It is no surprise that Instagram is an influential marketing tool. This social media platform is growing faster every day, so your business should make sure it's staying up-to-date with the best Instagram practices.

Individual posts no longer determine a brand’s Instagram success; it’s about the brand’s entire image.

Potential followers (and customers) are looking at the entire feed, which is the accumulation of every single photo your account has posted. Having an unusual feed brings new followers which ultimately results in more customers.

Continue reading for tips on how to achieve the perfect Instagram feed.

Tell Your Brand’s Story

You are probably thinking about what you should post. The purpose of your Instagram profile is to visually represent your brand and image. There should be a healthy balance between business and personal content.

Giving a mix of behind-the-scenes and the formal side of your company will please all types of viewers. Keep note of which types of photos get the most attention so you can post more of those in the future!

During this year's New York Fashion Week, the brand J. Crew posted up close, behind-the-the scenes photos of their runway, but when viewed from the feed, the photos came together like a puzzle. 

Have a Cohesive Theme

Once you understand what to post, it is crucial for all of your pictures to have a consistent look. Pick a way to edit your pictures that complements your brand. Avid Instagram users refer to this as your “aesthetic”.  This just means that all your photos look compatible when they are packed together in the grid layout.

To create an aesthetic, it is important to edit every post in the same way. If you are using filters, make sure to use the same one or a few similar ones. Always adjust the settings per photo consistently – like the contrast, saturation, brightness, etc.

It helps if the pictures you are posting have a similar color scheme or are photographed the same way.

When to Post

The next step is to publish your content at the perfect time. There is no golden hour to post on Instagram like there is on other social media sites. The best thing to do is to look at your analytics and see what time your profile gets the most traffic.

You should also be posting a few times a week. Whether you do it on the same day every week or switch it up, make sure you do not forget. Set a reminder on your phone or add it to your planner to make it easy!

Engage

Just posting pictures is not enough to grow on Instagram! You have to get other users to interact with you.

The easiest way to do this is to tell them what to do – ask a question in your caption for them to answer in the comment section or direct them to click the link in your bio.

You can also create your own hashtag that goes with your brand and instruct other Instagrammers to use it on their photos, too.

Remember: Make sure you have a current profile picture, a well-written bio and a working link to your website. A perfect feed will not provide any benefits if the follower does not know what your company is about!

Happy posting!

Uploading the perfect posts to Instagram gets you more followers. Read our e-Book to learn more about creating the right kind of content.