Building an Instagram Content Strategy That Lasts
Published on: December 5 2022 by Social Media Examiner
Building an Instagram Content Strategy That Lasts
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Table of Contents About Building an Instagram Content Strategy That Lasts
Building an Instagram Content Strategy That Lasts
| startTime | durationTime | text |
| 00:00:00 | 00:00:03 | - You can have the best plan in the world |
| 00:00:03 | 00:00:05 | of exactly what content you're gonna post, |
| 00:00:05 | 00:00:06 | who you're gonna reach with it, |
| 00:00:06 | 00:00:08 | the hashtags that you're gonna use, all of this stuff, |
| 00:00:08 | 00:00:10 | but if it's not sustainable, |
| 00:00:10 | 00:00:13 | if it's not something that you can actually keep up with |
| 00:00:13 | 00:00:15 | and execute on a consistent basis, |
| 00:00:15 | 00:00:17 | then it's not gonna help you grow. |
| 00:00:19 | 00:00:22 | - Today I'm very excited to be joined by Katie Steckly. |
| 00:00:22 | 00:00:23 | If you don't know who Katie is, |
| 00:00:23 | 00:00:25 | she's an Instagram marketing expert |
| 00:00:25 | 00:00:28 | and founder of Creatorly Media, |
| 00:00:28 | 00:00:30 | an agency that helps coaches and small business owners |
| 00:00:30 | 00:00:35 | convert followers into customers using social media content, |
| 00:00:35 | 00:00:37 | she's also host of the creator club podcast. |
| 00:00:37 | 00:00:39 | Katie, welcome to the show, how are you doing today? |
| 00:00:39 | 00:00:41 | - I'm doing great thanks so much for having me, Mike, |
| 00:00:41 | 00:00:43 | I'm excited to be here. |
| 00:00:43 | 00:00:45 | - Well today, Katie and I are gonna |
| 00:00:45 | 00:00:48 | share how to create an Instagram content strategy |
| 00:00:48 | 00:00:50 | that stands at the test of time. |
| 00:00:50 | 00:00:54 | Now, before we go there, I would love to hear your story. |
| 00:00:54 | 00:00:56 | How in the world did you get into Instagram, |
| 00:00:56 | 00:00:57 | start wherever you wanna start. |
| 00:00:57 | 00:00:59 | - Yeah, that is a great question. |
| 00:00:59 | 00:01:02 | So my story, actually, |
| 00:01:02 | 00:01:04 | the beginning of it takes us back many many years |
| 00:01:04 | 00:01:06 | because I started my journey |
| 00:01:06 | 00:01:09 | of content creation on social media |
| 00:01:09 | 00:01:12 | as a very awkward young preteen. |
| 00:01:12 | 00:01:14 | So I was kind of becoming a teenager |
| 00:01:14 | 00:01:16 | around the time that social media |
| 00:01:16 | 00:01:18 | was really becoming more popular, |
| 00:01:18 | 00:01:20 | and I was a bit of a nerdy kid, |
| 00:01:20 | 00:01:22 | I grew up in a very small town, |
| 00:01:22 | 00:01:24 | didn't have a ton of friends that kind of shared |
| 00:01:24 | 00:01:26 | some of my more niche interests. |
| 00:01:26 | 00:01:28 | And so I kind of started exploring social media |
| 00:01:28 | 00:01:31 | as a place to find content |
| 00:01:31 | 00:01:33 | about the kinds of things that I was interested in. |
| 00:01:33 | 00:01:37 | So primarily that was Harry Potter for the nerdy young Katie |
| 00:01:37 | 00:01:39 | who was looking for friends to tok about |
| 00:01:39 | 00:01:41 | the kind of stuff that she was into with, right. |
| 00:01:41 | 00:01:46 | So I found my way onto YouTube and then also at the time |
| 00:01:46 | 00:01:48 | blogging was kind of big, so at this point, |
| 00:01:48 | 00:01:50 | Instagram wasn't even invented yet, |
| 00:01:50 | 00:01:54 | but I sort of found my love of creating content, |
| 00:01:54 | 00:01:55 | because I think of being able |
| 00:01:55 | 00:01:58 | to connect with other people that shared my interests. |
| 00:01:58 | 00:02:01 | And so I became passionate about the idea |
| 00:02:01 | 00:02:04 | of having a community online, |
| 00:02:04 | 00:02:05 | and the way that I access that community |
| 00:02:05 | 00:02:07 | was by watching other people's content, |
| 00:02:07 | 00:02:09 | but also creating my own. |
| 00:02:09 | 00:02:11 | So that was kind of my origin story |
| 00:02:11 | 00:02:12 | of how I started making videos, |
| 00:02:12 | 00:02:14 | how I started creating stuff |
| 00:02:14 | 00:02:16 | and sharing it with the internet. |
| 00:02:16 | 00:02:19 | And then I started my current YouTube channel, |
| 00:02:19 | 00:02:22 | which has been a primary part of my business in 2011, |
| 00:02:22 | 00:02:24 | so that's over 10 years now, |
| 00:02:24 | 00:02:25 | which is kind of hard to believe, |
| 00:02:25 | 00:02:28 | it's really evolved over time. |
| 00:02:28 | 00:02:30 | As a creator on YouTube, |
| 00:02:30 | 00:02:33 | I really tried so many different things, |
| 00:02:33 | 00:02:35 | I've always been a really multi passionate person |
| 00:02:35 | 00:02:38 | and I think a lot of other creators |
| 00:02:38 | 00:02:39 | can really relate to this |
| 00:02:39 | 00:02:41 | where we love so many different things |
| 00:02:41 | 00:02:45 | and we wanna be able to create content about all of them |
| 00:02:45 | 00:02:47 | or even we like different platforms |
| 00:02:47 | 00:02:48 | and wanna try creating on YouTube, |
| 00:02:48 | 00:02:50 | Instagram, blog, whatever it is. |
| 00:02:50 | 00:02:53 | So I definitely found myself doing a lot of experimenting. |
| 00:02:53 | 00:02:58 | I tried everything from vlogging to like commentary videos, |
| 00:02:58 | 00:03:01 | to even beauty, (indistinct) to admit now, |
| 00:03:01 | 00:03:04 | 'cause I'm definitely the best at makeup, but as a teenager, |
| 00:03:04 | 00:03:06 | I was like, I'm gonna try this. |
| 00:03:06 | 00:03:08 | So I was really all over the map |
| 00:03:08 | 00:03:11 | with creating lots of different social media content |
| 00:03:11 | 00:03:13 | on YouTube, blogging and then of course, |
| 00:03:13 | 00:03:18 | Instagram eventually comes along and I became very intrigued |
| 00:03:18 | 00:03:20 | by this photo sharing platform |
| 00:03:20 | 00:03:23 | and really started experimenting there as well. |
| 00:03:23 | 00:03:25 | And just kind of sharing about my life and again, |
| 00:03:25 | 00:03:27 | what I was interested in. |
| 00:03:27 | 00:03:29 | But as I started getting older and thinking about like, |
| 00:03:29 | 00:03:32 | okay, you know, my undergrad is almost finished, |
| 00:03:32 | 00:03:33 | maybe I wanna start considering |
| 00:03:33 | 00:03:35 | what a career would look like, |
| 00:03:35 | 00:03:36 | I felt really torn |
| 00:03:36 | 00:03:38 | because I had all these different passions, |
| 00:03:38 | 00:03:41 | I always liked exploring these different topics, |
| 00:03:41 | 00:03:43 | and I didn't really know, you know, |
| 00:03:43 | 00:03:45 | what my purpose was meant to be. |
| 00:03:45 | 00:03:48 | You know, everybody asked themselves what's my passion? |
| 00:03:48 | 00:03:50 | And I kind of had this realization that |
| 00:03:50 | 00:03:53 | even though I had tried all these different things, |
| 00:03:53 | 00:03:56 | really the common thread through all of it |
| 00:03:56 | 00:03:58 | was social media, it was creating content. |
| 00:03:58 | 00:04:02 | So I kind of realized that was really what my passion was, |
| 00:04:02 | 00:04:03 | was creating stuff for the internet |
| 00:04:03 | 00:04:07 | and then also kind of inspiring other people to do that too, |
| 00:04:07 | 00:04:09 | because I had found so much joy in it. |
| 00:04:09 | 00:04:13 | So kind of to bring us forward to about 2019 now, |
| 00:04:13 | 00:04:16 | that's from 2011 up to almost present, |
| 00:04:16 | 00:04:19 | I was experimenting on Instagram trying different stuff |
| 00:04:19 | 00:04:21 | and also making YouTube videos at the same time, |
| 00:04:21 | 00:04:23 | and I found that I was getting a lot of questions |
| 00:04:23 | 00:04:27 | from just my, you know, small community on Instagram of, |
| 00:04:27 | 00:04:29 | oh, how did you make that story? |
| 00:04:29 | 00:04:31 | Or like, how did you do that editing tiknique? |
| 00:04:31 | 00:04:34 | And so I decided to create a YouTube video |
| 00:04:34 | 00:04:36 | to answer some of those questions |
| 00:04:36 | 00:04:39 | and to share some of my best tips and tricks. |
| 00:04:39 | 00:04:40 | So I made it video |
| 00:04:40 | 00:04:43 | called Instagram Story Hacks for creators 17, |
| 00:04:44 | 00:04:46 | and when I posted the video at the time, |
| 00:04:46 | 00:04:50 | my YouTube channel had just about 3000 subscribers, |
| 00:04:50 | 00:04:53 | but within a few months of posting that video, |
| 00:04:53 | 00:04:56 | the video had brought in over a million views, |
| 00:04:56 | 00:04:58 | and has now brought my YouTube channel |
| 00:04:58 | 00:05:03 | to over 100,000 subscribers, almost 150 now, |
| 00:05:04 | 00:05:06 | and just totally like skyrocketed my social media growth |
| 00:05:06 | 00:05:10 | and really brought me to the position I am now |
| 00:05:10 | 00:05:11 | and like helped me discover that, you know, |
| 00:05:11 | 00:05:14 | I really did have a lot to share around Instagram |
| 00:05:14 | 00:05:16 | and content creation and it's really |
| 00:05:16 | 00:05:18 | helped my channel evolve to the place where it is now, |
| 00:05:18 | 00:05:22 | which is basically sharing tips and strategies |
| 00:05:22 | 00:05:24 | that I've learned through my own experimentation, |
| 00:05:24 | 00:05:25 | with my own social media profiles, |
| 00:05:25 | 00:05:27 | but also what I've learned from |
| 00:05:27 | 00:05:29 | helping to grow my client's accounts |
| 00:05:29 | 00:05:31 | with my agency Creatorly Media. |
| 00:05:31 | 00:05:35 | So that's kind of how I got to where I am now. |
| 00:05:35 | 00:05:38 | - So tell us a little bit about Creatorly Media |
