crazily normal: 10 Tips For Using Instagram More Effectively

I am in no way claiming to be an expert on Instagram but it is, by far, my favorite form of social media. I love that I can share my favorite photos so easily. Photo sharing can be a huge part of branding yourself; people are attracted to great photos, so utilizing this photo-sharing app to its full potential can be very beneficial for you! So today, I am excited to bring you this post, along with 7 of my favorite bloggers' tips and tricks of blogging in the Better Blogging Blog Tour! This is your one-stop shop for great info from some pretty amazing bloggers; the behind the scenes secrets, you might say. Ever wonder how bloggers become successful? Want to know how they increase their following? You will learn it here!!!

Let's get started!!

Instagram has millions of visitors every day. That is millions of people you have the potential to interact with. Instagram has the possibility to bring you closer to your readers, showing them a more personal side of the blogger behind the blog. Instagram has a much higher interaction rate than any other social media out there, so making your posts count is important when trying to brand yourself. With people spending more and more time on social media, and nearly 2/3 of that time is on mobile, Instagram is the perfect application to share and interact with your potential readers.

I have compiled for you 10 ways to use Instagram more effectively when it comes to blogging, branding yourself, and increasing your following.

1 Make sure to have your blog link available in your Instagram profile. This will link your followers directly to your blog in one short click. Remember, this is the only clickable link on your Instagram so make it count! Because links are unavailable in each individual photo post, letting your readers know your link to your site is in your profile may be a useful trick.

2 Like and comment on similar brands/blogs/photos. Comments should be personal and related to the photo. People know when you are being "fake." Going through my photo roll and "liking" 24 photos in 8 seconds doesn't fool me. Commenting on photos you enjoy can be beneficial for you. People like flattery; tell them why you love their photo. This may lead them to view your profile and your blog.

3 Be consistent. People tend to like predictability. Make sure you are posting nearly every day, but don't overgram! You don't want people to get annoyed by your feed. Your followers will enjoy a few good posts each day. When you post quality photos, followers may be curious what other great photos and posts you are blogging about.

4 Engage your followers. Write a meaningful caption. Pose them a question. Encourage them to post a photo using your created hashtag. Use this hashtag across your other social media sites too, linking it all back to you.

5 Leave your followers intrigued and wanting more. You want your followers curious as to what you have posted on your blog. Give enough of a photo to pique their interest and invite them to view your site. You want to share enough to keep them interested, but ultimately, you want them to come see the posts on your blog, not end with Instagram!

6 Keep your photo's story short and sweet. People may get annoyed with a long-winded post. They want to see your photo, read the caption and be done.

7 Keep your hashtags relevant and only us a few for each photo. Using every single hashtag to describe your photo can come across as spammy. Using a few relevant hashtags will attract people who are genuinely interested in your photos.

8 Create eye-catching photos and find your "voice." This is part of what will keep your followers coming back each day. Create photos that have a similar theme; color scheme, subjects, style. One way I have found does this best is to edit outside of Instagram. IG does have a number of great filters to use, but there are many other editing apps out there that can give you a great looking photo. One of my favorites is Whitagram. Find your photo-creating recipe and be consistent.

9 If you have a specific post or part of your blog you want your followers to go to first, try using that as your Instagram profile link. Changing it up to your most recent or a popular post may be helpful in directing your followers to view more of your blog.

10 If you are really wanting to increase your following and attract people to your instagram and blog, make your profile public. A private profile may be a deterrent to people following you. Even if you use a hashtag, accounts who aren't already following you cannot like your photos, comment on your posts or click on your links.

Now, go create some beautiful photos!!

For more great blogging and social media tips,
check out the rest of the Better Blogging Blog Tour links: