My Path to [Insta] Fame

Fame is fleeting. Especially Internet fame. One day you’re a yodeling at Walmarts across the country, and the next people are making “where are they now?” videos about you. Staying in the limelight takes a lot more work than we give influencers credit for. Today, I’m going to be exploring just what it takes to become Instagram Famous.

In the last month or so I decided to take it upon myself to increase my social media following. I’ve always loved content creation, and I figured if I just posted more frequently, I could definitely hit that Instagram Explore page. JK, but seriously, I didn’t think it could be that hard. In reality, there’s a lot that goes into getting and keeping attention on the Internet, especially because there are already so many things that are fighting for our views.

Consistency is a must. Before this little experiment of mine, my average post schedule was one for every five to six weeks. To be an Instagram Influencer, that’s just not going to cut it. Experts say that major brands and businesses aim to post at least once a day. If you’re going to be an influencer, then you need to think about your brand and reputation online–which means posting at least once a day. Stories don’t count (unfortunately). I’ve really mastered the intricacies of Instagram Stories, so this fact was kind of bummer for me. But most people that see your stories are already following you and they click through the content pretty fast anyway. Posts and videos are where it’s at.

It’s true what people say about posting at the right time of day. Instagram posts typically have a couple of hours of shelf time before they get buried in someone’s feed. Which means when you post is important. According to the Internet, posting in the afternoon–usually around three–is the most consistent time for engagement on Instagram. The best day to post is on Thursday, and the worst is on Sunday. I don’t think you have to be strict about following a Instagram post timetable. But bear in mind the times of day people are most likely to be on their phones–like during lunch, rush hour in cities with public transportation, or right before bed.

So now that we’ve committed to posting fairly regularly, what exactly should we be putting out there? If it isn’t already obvious, don’t post anything that looks unclean or unprofessional. No body goes on Instagram to see a slew of drunken club photos or blurry camera work.

Keep up with trends–fashion trends, vacation trends, movie trends, you name it. People like what they like. PR professionals say to utilize posting multiple photos in one post and professionally done videos. It’s an easy way to switch up the content you’re viewers are seeing.

Sometimes people underestimate the power of a good caption. Use it to tell a witty joke or ask a question and get your audience to participate. Also, don’t overload your caption with irrelevant hashtags. More isn’t always better. Pick hashtags that are popular and appropriate for the situation. Speaking of tags, tag people and locations in your photos. It gets more eyes on your posts and can show how fun and adventurous you are.

It’s like marketing, but for yourself. Which means work never stops. Next time you’re posting on Instagram, consider some of these tips and tricks to get a few more people behind your posts.

Do you guys think I’ll ever become Insta famous? If you want to help a sister out, make sure to give me a follow–@samsabss! And let me know how you increase followers and attention on your social media sites–I need all the help I can get! Thanks again for reading, and I’ll see you guys for another Coffee Crawl post next week!