| 00:05:38 | 00:05:39 | and kind of who your ideal customers are |
| 00:05:39 | 00:05:41 | and kind of what you're doing there. |
| 00:05:41 | 00:05:42 | - Yeah, for sure. |
| 00:05:42 | 00:05:43 | So Creatorly Media |
| 00:05:43 | 00:05:47 | is a social media content creation agency that I founded, |
| 00:05:47 | 00:05:49 | I've got six team members now helping me out as well, |
| 00:05:49 | 00:05:51 | and basically what we do is we work |
| 00:05:51 | 00:05:54 | with a lot of small business owners, |
| 00:05:54 | 00:05:57 | a lot of personal brands, coaches, |
| 00:05:57 | 00:06:00 | to really help them with their social media content, |
| 00:06:00 | 00:06:04 | with their ideal customers and building a community. |
| 00:06:04 | 00:06:07 | So we do that through producing podcasts, |
| 00:06:07 | 00:06:08 | managing YouTube channels |
| 00:06:08 | 00:06:11 | and also creating Instagram content for them. |
| 00:06:13 | 00:06:16 | - So let's tok a little bit about |
| 00:06:16 | 00:06:17 | why you've feel like |
| 00:06:17 | 00:06:21 | having a sustainable strategy on Instagram is so important. |
| 00:06:22 | 00:06:24 | I know a lot of people struggle |
| 00:06:24 | 00:06:26 | keeping up with all the content, you know, |
| 00:06:26 | 00:06:28 | that they feel like they have to produce on Instagram |
| 00:06:28 | 00:06:30 | and I would love to hear your thoughts |
| 00:06:30 | 00:06:32 | on why this is kind of important. |
| 00:06:33 | 00:06:34 | - Yeah exactly, |
| 00:06:34 | 00:06:37 | I feel like a lot of folks in the social media world |
| 00:06:37 | 00:06:39 | are overwhelmed by keeping up |
| 00:06:39 | 00:06:42 | with all of the content that we need to post, |
| 00:06:42 | 00:06:44 | and I think that there's not enough people in the space |
| 00:06:44 | 00:06:47 | toking about creating a sustainable Instagram strategy, |
| 00:06:47 | 00:06:50 | not just something that is effective, |
| 00:06:50 | 00:06:53 | and the reason why creating something sustainable |
| 00:06:53 | 00:06:57 | is so important because your strategy on Instagram |
| 00:06:57 | 00:06:59 | or any of the platform for that matter |
| 00:06:59 | 00:07:02 | is only as effective as it is sustainable, |
| 00:07:02 | 00:07:06 | because you can have the best plan in the world |
| 00:07:06 | 00:07:08 | of exactly what content you're gonna post, |
| 00:07:08 | 00:07:09 | who you're gonna reach with it, |
| 00:07:09 | 00:07:12 | the hashtags that you're gonna use all of this stuff, |
| 00:07:12 | 00:07:13 | but if it's not sustainable, |
| 00:07:13 | 00:07:16 | if it's not something that you can actually keep up with |
| 00:07:16 | 00:07:18 | and execute on a consistent basis, |
| 00:07:18 | 00:07:20 | then it's not gonna help you grow. |
| 00:07:22 | 00:07:24 | - Yeah well and tok to me a little bit about burnout |
| 00:07:24 | 00:07:26 | because I know, I don't know if you experienced burnout, |
| 00:07:26 | 00:07:28 | but I'm sure during the pandemic, |
| 00:07:28 | 00:07:30 | a lot of people did experience burnout. |
| 00:07:30 | 00:07:33 | So, you know, how does this strategy, |
| 00:07:33 | 00:07:36 | or why is this so important when it comes to burnout? |
| 00:07:36 | 00:07:36 | - Yeah exactly, |
| 00:07:36 | 00:07:40 | I feel like so many people creating content on online |
| 00:07:40 | 00:07:43 | are experiencing burnout because of, |
| 00:07:43 | 00:07:45 | yeah, just how frequently we have to keep up with posting. |
| 00:07:45 | 00:07:47 | And I definitely have been through it myself. |
| 00:07:47 | 00:07:50 | So last summer in 2020, |
| 00:07:50 | 00:07:53 | I hit a real low point when it comes to burnout |
| 00:07:53 | 00:07:54 | and I feel like beforehand, |
| 00:07:54 | 00:07:56 | I didn't even necessarily believe that it existed, |
| 00:07:56 | 00:07:58 | people tok about it a lot, |
| 00:07:58 | 00:07:59 | it seemed like kind of a buzzword, |
| 00:07:59 | 00:08:02 | but then when you feel it, you really, you know, |
| 00:08:02 | 00:08:05 | that it's burnout and that it is real. |
| 00:08:05 | 00:08:07 | And I feel like when you get to that point, |
| 00:08:07 | 00:08:09 | it just takes kind of rest and like self reflect |
| 00:08:09 | 00:08:12 | and until you find your way back outta it. |
| 00:08:12 | 00:08:14 | So after experiencing that myself, |
| 00:08:14 | 00:08:16 | that's what really made me realize that |
| 00:08:16 | 00:08:19 | creating a sustainable strategy |
| 00:08:19 | 00:08:21 | is the only way to avoid that, |
| 00:08:21 | 00:08:24 | and when you do end up in a place of feeling burnt out |
| 00:08:24 | 00:08:26 | or not having that motivation |
| 00:08:26 | 00:08:27 | or the creativity that you need |
| 00:08:27 | 00:08:31 | to create content for Instagram, |
| 00:08:31 | 00:08:34 | that is gonna be the ultimate detriment to your growth. |
| 00:08:34 | 00:08:37 | So I think it just makes sense, |
| 00:08:37 | 00:08:38 | even just from a growth strategy perspective |
| 00:08:38 | 00:08:40 | that you need to make sure that your plan |
| 00:08:40 | 00:08:42 | is something that's sustainable |
| 00:08:42 | 00:08:44 | and that it's gonna work with you and your own, |
| 00:08:44 | 00:08:47 | you know, mental health in order to keep it going |
| 00:08:47 | 00:08:51 | consistently enough for it to actually help you grow. |
| 00:08:51 | 00:08:52 | - Just outta curiosity, |
| 00:08:54 | 00:08:56 | was there something that was like a, |
| 00:08:57 | 00:08:59 | I mean, I hear so many people, for example, |
| 00:08:59 | 00:09:01 | at social media marketing world this year, |
| 00:09:01 | 00:09:02 | some of the people in the Facebook group were like, |
| 00:09:02 | 00:09:05 | hey, you know, we're experiencing burnout, |
| 00:09:05 | 00:09:07 | we'd love to tok about burnout a little bit. |
| 00:09:07 | 00:09:09 | What do you think is the, I don't know, |
| 00:09:09 | 00:09:11 | maybe you can speak to what happened to you, |
| 00:09:11 | 00:09:14 | what do you think is, why do you think partikularly |
| 00:09:14 | 00:09:16 | a lot of people that are creating content on Instagram |
| 00:09:16 | 00:09:18 | are struggling from this? |
| 00:09:18 | 00:09:22 | - Yeah I think a lot of people creating content on Instagram |
| 00:09:22 | 00:09:25 | deal with this because it is such a cycle of, |
| 00:09:25 | 00:09:27 | you're constantly working on it, right? |
| 00:09:27 | 00:09:30 | Like I have always felt like media sleep, |
| 00:09:30 | 00:09:32 | like you always have to keep creating more, |
| 00:09:32 | 00:09:34 | there's always next week's content, |
| 00:09:34 | 00:09:35 | next month content we're worry about, |
| 00:09:35 | 00:09:38 | so it can really feel like you don't have a chance |
| 00:09:38 | 00:09:42 | to really take a break and take a breather and reset, |
| 00:09:42 | 00:09:43 | which is so essential, |
| 00:09:43 | 00:09:45 | and I think that's part of creating a sustainable strategy |
| 00:09:45 | 00:09:47 | is building in those breaks for yourself. |
| 00:09:47 | 00:09:50 | So I think that's just the nature of it is |
| 00:09:50 | 00:09:54 | that it's so just constant, there's always more to do, |
| 00:09:54 | 00:09:57 | so it feels like you could always be more working. |
| 00:09:57 | 00:09:59 | Yeah, so a lot of people deal with it. |
| 00:10:00 | 00:10:01 | - Let's tok about your framework, |
| 00:10:01 | 00:10:04 | I know you've come up with a model or a framework |
| 00:10:04 | 00:10:07 | that will help everyone who's listening |
| 00:10:07 | 00:10:11 | that wants to create consistently, at least on Instagram. |
| 00:10:11 | 00:10:13 | So what are the elements of your framework? |
| 00:10:13 | 00:10:14 | Let's tok about that a little bit. |
| 00:10:14 | 00:10:17 | - Yeah so my framework for creating |
| 00:10:17 | 00:10:19 | a sustainable Instagram strategy, |
| 00:10:19 | 00:10:23 | I have decided I like to call it the KS three, |
| 00:10:23 | 00:10:25 | because there's three components, |
| 00:10:25 | 00:10:27 | so can you kind of remember these three questions |
| 00:10:27 | 00:10:29 | that you need to ask yourself. |
| 00:10:29 | 00:10:30 | So really believe that |
| 00:10:30 | 00:10:33 | an ideal sustainable Instagram strategy |
| 00:10:33 | 00:10:37 | is going to exist at the intersection of these three areas. |
| 00:10:37 | 00:10:40 | So they are number one, |
| 00:10:40 | 00:10:42 | what content do you love to make? |
| 00:10:42 | 00:10:43 | So what really lights you up? |
| 00:10:43 | 00:10:45 | What do you have fun making |
| 00:10:45 | 00:10:48 | and what do you really enjoy creating? |
| 00:10:48 | 00:10:52 | And number two, what content performs well on Instagram? |
| 00:10:52 | 00:10:54 | So that's kind of the obvious one, right? |
| 00:10:54 | 00:10:57 | What kind of posts get the most reach or engagement |
| 00:10:57 | 00:11:00 | and conversions for new followers for your account? |
| 00:11:00 | 00:11:01 | And the third area, |
| 00:11:01 | 00:11:05 | or question to ask yourself is what do you have time for? |
| 00:11:05 | 00:11:07 | So for this one it's important |
| 00:11:07 | 00:11:08 | that you really think realistikally |
| 00:11:08 | 00:11:10 | about how much time you have in your day |
| 00:11:10 | 00:11:14 | or your week and how long it takes you to create content, |
| 00:11:14 | 00:11:18 | and then really the ideal sustainable growth strategy |
| 00:11:18 | 00:11:20 | is going to hit on all three of those points, |
| 00:11:20 | 00:11:23 | it's gonna be where they all overlap. |
| 00:11:23 | 00:11:24 | And I think it's really important |
| 00:11:24 | 00:11:26 | to ask yourself all three of these, |
| 00:11:26 | 00:11:28 | because so often we can get focused |
