If you are spending many hours a day creating content and you’re still not seeing ANY results—no new followers, minimal likes, few comments—there’s a good chance you’re making at least one of these common Instagram mistakes.
It’s time to stop posting and hoping that things will eventually start to change.
Instead, you need to take a good look at the content you’re producing and see where it’s necessary to make some adjustments in your strategy in order to see some real growth.
Starting Every Video With ‘Hey Guys!’
Did you know that you have less than 5 seconds to grab someone’s attention on video?
In just 5 seconds, they are determining IF they are going to keep watching or keep scrolling…and if you’re starting your video with a generic ‘Hey guys!’ you’ve likely already lost their attention.
What should you do instead? Dive right into the topic you want to talk about! Grab their attention and show them why they should keep listening from the get-go.
Bonus tip: Try to avoid calling attention to your appearance (playing with your hair, mentioning that you’re still in pajamas, calling out a zit, etc.), this undermines your credibility and it can turn people away as you are making your video all about YOU instead of what you can teach/the value of what you have to say.
Overusing the Words ‘I’ and ‘I’m’
As mentioned in my last point, making it all about YOU isn’t the greatest way to reach and connect with your audience.
Hate to be the one to break it to you, but it’s not all about YOU…especially if you’re a business owner and your audience is your potential and current clients.
Try to use the words ‘you’ and ‘you’re’ as often as possible across your content—in videos, captions, graphics, etc. Even if you have a personal brand, it’s important to remember that your business is about your customer, NOT you.
Creating Content About Too Many Subjects
One of the greatest ways to create a loyal following is to position yourself as an authority on something specific, and sticking to that.
It’s a great way to grow your following, too. How? Here’s an example, a few friends are chatting about an upcoming backpacking trip and ALL of your content is about where to go, how to pack, and how to prepare for backpacking excursions—one of them might follow you and suggest that the others do as well because your content is the BEST resource for all things backpacking.
Be known and remembered as a valuable source of insight is EVERYTHING! When we talk about too many things, people remember us for nothing which ultimately leads to your audience not seeing you as an expert in anything.
Stick with 3 main content topics that you know well, and want to be known for.
Undervaluing the Importance of Titles and Hook Lines
When you scroll through your 100s of e-mails or peruse New York Times online, what do you click on first?
No doubt it’s the pieces of content that have the most attention-grabbing headlines.
This is the exact reason why I suggest that you spend 80% of your content creating energy on nailing that first line of your post and titles of your videos, and the other 20% on the actual meat of the content.
If you aren’t grabbing an audience’s attention right from the start you can guarantee that no one will read your captions let alone comment on them.
Being Too Vague With Your Language
Be more specific, clear, and tangible with your content. If your audience is coming to you for tips and tricks, give them the kind of tips and tricks they can’t just google and find elsewhere.
Not only should you get as specific as possible, but you should also be offering your own unique perspective, too!
Forgetting to Add a Specific Call To Action
EVERY single piece of content you create should give your audience an action to take.
IG Story? Tell people to DM you if they relate to what you’re talking about, or create a poll or add a question box that gives people an opportunity to share their thoughts.
IGTV? IN your video, tell people what you want them to do—ask a specific question and have them share their answers in a comment below, tell them to share the video with a friend, or head to the link in your bio to do x, y, and z.
A standard IG post? The options are endless! Tie your CTA back to your caption topic and ask people their thoughts, or tell them to tag a friend who “needs to see this.” Whatever you want your audience to do—spell it out for them!
Using a specific call to action encourages engagement far more than simply saying, ‘comment below!’
Bonus Tip: Don’t Ignore the Importance of Readability
There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with writing long-form content. In fact, some people respond to that so much more than just a one-sentence caption.
BUT, make sure it’s readable! Break up your caption into smaller, easier-to-digest paragraphs.
Odds are, people are multitasking while scrolling, and you want your content to be as consumable on-the-go as it is if they’re just sitting on the couch and scrolling.
Some quick tips: Use emojis to add some personality, and use bold fonts to emphasize important points and hold your reader’s attention.
Readability matters, so make sure it’s a part of your content strategy!
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