminar in the ice cream parlor? I'll see if your experiment leads to followers who become good clients for you!
Gosh no. I totally don’t expect to get DFY clients out of this.

I’m posting because:
  • I create content all the time anyway.
  • I have a tonne of quotes I need to get down on paper lest my brain pop.
  • I don’t know IG at all and was curious about how to use it, possibly for clients or other projects I have in mind.
  • Sure... maybe some people do follow along and signup to the email list. If that happens then I’ll figure out what to do with it.
  • I wanted to show how I learn by doing and not by reading or taking courses. The reading will come after, when I have specific questions I want to answer, and when I’ve burnt myself on the stove.

I’ve spent a fraction of the time responding to questions in a few Facebook groups and that’s resulted in folks PMing me. That’s a much better use of my time if my goal was to get DFY clients.

Apart from being on a platform I don’t enjoy the experience of, I’m actually enjoying playing with Buffer and building up my library of quotes and short posts. I’ll be leveraging them better soon enough I think.

My gut tells me IG isn’t the right place unless I start using follow/unfollow bot. I’ll do some research though as it might be just me approaching IG all wrong.
 

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