| 00:11:28 | 00:11:30 | on just that second question that I mentioned. |
| 00:11:30 | 00:11:33 | So, you know, what helps your content perform the best? |
| 00:11:33 | 00:11:35 | 'Cause we love to (indistinct), |
| 00:11:35 | 00:11:39 | we all love to see those vanity metrics go up, |
| 00:11:39 | 00:11:41 | but I really believe that that is just |
| 00:11:41 | 00:11:44 | one third of a strategy that you can actually execute on |
| 00:11:44 | 00:11:48 | and implement consistently over the long period of time |
| 00:11:48 | 00:11:50 | that is required to see real growth. |
| 00:11:51 | 00:11:53 | - So what I heard you say is |
| 00:11:53 | 00:11:54 | what content do you love to make? |
| 00:11:54 | 00:11:57 | What performs well and what do you have time for? |
| 00:11:57 | 00:12:01 | And you mentioned it, are they each equally like, |
| 00:12:01 | 00:12:03 | well I guess we're gonna break it down a little bit, |
| 00:12:03 | 00:12:05 | but so you gotta love it, |
| 00:12:05 | 00:12:07 | you gotta have time for it, |
| 00:12:07 | 00:12:09 | and then you gotta know what works. |
| 00:12:09 | 00:12:11 | So why does this work? |
| 00:12:15 | 00:12:16 | What's the benefit of using |
| 00:12:16 | 00:12:17 | these three tenants together, right? |
| 00:12:17 | 00:12:19 | Like before we dig in, |
| 00:12:19 | 00:12:20 | 'cause we're gonna dig in on some of this stuff, |
| 00:12:20 | 00:12:25 | but how does creating content that you'll love, |
| 00:12:25 | 00:12:27 | maybe help address some of the challenges |
| 00:12:28 | 00:12:29 | and having time for it? |
| 00:12:29 | 00:12:31 | tok to me about that a little bit at a high level, |
| 00:12:31 | 00:12:33 | what's the benefits of this strategy? |
| 00:12:33 | 00:12:34 | - Yeah exactly. |
| 00:12:34 | 00:12:35 | I think that this really speaks |
| 00:12:35 | 00:12:37 | to the question of burnout, right? |
| 00:12:37 | 00:12:40 | Because we can all like conjure up a strategy of like, |
| 00:12:40 | 00:12:42 | okay, what performed the best? |
| 00:12:42 | 00:12:45 | But the problem with only focusing on that is that |
| 00:12:45 | 00:12:47 | you can really end up on the fast track to burnout |
| 00:12:47 | 00:12:50 | if you're just trying to make a huge amount of content |
| 00:12:50 | 00:12:52 | or content that's really draining, |
| 00:12:52 | 00:12:55 | or maybe you just actually don't have the time for it. |
| 00:12:55 | 00:12:58 | So in order to have your strategy |
| 00:12:58 | 00:13:00 | be really effective long term, |
| 00:13:00 | 00:13:02 | you need to be able to like implement it over time |
| 00:13:02 | 00:13:03 | and be consistent, right? |
| 00:13:03 | 00:13:05 | And if you come up with a strategy |
| 00:13:05 | 00:13:08 | that you can't actually realistikally do consistently, |
| 00:13:08 | 00:13:10 | then it's not gonna provide the results |
| 00:13:10 | 00:13:11 | that you're thinking of. |
| 00:13:11 | 00:13:12 | And so those two other elements, |
| 00:13:12 | 00:13:14 | the questions of what do you have time for |
| 00:13:14 | 00:13:16 | and what do you really enjoy, |
| 00:13:16 | 00:13:18 | help to address that burnout factor |
| 00:13:18 | 00:13:19 | 'cause it ensures that it's actually |
| 00:13:19 | 00:13:21 | realistik in your schedule, |
| 00:13:21 | 00:13:24 | but that also you have that joy for creating it, |
| 00:13:24 | 00:13:26 | like it doesn't feel super draining |
| 00:13:26 | 00:13:29 | and that kind of brings that energy and creativity |
| 00:13:29 | 00:13:30 | that you need in order |
| 00:13:30 | 00:13:33 | to put together really effective Instagram content. |
| 00:13:34 | 00:13:37 | - So I guess let's start with the love, |
| 00:13:37 | 00:13:39 | the content we love to make. |
| 00:13:39 | 00:13:41 | There's gonna be some people right now |
| 00:13:41 | 00:13:42 | that don't even make content hardly at all, |
| 00:13:42 | 00:13:45 | and so they don't even know how to even start. |
| 00:13:45 | 00:13:50 | So how do we know what content we love to make? |
| 00:13:50 | 00:13:52 | And I mean, let's assume we've got plenty of people here |
| 00:13:52 | 00:13:54 | that are creating content on Instagram, |
| 00:13:54 | 00:13:57 | but maybe they're not sure what lights them up or whatever. |
| 00:13:57 | 00:14:01 | So what questions should we ask ourselves, |
| 00:14:01 | 00:14:04 | or what should we be thinking about to know? |
| 00:14:04 | 00:14:07 | Because in my mind |
| 00:14:07 | 00:14:08 | I think there's some people that are like, |
| 00:14:08 | 00:14:12 | I just love to get exposure on the platform |
| 00:14:12 | 00:14:14 | and I'm gonna do everything in my power to get exposure, |
| 00:14:14 | 00:14:17 | but that's maybe not what really they love, |
| 00:14:17 | 00:14:18 | it's just what they want. |
| 00:14:18 | 00:14:21 | So let's tok about like what you mean by |
| 00:14:21 | 00:14:22 | content we really love to make, |
| 00:14:22 | 00:14:24 | let's break it down a little bit. |
| 00:14:24 | 00:14:25 | - Yeah totally. |
| 00:14:25 | 00:14:28 | So even if we start from the most basic point of like, |
| 00:14:28 | 00:14:30 | if you are listening right now and you're feeling like, |
| 00:14:30 | 00:14:32 | oh, I don't actually create that much content, |
| 00:14:32 | 00:14:34 | like how do I know what I enjoy? |
| 00:14:34 | 00:14:38 | I think a lot of us really tend to enjoy to create |
| 00:14:38 | 00:14:40 | what we enjoy consuming. |
| 00:14:40 | 00:14:41 | So like, let's just say, |
| 00:14:41 | 00:14:43 | if you love to watch reels, then chances are, |
| 00:14:43 | 00:14:45 | you might like making them too because |
| 00:14:45 | 00:14:47 | it's just a format that really speaks to you. |
| 00:14:47 | 00:14:49 | So I think that can be a really great place |
| 00:14:49 | 00:14:52 | to start of thinking, what do you enjoy consuming? |
| 00:14:52 | 00:14:55 | And chances are you're going to be a better creator |
| 00:14:55 | 00:14:58 | if you've consumed a lot of content in that area, |
| 00:14:58 | 00:15:01 | 'cause you're gonna understand the trends, the formats, |
| 00:15:01 | 00:15:03 | the structures that work well. |
| 00:15:03 | 00:15:05 | So that can be a good question to start with |
| 00:15:05 | 00:15:08 | of what do I like to consume most? |
| 00:15:08 | 00:15:09 | - What else do we need to be thinking about |
| 00:15:09 | 00:15:10 | when it comes to, you know, |
| 00:15:10 | 00:15:13 | figuring out what content we'd love to make, |
| 00:15:13 | 00:15:15 | 'cause I know, and I love what you're saying, |
| 00:15:15 | 00:15:18 | like, hey, if you are actively |
| 00:15:18 | 00:15:20 | consuming like stories for example, |
| 00:15:21 | 00:15:23 | you might actually notike certain things |
| 00:15:23 | 00:15:27 | and therefore want to give it a shot, |
| 00:15:27 | 00:15:29 | but there's gotta be more to it than just |
| 00:15:29 | 00:15:31 | like, what do we enjoy consuming, right, |
| 00:15:31 | 00:15:33 | so let's say we are creating different kinds of content, |
| 00:15:33 | 00:15:35 | how do we actually know whether we really love it or not? |
| 00:15:35 | 00:15:38 | Let's dig into that a little bit. |
| 00:15:38 | 00:15:39 | - So I think the first step |
| 00:15:39 | 00:15:41 | is to really kind of take a step back |
| 00:15:41 | 00:15:44 | and think about what your current workflow |
| 00:15:44 | 00:15:47 | or process looks like and try to ask yourself |
| 00:15:47 | 00:15:50 | what parts of that do you look forward to |
| 00:15:50 | 00:15:52 | and what parts of that do you kind of dread |
| 00:15:52 | 00:15:54 | and maybe procrastinate on a little bit? |
| 00:15:54 | 00:15:56 | So really what we're looking at is |
| 00:15:56 | 00:15:58 | what do you have the most fun doing |
| 00:15:58 | 00:15:59 | when it comes to creating content? |
| 00:15:59 | 00:16:00 | So let's just say, for example, |
| 00:16:00 | 00:16:02 | we're toking about putting together, |
| 00:16:03 | 00:16:05 | you know, a typical Instagram feed post, |
| 00:16:05 | 00:16:08 | just, let's say it's a still image and a caption. |
| 00:16:08 | 00:16:10 | When you think about creating that, do you think, |
| 00:16:10 | 00:16:13 | oh gosh I'm so to shoot that image |
| 00:16:13 | 00:16:14 | and like edit it in Lightroom |
| 00:16:14 | 00:16:16 | and really get the colors looking great, |
| 00:16:16 | 00:16:18 | or do you think, oh, I can't wait to sit down |
| 00:16:18 | 00:16:21 | and write that caption and like share my thoughts? |
| 00:16:21 | 00:16:23 | These are the kinds of questions that you can start with |
| 00:16:23 | 00:16:24 | to really hone in on, |
| 00:16:24 | 00:16:29 | okay, what pieces of this puzzle really bring joy? |
| 00:16:29 | 00:16:31 | What do I really have a lot of creativity for? |
| 00:16:31 | 00:16:34 | And that can help you to start identifying |
| 00:16:34 | 00:16:39 | what your strengths are and maybe what you are best at |
| 00:16:39 | 00:16:40 | when it comes to creating content. |
| 00:16:40 | 00:16:43 | 'Cause I think also a lot of times we enjoy doing the things |
| 00:16:43 | 00:16:45 | that feel easier for us, right? |
| 00:16:45 | 00:16:47 | Like nobody loves to tackle something that |
| 00:16:47 | 00:16:50 | like just feels really difficult every time. |
| 00:16:50 | 00:16:53 | So a sustainable Instagram strategy can also really lean on |
| 00:16:53 | 00:16:55 | what your creative strengths are |
| 00:16:55 | 00:16:58 | and what you find just a little more ease in creating, |
| 00:16:58 | 00:17:00 | like what you are best at making. |
| 00:17:01 | 00:17:02 | - I love what you're saying here |
| 00:17:02 | 00:17:03 | with the creative strengths, |
| 00:17:03 | 00:17:04 | because there are some people |
| 00:17:04 | 00:17:07 | that are great at writing captions, right, |
| 00:17:07 | 00:17:09 | and there are other people that are much better |
| 00:17:09 | 00:17:12 | at just going live and toking, right, |
| 00:17:12 | 00:17:14 | and it's kind of like, which are you, right? |
| 00:17:14 | 00:17:16 | Do you prefer to write, do you prefer to take pictures? |
| 00:17:16 | 00:17:20 | Do you prefer to tok directly to a camera? |
| 00:17:20 | 00:17:22 | Right that's going to help you, |
| 00:17:22 | 00:17:25 | I would imagine more naturally create content, |
| 00:17:25 | 00:17:27 | but I also think there might be a side of this, |
| 00:17:27 | 00:17:29 | of what lights you up, right? |
| 00:17:29 | 00:17:33 | Like, there might be this desire to actually |
| 00:17:33 | 00:17:36 | create content that has an impact on others, right? |
| 00:17:36 | 00:17:39 | Like you wanna tok about that for a little bit? |
| 00:17:39 | 00:17:42 | Like maybe I would imagine there's some content |
| 00:17:42 | 00:17:42 | where you get crickets |
| 00:17:42 | 00:17:44 | and maybe you feel horrible creating it. |
| 00:17:44 | 00:17:46 | I mean, do you wanna tok about that at all? |
| 00:17:46 | 00:17:48 | - Exactly, yeah, well I think a lot of us |
| 00:17:48 | 00:17:50 | probably like reflecting on our strategies, |
| 00:17:50 | 00:17:53 | you might find the most joy in creating the content |
| 00:17:53 | 00:17:56 | that your community actually responds to really well. |
| 00:17:56 | 00:17:58 | And I think sometimes actually |
| 00:17:58 | 00:17:59 | there can be a correlation there, |
| 00:17:59 | 00:18:01 | between what the community responds to |
| 00:18:01 | 00:18:03 | and what you enjoy making, |
| 00:18:03 | 00:18:05 | because I think that that can really come across, |
| 00:18:05 | 00:18:09 | like people notike if you sort of seem like, |
| 00:18:09 | 00:18:10 | if you hate going live |
| 00:18:10 | 00:18:12 | and then you're doing a live on Instagram, |
| 00:18:12 | 00:18:15 | it might come across to people that you feel really awkward |
| 00:18:15 | 00:18:16 | and you're feeling really like, you know, |
| 00:18:16 | 00:18:18 | like you're dreading doing it, |
| 00:18:18 | 00:18:19 | so then your community's |
| 00:18:19 | 00:18:21 | probably not gonna love that content, |
| 00:18:21 | 00:18:23 | but you just actually bat outta the park, |
| 00:18:23 | 00:18:26 | every carousel that you make and you're really putting, |
| 00:18:26 | 00:18:27 | you know, love and attention |
| 00:18:27 | 00:18:31 | into sharing a lot of valuable info in every graphic, |
| 00:18:31 | 00:18:33 | then probably you're gonna get more engagement on that |
| 00:18:33 | 00:18:36 | because people are going to feel |
| 00:18:36 | 00:18:37 | that love and attention that you put into it. |
| 00:18:37 | 00:18:40 | So I think that's the other main piece |
| 00:18:40 | 00:18:43 | of what content do you love is often |
| 00:18:43 | 00:18:45 | that has a correlation to what performs well, |
| 00:18:45 | 00:18:47 | because people get that sense |
| 00:18:47 | 00:18:49 | that you really care about what you're making. |
| 00:18:51 | 00:18:52 | - One of the things we were toking about |
| 00:18:52 | 00:18:53 | when we met before this |
| 00:18:53 | 00:18:55 | was where do you have the most ideas? |
| 00:18:55 | 00:18:56 | Do you wanna tok about that a little bit |
| 00:18:56 | 00:18:59 | and maybe why that might be useful |
| 00:18:59 | 00:19:03 | for determining content we should create? |
| 00:19:03 | 00:19:05 | - Yeah, I think often, you know, |
| 00:19:05 | 00:19:07 | when you sit down to plan your Instagram content, |
| 00:19:07 | 00:19:08 | let's say for the month, |
| 00:19:08 | 00:19:11 | all of us will probably have one area where we find like, |
| 00:19:11 | 00:19:14 | okay, I could write down like a million ideas on this. |
| 00:19:14 | 00:19:15 | That can be another great sign, |
| 00:19:15 | 00:19:18 | that this is a type of content that you can lean into, |
| 00:19:18 | 00:19:19 | a big part of that is because |
| 00:19:19 | 00:19:21 | of how it plays into the sustainability of it, |
| 00:19:21 | 00:19:24 | because if you are really trying to force yourself |
| 00:19:24 | 00:19:26 | into creating, you know, |
| 00:19:26 | 00:19:29 | certain formats of content or certain topics |
| 00:19:29 | 00:19:31 | that you just cannot come a with ideas for, |
| 00:19:31 | 00:19:35 | then that is gonna lead to eventually inconsistency |
| 00:19:35 | 00:19:37 | or potentially burnout. |
| 00:19:37 | 00:19:38 | So if you can figure out like, |
| 00:19:38 | 00:19:41 | what are maybe the contents |
| 00:19:41 | 00:19:43 | or the types of formats on Instagram |
| 00:19:43 | 00:19:45 | that you always have the most ideas for, |
| 00:19:45 | 00:19:47 | then that can definitely be a sign that |
| 00:19:47 | 00:19:50 | you should keep that as a part of your strategy, |
| 00:19:50 | 00:19:52 | because obviously it means that, |
| 00:19:52 | 00:19:54 | you know, you enjoy creating it, |
| 00:19:54 | 00:19:56 | it's gonna feel easier for you to do it, |
| 00:19:56 | 00:19:58 | which I feel like this is all sort of about |
| 00:19:58 | 00:20:03 | bringing in that joy and that into your Instagram strategy, |
| 00:20:03 | 00:20:06 | because that is gonna help you be so much more consistent |
| 00:20:06 | 00:20:08 | than if you feel like you're pushed up against a brick wall |
| 00:20:08 | 00:20:10 | every time you're trying to create. |
| 00:20:12 | 00:20:14 | - Okay, so first of all, thank you for all that |
| 00:20:14 | 00:20:17 | and I think that's super helpful and a lot of people |
| 00:20:17 | 00:20:19 | probably are gonna need to experiment |
| 00:20:19 | 00:20:20 | if they're not super active |
| 00:20:20 | 00:20:22 | in creating different kinds of content |
| 00:20:22 | 00:20:23 | to just see how it makes them feel, right? |
| 00:20:23 | 00:20:27 | Like there's endless options on Instagram, |
| 00:20:27 | 00:20:28 | I mean, I always tell people, |
| 00:20:28 | 00:20:30 | it seems to be the most creative platform out there |
| 00:20:30 | 00:20:32 | because of all the different things you can do. |
| 00:20:32 | 00:20:35 | Let's tok about what the platform, |
| 00:20:36 | 00:20:39 | you know, what we need to know about the platform, right? |
| 00:20:39 | 00:20:42 | Because the second part of your KS three |
| 00:20:42 | 00:20:44 | and that's a bit of a tongue twister strategy |
| 00:20:44 | 00:20:47 | is what performs well, right? |
| 00:20:47 | 00:20:50 | So what is, as of this recording in, |
| 00:20:50 | 00:20:52 | you know, spring of 2022, |
| 00:20:52 | 00:20:54 | what do we need to know specifically |
| 00:20:54 | 00:20:56 | about what se what kinds of content perform |
| 00:20:56 | 00:20:59 | decently well on Instagram today? |
| 00:20:59 | 00:20:59 | - Yeah exactly. |
| 00:20:59 | 00:21:01 | This is everybody's favorite question, right? |
| 00:21:01 | 00:21:04 | What is performing well on Instagram? |
| 00:21:04 | 00:21:06 | What is gonna get me that engagement |
| 00:21:06 | 00:21:07 | and reach that I'm looking for? |
| 00:21:07 | 00:21:09 | And I think before I dive in, |
| 00:21:09 | 00:21:12 | because I do have a number of tips and ideas to share, |
| 00:21:12 | 00:21:13 | but before we get into the specifics, |
| 00:21:13 | 00:21:15 | I think that it is important to note that ultimately |
| 00:21:15 | 00:21:17 | this is gonna look a little bit different |
| 00:21:17 | 00:21:18 | for every audience. |
| 00:21:18 | 00:21:21 | Just because it works for one person, |
| 00:21:21 | 00:21:23 | one account doesn't mean that it'll necessarily |
| 00:21:23 | 00:21:26 | work exactly the same way for everybody else, |
| 00:21:26 | 00:21:28 | and that's why it's so important to have |
| 00:21:28 | 00:21:31 | a really clear sense of who your ideal follower is, |
| 00:21:31 | 00:21:33 | who your ideal customer is, |
| 00:21:33 | 00:21:35 | what kind of content they like |
| 00:21:35 | 00:21:37 | and are looking for on Instagram, |
| 00:21:37 | 00:21:39 | and then it's also just important to experiment, |
| 00:21:39 | 00:21:41 | try out all the different things I'm about to share |
| 00:21:41 | 00:21:45 | and gather your own data and see what works for you. |
| 00:21:45 | 00:21:46 | Because just because, you know, |
| 00:21:46 | 00:21:49 | I could report and say these three types of posts |
| 00:21:49 | 00:21:51 | work really well for me, well, your audience, you know, |
| 00:21:51 | 00:21:53 | or your community might be different than mine. |
| 00:21:53 | 00:21:55 | So it's important that everybody kind of |
| 00:21:55 | 00:21:59 | does their own experimentation and gathers their own info, |
| 00:21:59 | 00:22:00 | but that being said, |
| 00:22:00 | 00:22:02 | there are a few formats that I've been observing |
| 00:22:02 | 00:22:05 | with my own platform and with my clients' platforms |
| 00:22:05 | 00:22:09 | that work really well in spring of 2022. |
| 00:22:09 | 00:22:11 | So you ready for me to dive in Mike? |
| 00:22:11 | 00:22:12 | - Let's do it. |
| 00:22:12 | 00:22:13 | - Okay perfect. |
| 00:22:13 | 00:22:16 | So the first thing on my list |
| 00:22:16 | 00:22:18 | is probably not gonna be surprising to anybody, |
| 00:22:18 | 00:22:21 | that is reels, reels continue to be |
| 00:22:21 | 00:22:23 | a really really effective way |
| 00:22:23 | 00:22:27 | to increase your reach and find new audience members. |
| 00:22:27 | 00:22:29 | And that's really the power of reels is that, |
| 00:22:29 | 00:22:32 | they have a huge amount of discoverability, |
