Instagram Best Practices from Facebook
How Can I Grow My Community
- utilize the feeds: Feed, Stories, Live, Video, Reels
- post consistently across all feeds
- post across all feeds weekly
Stories
- Post 8-10 a day, throughout the day, not all at once
- repost, share tagged posts, behind the scenes, slice of life content
- use the question sticker, use poll and quiz stickers, music and lyrics sticker, countdown sticker, stories about you
- interactivity is key
- Give a behind the scenes look at your life / work
- up to 15 seconds for 1 section but can auto link sections together for a longer video
- in the moment updates
Feed
- should be your highlights
- go vertical (4:5) with photos, don’t always use a square, use the extender
- post a mix of videos and photos
- one post a day or every other day, don’t spam your followers
- always use hashtags and geotags
- be specific with your hashtags
- use carousels for more engagement in one post (tell a story with your photos)
- stay active in the comments to stay engaged with your community to develop relationships
Lives
- up to 4hours
- direct conversations with your audience
- invite your friends to join
- real-time connection
- go live once a week for at least an hour
- give followers advanced notice using feed and stories
- use question box in stories about 12 hours before live to have followers ask you questions for live if you need live ideas
- make sure you have a strong connection for a high-quality stream
- give your live a title
- share to Feed
- Use Badges in Live
Video (formally IGTV)
- up to 1 hour
- storytelling
- engage the viewer in the first three seconds
- post Video once a week
- publish original content
- use sound, editing, and graphics to make your Video stand out
Reels
- use the Reels camera to edit clips (select audio, speed controls, set effects, set timer for transitions, align tool, multi-clip shutter
- Audio browser (trending songs, saved audio, audio for you)
- be sure to attribute the artist
- view all videos using a sound
- only time it should say original audio is if the only sound is your voice or original sound creation
- Reels Tab to discover great reels, discover what’s trending, etc…
- Always share your Reels to Feed for greater distribution and maximum exposure
- Share Reels to your Stories for maximum exposure
- Reels Creative Tools
- Align Tool
- Green Screen
- AR Effects
- timed text
- Uniquely You: what makes your brand unique
- make it relatable: anyone, anywhere can connect to your content
- easy to recreate: start a trend
- keep it simple
- Do’s and Don’ts of Reels
- Inspire creation, giving a sense that anyone can join in and create
- Share original & authentic content
- Use the Reels music library & audio tools
- Stay relevant with cultural moments, trending topics
- Have a WOW or LOL factor
- Pull the viewer in quickly, the more intriguing the better
- Have a fun surprise or twist
- Don’t post overly promotional or commercial content
- Don’t share clips or content that isn’t original (e.g. clips from tv or film)
- Don’t add music that is not in the instagram library unless you have obtained the appropriate license
- Don’t use “dated” references
- Don’t lack a storyline
- Don’t create content that is sexually suggestive, features alcohol, weapons, drugs, profanity, etc..
- Don’t use TikTok logo
- use hashtags relevant to the video theme, don’t use #featureme or #explorepage to get featured