| 00:22:32 | 00:22:35 | a level of discoverability that we really haven't seen |
| 00:22:35 | 00:22:38 | on Instagram until they released reels, |
| 00:22:38 | 00:22:41 | because reels are shown to users |
| 00:22:41 | 00:22:43 | who might not be following you yet. |
| 00:22:43 | 00:22:46 | Reel's feed is organized by what Instagram has identified |
| 00:22:46 | 00:22:49 | as your interests or topics that you're interested in, |
| 00:22:49 | 00:22:51 | and so they're gonna show you that content |
| 00:22:51 | 00:22:54 | based on those interests (indistinct) |
| 00:22:54 | 00:22:55 | on your following list, right? |
| 00:22:55 | 00:22:57 | So this can be a really great opportunity |
| 00:22:57 | 00:23:01 | for smaller accounts to get in front of new audiences. |
| 00:23:01 | 00:23:03 | There's a few main kind of formats |
| 00:23:03 | 00:23:05 | that are working really well on reels these days, |
| 00:23:05 | 00:23:09 | so obviously following any trends can be really effective, |
| 00:23:09 | 00:23:10 | so there's always ending audios, |
| 00:23:10 | 00:23:12 | whether those are little music clips |
| 00:23:12 | 00:23:13 | that you can dance along to, |
| 00:23:13 | 00:23:16 | or whether they're sound bites like from a movie |
| 00:23:16 | 00:23:18 | or a TV show that you can do a little lips sync to, |
| 00:23:18 | 00:23:21 | and then add text that's applicable to your audience |
| 00:23:21 | 00:23:24 | or your niche, those are always very effective, |
| 00:23:24 | 00:23:26 | but increasingly more recently on reels, |
| 00:23:26 | 00:23:30 | we've seen just a style of toking to camera videos, |
| 00:23:30 | 00:23:31 | kind of performing well. |
| 00:23:31 | 00:23:32 | So this is something that I've really seen |
| 00:23:32 | 00:23:35 | kind of migrating over from TikTok longer, |
| 00:23:35 | 00:23:38 | over on TikTok, we've had longer videos for a little while, |
| 00:23:38 | 00:23:39 | whereas Instagram is just kind of |
| 00:23:39 | 00:23:41 | starting to bring in longer reels, |
| 00:23:41 | 00:23:43 | and I think with that increased time, |
| 00:23:43 | 00:23:46 | we're seeing more and more people just hold up their phone |
| 00:23:46 | 00:23:50 | and share an idea or some tips and tricks |
| 00:23:50 | 00:23:51 | just toking to their camera, |
| 00:23:51 | 00:23:54 | and that can perform really well on reels as well. |
| 00:23:54 | 00:23:55 | And then of course, tutorials. |
| 00:23:55 | 00:23:58 | Tutorials can be a really effective way |
| 00:23:58 | 00:24:03 | to reach your ideal follower and solve a problem for them, |
| 00:24:03 | 00:24:04 | so definitely creating |
| 00:24:04 | 00:24:06 | some kind of tutorial in a reel format |
| 00:24:06 | 00:24:09 | is a great idea to add to your Instagram strategy. |
| 00:24:09 | 00:24:13 | So that's kinda summary of working on reels right now, |
| 00:24:13 | 00:24:14 | but I've got. |
| 00:24:14 | 00:24:19 | - Yep, real quick question on reels, toking to camera, |
| 00:24:21 | 00:24:24 | how is that any different than |
| 00:24:24 | 00:24:27 | what we might I do with IG video? |
| 00:24:27 | 00:24:28 | Just help me understand, |
| 00:24:28 | 00:24:31 | because I'm thinking it sounds very similar. |
| 00:24:31 | 00:24:33 | What's your thoughts on that? |
| 00:24:33 | 00:24:36 | - Yeah, I definitely think that it is quite similar, |
| 00:24:36 | 00:24:38 | I think there's a few nuances of ways |
| 00:24:38 | 00:24:40 | that I would recommend approaching, |
| 00:24:40 | 00:24:42 | creating just a toking to camera reel, |
| 00:24:42 | 00:24:43 | that would be a little bit different |
| 00:24:43 | 00:24:45 | than say what you would share in just a regular feed video, |
| 00:24:45 | 00:24:46 | or even on stories, |
| 00:24:46 | 00:24:50 | and that is really focusing on grabbing the attention |
| 00:24:50 | 00:24:52 | of someone who has no idea who you are. |
| 00:24:52 | 00:24:55 | That is the main thing about reels is that, you know, |
| 00:24:55 | 00:24:57 | when you post a story, when you post something on your feed, |
| 00:24:57 | 00:24:59 | you are kind of posting for |
| 00:24:59 | 00:25:00 | a more or less sympathetik audience. |
| 00:25:00 | 00:25:02 | Somebody that knows you |
| 00:25:02 | 00:25:04 | and they're like, oh, you know, that's Mike, |
| 00:25:04 | 00:25:05 | I'm excited to see his face, |
| 00:25:05 | 00:25:07 | I know he's gonna to share something valuable, right? |
| 00:25:07 | 00:25:10 | But somebody on reels maybe has never ever seen you before |
| 00:25:10 | 00:25:12 | and they don't have that trust built up with you, |
| 00:25:12 | 00:25:13 | so that's why it's important |
| 00:25:13 | 00:25:15 | when you're making a toking to camera reel |
| 00:25:15 | 00:25:17 | that in that first like two or three seconds, |
| 00:25:17 | 00:25:19 | you say, you know, |
| 00:25:19 | 00:25:20 | something that really hooks them in, |
| 00:25:20 | 00:25:21 | something that really teases |
| 00:25:21 | 00:25:23 | the value that you're gonna offer, |
| 00:25:23 | 00:25:25 | and then you deliver on that quite quickly. |
| 00:25:25 | 00:25:28 | So I would just recommend keeping in mind the final audience |
| 00:25:28 | 00:25:30 | and how you differentiate your approach there. |
| 00:25:30 | 00:25:32 | With reels, it's always like cold audience, |
| 00:25:32 | 00:25:33 | they have no idea who you are, |
| 00:25:33 | 00:25:35 | assume that they've never seen your face before |
| 00:25:35 | 00:25:37 | and then figure out what you need to say |
| 00:25:37 | 00:25:39 | in order to get them to be interested |
| 00:25:39 | 00:25:41 | in what you're toking about. |
| 00:25:41 | 00:25:44 | - This is kind of fascinating and how long as of today, |
| 00:25:44 | 00:25:45 | can we do reels? |
| 00:25:45 | 00:25:46 | Is it 60 seconds or has it gone up? |
| 00:25:46 | 00:25:47 | I'm trying to remember. |
| 00:25:47 | 00:25:51 | - Yeah I believe they're just still one minute long, |
| 00:25:51 | 00:25:52 | but it definitely wouldn't surprise me |
| 00:25:52 | 00:25:54 | if we get three minute reels, |
| 00:25:54 | 00:25:55 | because we've been seeing Adam Mosseri |
| 00:25:55 | 00:25:58 | share longer reels than 60 seconds, so. |
| 00:25:58 | 00:25:59 | - Oh, really? |
| 00:25:59 | 00:26:01 | Okay that's good to know. |
| 00:26:01 | 00:26:03 | So when we're toking to camera |
| 00:26:03 | 00:26:05 | and we're specifically creating content, |
| 00:26:05 | 00:26:08 | I like what you said about mean I'm implying, |
| 00:26:08 | 00:26:10 | you said this that we should |
| 00:26:10 | 00:26:12 | act as if they've never heard of you before, right? |
| 00:26:12 | 00:26:15 | And it doesn't mean you should say who you are, |
| 00:26:15 | 00:26:16 | hey everybody, I'm Michael Stelzner, |
| 00:26:16 | 00:26:17 | founder Social Media Examiner, |
| 00:26:17 | 00:26:19 | nope that takes too long, right? |
| 00:26:19 | 00:26:20 | So get right into the goods, |
| 00:26:20 | 00:26:23 | and I would imagine if you do have 60 seconds |
| 00:26:23 | 00:26:25 | at the very end, you could include something, |
| 00:26:25 | 00:26:27 | and do you recommend doing that or not? |
| 00:26:27 | 00:26:29 | I mean, or do you just never recommend |
| 00:26:29 | 00:26:31 | having any kind of call to action in these reels? |
| 00:26:31 | 00:26:33 | - Yeah, I think it can be effective |
| 00:26:33 | 00:26:37 | to throw some text up on the screen at the end that says, |
| 00:26:37 | 00:26:38 | you know, follow me for more tips, |
| 00:26:38 | 00:26:40 | or sometimes if I do have the extra time |
| 00:26:40 | 00:26:41 | at the end of my reels, |
| 00:26:41 | 00:26:44 | I'll say follow me for more Instagram tips or whatever, |
| 00:26:44 | 00:26:49 | to try to bring them into, you know, my follow audience, |
| 00:26:49 | 00:26:51 | but I really think that |
| 00:26:51 | 00:26:53 | ultimately the content can speak for itself. |
| 00:26:53 | 00:26:55 | If you're creating something that is really engaging |
| 00:26:55 | 00:26:57 | and interesting and valuable, |
| 00:26:57 | 00:26:58 | I think people will go ahead and follow you, |
| 00:26:58 | 00:27:00 | even if you don't remind them too, |
| 00:27:00 | 00:27:03 | at least in like in the reels context. |
| 00:27:03 | 00:27:03 | - Okay perfect. |
| 00:27:03 | 00:27:06 | So you were about to go on with some other kinds of content, |
| 00:27:06 | 00:27:07 | feel free to keep going. |
| 00:27:07 | 00:27:08 | - Yeah exactly. |
| 00:27:08 | 00:27:11 | So that kind of is the reel's approach for right now, |
| 00:27:11 | 00:27:13 | there's a few other main formats that I think |
| 00:27:13 | 00:27:17 | are really effective, so one of those is graphic carousel. |
| 00:27:17 | 00:27:20 | So basically the format is educational, |
| 00:27:20 | 00:27:24 | valuable graphics with text on them, |
| 00:27:24 | 00:27:26 | that are highly shareable |
| 00:27:26 | 00:27:28 | and it really is answering a question |
| 00:27:28 | 00:27:31 | or solving a problem for your audience. |
| 00:27:31 | 00:27:33 | And I think in terms of, you know, |
| 00:27:33 | 00:27:36 | like other notes on format, like minimalist design, |
| 00:27:36 | 00:27:38 | I think is really (indistinct) punchy |
| 00:27:38 | 00:27:42 | and grabs your eye when you're scrolling, |
| 00:27:42 | 00:27:44 | these can be really effective because |
| 00:27:44 | 00:27:46 | they address concerns or questions |
| 00:27:46 | 00:27:49 | that your existing audience has, |
| 00:27:49 | 00:27:51 | but they also are shareable. |
| 00:27:51 | 00:27:53 | It's something that, you know, |
| 00:27:53 | 00:27:54 | one of your audience members |
| 00:27:54 | 00:27:55 | can press the little share button on |
| 00:27:55 | 00:27:58 | and share it to their Instagram story, |
| 00:27:58 | 00:28:01 | which basically just fits you more organic reach. |
| 00:28:01 | 00:28:04 | It allows their audience to discover you |
| 00:28:04 | 00:28:06 | through the graphic that was, you know, |
| 00:28:06 | 00:28:08 | shared to your follower story, |
| 00:28:08 | 00:28:10 | and I find that they also are quite effective |
| 00:28:10 | 00:28:12 | at showing up on the explore page. |
| 00:28:12 | 00:28:14 | For at least on my account, |
| 00:28:14 | 00:28:17 | I notike that this type of post graphic carousels |
| 00:28:17 | 00:28:21 | get a lot more reach that is to non followers. |
| 00:28:21 | 00:28:24 | So obviously the more reach you can get to non followers, |
| 00:28:24 | 00:28:26 | the more potential followers you can get. |
| 00:28:26 | 00:28:29 | - So on these carousels, these graphical carousel, |
| 00:28:29 | 00:28:31 | do you have any examples of ones you've seen |
| 00:28:31 | 00:28:32 | or ones you've done? |
| 00:28:32 | 00:28:34 | Just maybe you could describe them with words |
| 00:28:34 | 00:28:35 | so people could visualize |
| 00:28:35 | 00:28:37 | what you mean by the minimal design |
| 00:28:37 | 00:28:38 | and maybe how they're using them together. |
| 00:28:38 | 00:28:39 | - Yeah totally. |
| 00:28:39 | 00:28:41 | So I can give a few examples of ones |
| 00:28:41 | 00:28:43 | that have been effect on my own profile. |
| 00:28:43 | 00:28:48 | So I may one cut weeks back that just imagine |
| 00:28:48 | 00:28:50 | like basically a beige background with some, you know, |
| 00:28:50 | 00:28:53 | dark gray text that says |
| 00:28:53 | 00:28:57 | all of the new features Instagram ad in 2022 explained. |
| 00:28:57 | 00:28:59 | And then if you swipe to the next slide |
| 00:28:59 | 00:29:01 | and all the following slides, |
| 00:29:01 | 00:29:03 | on each one I have just a little screenshot |
| 00:29:03 | 00:29:06 | of what that new Instagram feature looks, |
| 00:29:06 | 00:29:08 | and then a bit of text explaining what it is. |
| 00:29:08 | 00:29:12 | So, oh, you know, we've got live badges to, you know, |
| 00:29:12 | 00:29:13 | let people know that you've got a new Instagram live |
| 00:29:13 | 00:29:16 | coming up in your profile and then swipe to the next one, |
| 00:29:16 | 00:29:19 | oh Instagram story likes that's a new feature, et cetera. |
| 00:29:19 | 00:29:22 | So that was really effective for me |
| 00:29:22 | 00:29:23 | because people are always curious about |
| 00:29:23 | 00:29:25 | the new features being released on Instagram, |
| 00:29:25 | 00:29:27 | and it was just very straight to the point |
| 00:29:27 | 00:29:28 | as you scroll through, |
| 00:29:28 | 00:29:30 | you get the information that you need, |
| 00:29:30 | 00:29:35 | and then it's very easy to either save that or share it. |
| 00:29:35 | 00:29:37 | So that kind of stuff, that's almost like |
| 00:29:37 | 00:29:41 | a list artikle of information that you can share |
| 00:29:41 | 00:29:43 | that obviously is relevant to your niche. |
| 00:29:43 | 00:29:47 | - Are you typically, you know how sometimes Instagram, |
| 00:29:47 | 00:29:48 | if you don't engage with it, |
| 00:29:48 | 00:29:51 | will show you another version in the carousel, |
| 00:29:51 | 00:29:52 | have you ever experienced that |
| 00:29:52 | 00:29:53 | when you're scrolling through Instagram, |
| 00:29:53 | 00:29:55 | you see again, but it's a different image. |
| 00:29:55 | 00:29:56 | Does it matter whether or not, |
| 00:29:57 | 00:30:00 | I would think this could screw up kind of your strategy, |
| 00:30:00 | 00:30:03 | like if you have a cool little something with an arrow |
| 00:30:03 | 00:30:04 | and you're trying to get them to go to the next one |
| 00:30:04 | 00:30:07 | and then Instagram decides to show them the third one, |
| 00:30:07 | 00:30:08 | do you have any tips on how to create it |
| 00:30:08 | 00:30:11 | so it's still valuable even if they don't get the first one? |
| 00:30:11 | 00:30:12 | Do you understand what I'm asking here? |
| 00:30:12 | 00:30:14 | - Yeah, no, I totally hear you, |
| 00:30:14 | 00:30:15 | like if you don't like it the first time, |
| 00:30:15 | 00:30:17 | the next time you see it in your feed, you might get like, |
| 00:30:17 | 00:30:20 | you know, the third image in the carousel. |
| 00:30:20 | 00:30:22 | So I think that in general, |
| 00:30:22 | 00:30:24 | I don't worry about that too much because |
| 00:30:24 | 00:30:27 | I design each of the graphic carousel slides |
| 00:30:27 | 00:30:30 | to really speak for themselves and to provide value, |
| 00:30:30 | 00:30:31 | whether or not you've seen the others. |
| 00:30:31 | 00:30:35 | So even if you don't necessarily know that the title of it |
| 00:30:35 | 00:30:38 | was, you know, all the new features Instagram added in 2022, |
| 00:30:38 | 00:30:40 | if you see a new slide that is explaining, |
| 00:30:40 | 00:30:43 | you know, what story is, you know, |
| 00:30:43 | 00:30:44 | that can be helpful in and of itself, |
| 00:30:44 | 00:30:47 | and I also think that ensuring that each of your slides |
| 00:30:47 | 00:30:50 | can be standalone makes them more effective |
| 00:30:50 | 00:30:51 | when they're shared to stories as well, |
| 00:30:51 | 00:30:54 | because if someone shares your carousel |
| 00:30:54 | 00:30:55 | to their Instagram story, |
| 00:30:55 | 00:30:57 | they're only gonna be able to preview |
| 00:30:57 | 00:30:58 | one of those images, right? |
| 00:30:58 | 00:31:00 | So if you can make sure that |
| 00:31:00 | 00:31:03 | each of those images can make sense out of context, |
| 00:31:03 | 00:31:04 | then that's just gonna help you |
| 00:31:04 | 00:31:05 | make them even more effective. |
| 00:31:06 | 00:31:09 | - Do you have a number of, |
| 00:31:09 | 00:31:12 | I don't know what they call the carousel sections, |
| 00:31:12 | 00:31:14 | but do you have slides or whatever? |
| 00:31:14 | 00:31:18 | I mean, do you normally suggest a certain quantity of them? |
| 00:31:18 | 00:31:19 | What's your thoughts on that? |
| 00:31:19 | 00:31:21 | - Yeah I would suggest creating |
| 00:31:21 | 00:31:25 | as many slides as you need to tell your story succinctly. |
| 00:31:25 | 00:31:27 | So I really don't think that there's a magic number, |
| 00:31:27 | 00:31:30 | I know some people think, oh, if you use all 10, |
| 00:31:30 | 00:31:31 | then it'll perform better. |
| 00:31:31 | 00:31:32 | I really don't think that's true, |
| 00:31:32 | 00:31:36 | I think that you need to share as many slides as necessary |
| 00:31:36 | 00:31:40 | to get your point across in a way that is detailed enough, |
| 00:31:40 | 00:31:42 | but also succinct so that it's consumable. |
| 00:31:42 | 00:31:46 | So I think whether, you know, that's two slides or seven, |
| 00:31:46 | 00:31:48 | they can be equally effective |
| 00:31:48 | 00:31:50 | depending on the content you're sharing. |
| 00:31:50 | 00:31:52 | - Okay so we've toked about reels |
| 00:31:52 | 00:31:54 | and we've toked about carousels. |
| 00:31:54 | 00:31:56 | Is there anything else that. |
| 00:31:56 | 00:31:58 | - Totally I've got more for you. |
| 00:31:58 | 00:31:59 | - Okay let's hear it. |
| 00:31:59 | 00:32:04 | - So the next type of content I'd suggest try out is memes. |
| 00:32:04 | 00:32:07 | So I feel like over the past year or two years, |
| 00:32:07 | 00:32:08 | we've really seen memes |
| 00:32:08 | 00:32:11 | kind of grow in popularity on Instagram. |
| 00:32:11 | 00:32:15 | So what I mean by that is content that is, |
| 00:32:15 | 00:32:19 | sometimes a graphic, so maybe like partially a gif |
| 00:32:19 | 00:32:22 | with like a funny, you know, caption on top of it |
| 00:32:22 | 00:32:25 | or a video clip from like a TV show |
| 00:32:25 | 00:32:26 | with some text popping up |
| 00:32:26 | 00:32:29 | that sort of makes a joke about it, |
| 00:32:29 | 00:32:30 | like in the context of your niche. |
| 00:32:30 | 00:32:34 | So in general culture references, |
| 00:32:34 | 00:32:37 | content that's really shareable or funny or relatable, |
| 00:32:37 | 00:32:40 | can be really effective, |
| 00:32:40 | 00:32:42 | and the great news for social media managers |
| 00:32:42 | 00:32:46 | is that this kind of thing can be so quick and fun to make, |
| 00:32:46 | 00:32:48 | it doesn't require all the effort and time |
| 00:32:48 | 00:32:50 | that say like filming a reel |
| 00:32:50 | 00:32:53 | or like shooting your own photos would take, |
| 00:32:53 | 00:32:56 | but I think that the catch here is it so important |
| 00:32:56 | 00:33:00 | to have a really clear idea of who your ideal audience is, |
| 00:33:00 | 00:33:03 | so that you know what kind of pop culture references |
| 00:33:03 | 00:33:04 | might be relevant for them. |
| 00:33:04 | 00:33:05 | Because if you miss the mark on that, |
| 00:33:05 | 00:33:06 | it's not gonna be effective, |
| 00:33:06 | 00:33:08 | you need to make sure that you're referencing |
| 00:33:08 | 00:33:10 | something that they'll actually understand, |
| 00:33:10 | 00:33:13 | but when you do, I feel like it can be so effective |
| 00:33:13 | 00:33:15 | because it's funny, |
| 00:33:15 | 00:33:16 | so like you get lots of great comments, |
| 00:33:16 | 00:33:18 | but you also get people sharing it to their stories, |
| 00:33:18 | 00:33:21 | which can help with your organic reach. |
| 00:33:21 | 00:33:23 | - Fascinatingly enough we have not covered memes |
| 00:33:23 | 00:33:25 | very often on this podcast that I can recall. |
| 00:33:27 | 00:33:29 | What do we need to know when we're sharing memes |
| 00:33:29 | 00:33:33 | on like a, you know, a professional or business account |
| 00:33:33 | 00:33:35 | or whatever they call it on an Instagram? |
| 00:33:35 | 00:33:38 | I mean, any thoughts that we need to know about |
| 00:33:38 | 00:33:42 | like using images that might include famous people |
| 00:33:42 | 00:33:45 | or anything like that, like what's your thoughts on that? |
| 00:33:45 | 00:33:46 | - Yeah, so I think that, |
| 00:33:46 | 00:33:50 | especially if you're pulling content from say, |
| 00:33:50 | 00:33:51 | like the gif library |
| 00:33:51 | 00:33:56 | that you can find in Instagram stories, that sort of thing, |
| 00:33:56 | 00:33:59 | like you can feel pretty confident about sharing that, |
| 00:34:00 | 00:34:03 | and certainly I'm no like legal expert |
| 00:34:03 | 00:34:06 | when it comes to copywriter, all of that stuff, |
| 00:34:06 | 00:34:09 | but what I do know is what the industry standards are, |
| 00:34:09 | 00:34:10 | and there's many, you know, |
| 00:34:10 | 00:34:14 | business accounts sharing this type of content, you know? |
| 00:34:14 | 00:34:16 | So it definitely is part of the culture on Instagram, |
| 00:34:16 | 00:34:18 | and I think everybody has to decide |
| 00:34:18 | 00:34:21 | what makes sense for your own business, |
| 00:34:21 | 00:34:23 | it feels appropriate to make pop culture references or not, |
| 00:34:23 | 00:34:27 | it's totally up to you in what your audience is expecting, |
| 00:34:27 | 00:34:30 | but definitely like Instagram gives us access to, |
| 00:34:30 | 00:34:31 | you know, gifs of celebrities or whatever, |
| 00:34:31 | 00:34:33 | right inside Instagram stories. |
| 00:34:33 | 00:34:35 | - Well, and while you were toking, I looked this up, |
| 00:34:35 | 00:34:39 | Facebook did buy GIPHY in 2020 for $315 million, |
| 00:34:39 | 00:34:42 | so my guess is, |
| 00:34:42 | 00:34:44 | Facebook's not gonna care if you use |
| 00:34:44 | 00:34:47 | images that are sourced from GIPHY. |
| 00:34:47 | 00:34:48 | - Yeah. |
| 00:34:48 | 00:34:50 | - Just because they paid the money, you know what I mean, |
| 00:34:50 | 00:34:51 | to have it on the platform. |
| 00:34:52 | 00:34:55 | Any dos or don'ts on memes? |
| 00:34:55 | 00:34:57 | 'Cause I would imagine like |
| 00:34:57 | 00:35:00 | I don't know how many of my audience has done this before, |
| 00:35:00 | 00:35:02 | like do you have any tips on how to create good ones |
| 00:35:02 | 00:35:03 | or what to avoid or whatever? |
| 00:35:03 | 00:35:07 | - Yeah I think that, you know, it really is an art form, |
| 00:35:07 | 00:35:09 | like it's something that takes |
| 00:35:09 | 00:35:10 | a lot of practike to understand, |
| 00:35:10 | 00:35:13 | just like any kind of comedy to understand like |
| 00:35:13 | 00:35:15 | the timing or like how long |
| 00:35:15 | 00:35:16 | you want each of your captions to be. |
| 00:35:16 | 00:35:18 | So I think the best thing that you can do |
| 00:35:18 | 00:35:21 | is start by finding pages in your niche |
| 00:35:21 | 00:35:23 | that are sharing that kind of content |
| 00:35:23 | 00:35:27 | and sort of see just like consume a ton of examples |
| 00:35:27 | 00:35:28 | 'cause that'll kind of start to give you |
| 00:35:28 | 00:35:30 | a sense of how people format them, |
| 00:35:30 | 00:35:32 | and then I think that paired |
| 00:35:32 | 00:35:34 | with a really really deep understanding |
| 00:35:34 | 00:35:35 | of who you're speaking to, |
| 00:35:35 | 00:35:36 | like who your audience is, |
| 00:35:36 | 00:35:39 | that's gonna be that magical combination |
| 00:35:39 | 00:35:42 | to figure out what will work well when it comes to memes. |
| 00:35:42 | 00:35:42 | And I think the other thing too |
| 00:35:42 | 00:35:44 | is you can be created with them, you don't have to feel like |
| 00:35:44 | 00:35:47 | you need to make pop culture references. |
| 00:35:47 | 00:35:48 | For some of my clients, |
| 00:35:48 | 00:35:50 | we've actually used images of like |
| 00:35:50 | 00:35:52 | the founder of the small business and then like |
| 00:35:52 | 00:35:54 | added little funny captions to that. |
| 00:35:54 | 00:35:56 | So you can make a meme out of yourself as well, |
| 00:35:56 | 00:35:58 | it doesn't have to be, you know, |
| 00:35:58 | 00:36:00 | an image of a celebrity or whatever. |
| 00:36:00 | 00:36:02 | So there's lots of different creative ways |
| 00:36:02 | 00:36:06 | that you can use this format to create something fun |
| 00:36:06 | 00:36:09 | and shareable for your audience. |
| 00:36:09 | 00:36:10 | - I don't know if you have any more, |
| 00:36:10 | 00:36:11 | but I know we toked about reels, |
| 00:36:11 | 00:36:13 | we toked about carousels and we toked about memes, |
| 00:36:13 | 00:36:15 | you got more in there, Katie? |
| 00:36:15 | 00:36:18 | - Yes I do, I've got two and I'll try to of keep them quick. |
| 00:36:18 | 00:36:21 | So the first is it's kind of a variation on memes, |
| 00:36:21 | 00:36:23 | but tweet graphics. |
| 00:36:23 | 00:36:25 | So we've probably all seen, |
| 00:36:25 | 00:36:27 | this is kind of like taken over Instagram |
| 00:36:27 | 00:36:30 | over the past couple years and that is basically |
| 00:36:31 | 00:36:33 | a quick witty, like maybe a hot take, |
| 00:36:33 | 00:36:35 | something that's short and sweet |
| 00:36:35 | 00:36:36 | and it's formatted as if it looks like |
| 00:36:36 | 00:36:38 | it's a screenshot of a tweet. |
| 00:36:38 | 00:36:39 | Sometimes it actually is, |
| 00:36:39 | 00:36:42 | but there's also all kinds of like Canva templates |
| 00:36:42 | 00:36:45 | that you can find that make it look like it's a tweet, |
| 00:36:45 | 00:36:47 | and this is just a really shareable format |
| 00:36:47 | 00:36:49 | because it's so short, consumable, |
| 00:36:49 | 00:36:51 | easy to throw up on your Instagram story, |
| 00:36:51 | 00:36:54 | that's something that you connect with and agree with. |
| 00:36:54 | 00:36:56 | So that can be a really great way to share |
| 00:36:56 | 00:36:58 | even like a quote from a podcast |
| 00:36:58 | 00:37:00 | or just a thought that you have about your industry |
| 00:37:00 | 00:37:02 | that might be relatable to your audience. |
| 00:37:02 | 00:37:05 | So tweet graphics in general |
| 00:37:05 | 00:37:08 | can be really really effective when they're done right. |
| 00:37:08 | 00:37:11 | And then my last piece of content suggestion |
| 00:37:11 | 00:37:13 | is photos with longer captions, |
| 00:37:13 | 00:37:15 | which might be a surprise to some |
| 00:37:15 | 00:37:17 | because I feel like some people feel like |
| 00:37:17 | 00:37:19 | photos are dead on Instagram, |
| 00:37:19 | 00:37:22 | but that's definitely not been my experience |
| 00:37:22 | 00:37:25 | with my content over the past couple months, |
| 00:37:25 | 00:37:29 | sharing photo carousel, share for a personal brand. |
| 00:37:29 | 00:37:31 | So for me, it's like sharing photos of myself |
| 00:37:31 | 00:37:34 | with a longer caption that is more, |
| 00:37:34 | 00:37:35 | a little bit more vulnerable, |
| 00:37:35 | 00:37:37 | a little bit more personal |
| 00:37:37 | 00:37:38 | that can really connect with your audience, |
| 00:37:38 | 00:37:42 | I've found too also be an effective format. |
| 00:37:42 | 00:37:45 | - Yeah I'm curious about this because I do see, for example, |
| 00:37:45 | 00:37:47 | in my feed, Billy Jean, |
| 00:37:47 | 00:37:50 | who is a marketer who happens to be a local marketer |
| 00:37:50 | 00:37:53 | here in San Diego, but he is pretty well known. |
| 00:37:53 | 00:37:56 | He tends to share all sorts of pictures of his daughter |
| 00:37:56 | 00:37:59 | when she was a baby saying, you know, |
| 00:37:59 | 00:38:00 | the entrepreneurial life, you know, |
| 00:38:00 | 00:38:03 | and the don't want to your kids to grow up too fast |
| 00:38:03 | 00:38:05 | and just all these kind of things, right, |
| 00:38:05 | 00:38:08 | where it almost looks like it's not a marketing post, |
| 00:38:08 | 00:38:10 | but he advertises in that way as ads. |
| 00:38:10 | 00:38:11 | You know what I mean? |
| 00:38:11 | 00:38:13 | And you almost like don't realize |
| 00:38:13 | 00:38:15 | that you're not just reading someone's update. |
| 00:38:17 | 00:38:18 | That seems to be pretty powerful, |
| 00:38:18 | 00:38:22 | and it seems to be hearkening back to earlier |
| 00:38:22 | 00:38:24 | where we toked about like if you're really good |
| 00:38:24 | 00:38:26 | at writing captions and telling stories, |
| 00:38:26 | 00:38:27 | this can be very powerful, right? |
| 00:38:27 | 00:38:29 | Why does this work? |
| 00:38:29 | 00:38:32 | Why being vulnerable with your content? |
| 00:38:32 | 00:38:33 | Why is this potentially a strategy |
| 00:38:33 | 00:38:36 | that actually seems to have an impact? |
| 00:38:36 | 00:38:38 | - Yeah and it is so effective, |
| 00:38:38 | 00:38:41 | and I really think that it comes down to the fact |
| 00:38:41 | 00:38:43 | that you are building trust with your audience. |
| 00:38:43 | 00:38:46 | You know, like it can feel obviously scary |
| 00:38:46 | 00:38:48 | to share something that's sort of personal |
| 00:38:48 | 00:38:50 | or maybe you're insecure about or you don't, you know, |
| 00:38:50 | 00:38:52 | normally want to share with the public or whatever, |
| 00:38:52 | 00:38:55 | and I think that audiences can really sense that, |
| 00:38:55 | 00:38:57 | they sense that it is something |
| 00:38:57 | 00:38:59 | that is maybe difficult to tok about or, you know, |
| 00:38:59 | 00:39:01 | it's personal to you and people appreciate |
| 00:39:01 | 00:39:04 | that openness and that vulnerability, |
| 00:39:04 | 00:39:05 | and it allows you to share |
| 00:39:05 | 00:39:09 | a little bit more of your personality and yeah, |
| 00:39:09 | 00:39:10 | really build up that sense of connection |
| 00:39:10 | 00:39:12 | and trust with your audience, |
| 00:39:12 | 00:39:14 | so then when you share other types of formats, |
| 00:39:14 | 00:39:17 | like for example, you know, reels or other, you know, |
| 00:39:17 | 00:39:19 | you show up on stories or whatever, |
| 00:39:19 | 00:39:21 | they feel more connected with you because |
| 00:39:21 | 00:39:22 | they've seen that photo of your face |
| 00:39:22 | 00:39:25 | with something that feels quite personal, that they've read. |
| 00:39:25 | 00:39:26 | So it really just builds up |
| 00:39:26 | 00:39:29 | that personal connection and trust. |
| 00:39:29 | 00:39:30 | - Okay so up to this point, |
| 00:39:30 | 00:39:33 | we've toked about creating content that you love, |
| 00:39:33 | 00:39:34 | and then we've toked about |
| 00:39:34 | 00:39:37 | creating content that performs well, right, |
| 00:39:37 | 00:39:38 | which is what we've just been toking about |
| 00:39:38 | 00:39:41 | with reels and carousels and memes and tweet graphics |
| 00:39:41 | 00:39:43 | and photos with longer captions |
| 00:39:43 | 00:39:45 | that may or may not be vulnerable. |
| 00:39:47 | 00:39:49 | The last part is time. |
| 00:39:49 | 00:39:51 | But before we go to how do we make time, |
| 00:39:53 | 00:39:55 | the overarching theme of this |
| 00:39:55 | 00:39:57 | is to create content that last right? |
| 00:39:57 | 00:39:59 | Sustainable content. |
| 00:39:59 | 00:40:01 | Is the sustainable part of this, |
| 00:40:01 | 00:40:03 | what we're about to tok about next |
| 00:40:03 | 00:40:07 | or is it, help me understand, like before we, |
| 00:40:07 | 00:40:08 | like, where does the sustainable thread |
| 00:40:08 | 00:40:10 | fit into all of this? |
| 00:40:10 | 00:40:13 | - Exactly, so really, I would say that |
| 00:40:13 | 00:40:14 | the first bit that we toked about, |
| 00:40:14 | 00:40:17 | about what you love and then also making time for content |
| 00:40:17 | 00:40:19 | is what makes it sustainable. |
| 00:40:19 | 00:40:21 | So when I say a sustainable Instagram strategy, |
| 00:40:21 | 00:40:25 | I mean a strategy that you can plan now and put in place |
| 00:40:25 | 00:40:29 | and continue to repeat and execute for weeks, |
| 00:40:29 | 00:40:31 | months, potentially years to come, |
| 00:40:31 | 00:40:34 | because I really believe that Instagram growth |
| 00:40:34 | 00:40:37 | is about a slow and steady organic approach. |
| 00:40:37 | 00:40:40 | I mean, sure some people blow up overnight with, |
| 00:40:40 | 00:40:42 | you know, a viral reel or something, |
| 00:40:42 | 00:40:44 | but the reality for most of us is that |
| 00:40:44 | 00:40:47 | we're gonna plug away creating high value content |
| 00:40:47 | 00:40:50 | for our audiences for quite a while before we, you know, |
| 00:40:50 | 00:40:52 | see that organic growth start to snowball |
| 00:40:52 | 00:40:54 | and we get a larger audience. |
| 00:40:54 | 00:40:55 | So at the end of the day, |
| 00:40:55 | 00:40:58 | if you really truly want to see growth for your account, |
| 00:40:58 | 00:41:00 | you're going to need to make a plan |
| 00:41:00 | 00:41:04 | and continue to execute on that plan over the long term. |
| 00:41:04 | 00:41:06 | I really believe that growing on Instagram |
| 00:41:06 | 00:41:08 | is about being consistent and persistent. |
| 00:41:08 | 00:41:11 | You can't give up when you don't see, you know, |
| 00:41:11 | 00:41:14 | immediate, crazy results, you've gotta keep pushing forward. |
| 00:41:14 | 00:41:17 | And so that's what's so important to find a strategy |
| 00:41:17 | 00:41:20 | where you enjoy creating that type of content, |
| 00:41:20 | 00:41:22 | you know that it's getting you those results, |
| 00:41:22 | 00:41:24 | even if it's slow and steady results, |
| 00:41:24 | 00:41:25 | and then you know it's something that |
| 00:41:25 | 00:41:27 | you actually have time for because it means |
| 00:41:27 | 00:41:29 | that you will actually continue to do it. |
| 00:41:29 | 00:41:32 | 'Cause I feel like so many people, you know, |
| 00:41:32 | 00:41:34 | they kind of flirt with the latest trends, |
| 00:41:34 | 00:41:35 | try this out, try that out, |
| 00:41:35 | 00:41:39 | and then over time that's not gonna amount significant, |
| 00:41:39 | 00:41:41 | but if you can put together an effective strategy, |
| 00:41:41 | 00:41:44 | that is also something that you can sustainably commit to |
| 00:41:44 | 00:41:46 | and continue executing on over time, |
| 00:41:46 | 00:41:48 | that's where you're gonna see real growth. |
| 00:41:48 | 00:41:50 | So that's what sustainability on Instagram |
| 00:41:50 | 00:41:52 | is all about to me. - Do you have any tips |
| 00:41:52 | 00:41:55 | on how we can make time to create content? |
| 00:41:55 | 00:41:59 | Because obviously I know the word make time |
| 00:41:59 | 00:42:01 | is kind of an oxymoron, |
| 00:42:01 | 00:42:03 | you can't really make time, but, you know, |
| 00:42:03 | 00:42:05 | how can we be better with our time |
| 00:42:05 | 00:42:07 | so that we have time to make content? |
| 00:42:07 | 00:42:08 | - Exactly, yeah, |
| 00:42:08 | 00:42:11 | I am all about time management, time blocking |
| 00:42:11 | 00:42:13 | and figuring out how you can make it fit. |
| 00:42:13 | 00:42:17 | So I think the first thing to do is to look at your calendar |
| 00:42:17 | 00:42:20 | and do a little bit of self-reflection. |
| 00:42:20 | 00:42:23 | Figure out where you're spending time |
| 00:42:23 | 00:42:25 | when it comes to your Instagram content. |
| 00:42:25 | 00:42:29 | Might even be effective to use a time tracker app |
| 00:42:29 | 00:42:31 | and kind of log your, you know, |
| 00:42:31 | 00:42:33 | content creation time for maybe a week or whatever, |
| 00:42:33 | 00:42:35 | as an experiment to see how long |
| 00:42:35 | 00:42:37 | it takes you to do certain things. |
| 00:42:37 | 00:42:39 | Because ultimately after we've gone through |
| 00:42:39 | 00:42:40 | our kind of past two steps |
| 00:42:40 | 00:42:43 | of figuring out what we like to make and what performs well, |
| 00:42:43 | 00:42:45 | we might have all kinds of ideas of stuff |
| 00:42:45 | 00:42:46 | that we wanna add to the list |
| 00:42:46 | 00:42:48 | of things that we're gonna create for Instagram, |
| 00:42:48 | 00:42:50 | but you need to figure out |
| 00:42:50 | 00:42:52 | before you start adding to the list, |
| 00:42:52 | 00:42:54 | you know, what takes time right now? |
| 00:42:54 | 00:42:55 | What can you add? |
| 00:42:55 | 00:42:58 | What do you have to eliminate in order to make that time |
| 00:42:58 | 00:43:01 | for adding in this new piece to your strategy? |
| 00:43:01 | 00:43:03 | Because you have to remember all this stuff |
| 00:43:03 | 00:43:05 | really does take time, like making a reel |
| 00:43:05 | 00:43:08 | or designing a graphic carousel, all of this adds up, |
| 00:43:08 | 00:43:12 | so it's important to create a plan and a schedule |
| 00:43:12 | 00:43:14 | before you just tack them onto your strategy, |
| 00:43:14 | 00:43:17 | because that is gonna be a total enemy to consistency. |
| 00:43:17 | 00:43:18 | If you tell yourself, oh yeah, |
| 00:43:18 | 00:43:20 | I'm gonna make like five reels this week, |
| 00:43:20 | 00:43:22 | well, that might not actually be reasonable. |
| 00:43:22 | 00:43:22 | So it's important |
| 00:43:22 | 00:43:25 | to look through your schedule first of all, |
| 00:43:25 | 00:43:27 | figure out where you're currently spending time, |
| 00:43:27 | 00:43:29 | and then you could kind of go from there |
| 00:43:29 | 00:43:30 | in terms of making a plan. |
| 00:43:31 | 00:43:32 | - Awesome. |
| 00:43:32 | 00:43:36 | Katie, if people want to make time, |
| 00:43:37 | 00:43:39 | set aside time to connect with you |
| 00:43:39 | 00:43:41 | and to discover more about all the great stuff |
| 00:43:41 | 00:43:43 | that you've got going on, you see what I did there, |
| 00:43:43 | 00:43:44 | and by the way, we thank everyone |
| 00:43:44 | 00:43:46 | for the time that they spent with us today, |
| 00:43:46 | 00:43:49 | but I know some people are gonna wanna go deeper, |
| 00:43:49 | 00:43:51 | I know some people are gonna wanna reach out to you, |
| 00:43:51 | 00:43:53 | where do you wanna send them if they wanna discover more? |
| 00:43:53 | 00:43:55 | - Yeah, so I've actually compiled |
| 00:43:55 | 00:43:57 | a bunch of resources for your listeners, |
| 00:43:57 | 00:44:00 | including some extra bonus tips about |
| 00:44:00 | 00:44:02 | how to hone it on your specific strategy, |
| 00:44:02 | 00:44:04 | plus my own content creation routine |
| 00:44:04 | 00:44:07 | and how I build habits around Instagram content creation |
| 00:44:07 | 00:44:08 | that can help you with your time management, |
| 00:44:08 | 00:44:12 | to make a real sustainable Instagram strategy. |
| 00:44:12 | 00:44:14 | So you can find all of that great stuff, |
| 00:44:14 | 00:44:19 | totally for free on my website at katiesteckly.com/sme. |
| 00:44:19 | 00:44:22 | So you can find it all there, |
| 00:44:22 | 00:44:24 | and I'm really really excited to share it with you all. |
| 00:44:24 | 00:44:26 | - Cool and why don't you spell Steckly |
| 00:44:26 | 00:44:28 | just so everybody knows how to spell that. |
| 00:44:28 | 00:44:33 | - Yep, so it is spelled S-T-E-C-K-L-Y. |
| 00:44:34 | 00:44:35 | - Katie Steckly, thank you so much for coming on |
| 00:44:35 | 00:44:38 | and sharing your wisdom with us, I really appreciate it. |
| 00:44:38 | 00:44:40 | - Thanks so much for having me. |
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