Not sure what to post on Instagram?

Here is what we’re going to do:

I’m going to share tips to help you think about what to post on Instagram for your own account.

And I will also share Instagram post ideas to help you get started.

I’ve split this blog post in 2 parts:

  1. What to post on Instagram for fun / personal account
  2. What to post on Instagram for your brand / business

Ready?

Let’s start.

1. What to post on Instagram for fun

If you are on Instagram for fun / for your personal life, and you would love to grow your account, then you have 3 options:

1. Post about anything you want. Take a LOT of photos, all the time, of things you want to remember. If you’re happy and excited about what you’re sharing, people will feel it and will want to see more from you. So share what makes you happy, what you are passionate about, what you feel proud of. Like our friend @autumrainn says: “If I’m proud of it, I’m posting it”. People love to connect with people and see what other people are up to. If you take a lot of different photos, with different colors, and you want your feed to still look cohesive, all you have to do is use the same filter on all your photos. It will make your whole feed look nice. I recommend the “Blogger“, “Fun“, “Retro” and “Cream” filter packs for everyday photos (click here to see where to find the filters).

Or

2. Choose 1 to 5 things you want your account to be about. For example: fashion, landscapes, food ( = 3 things). This might sound restrictive, but it’s actually very useful because it helps you know what photos to take. And it will make it super easy to plan your feed. You’ll never, ever run out of posts.

Or

3. Get creative! Have fun! If you have no idea what photos to take: Go on Instagram, find an account you really like, and find photos you would love to take too. Then try to recreate these photos. This way you will learn how to take good photos, and it will also inspire you to create your own, unique photos later on. We all have to start somewhere 🙂

This is what Instagrammers and bloggers do:

  • Focus on what makes you YOU, and go for it. Create!!!
  • What is something you love to do or talk about? Something that is unique about you? Are you goofy? Do you love travel? Health? Fitness? Creativity? The ocean? Nature? Sunsets? Family? Food? Your dog?
  • Don’t know what to post? Don’t think about what to post. Just document parts of your life, take a bunch of photos, videos you want to share with friends, family, nice people you will meet on Instagram.
  • Think of your Instagram as your personal journal.

Examples:

@autumrainn: She posts fun poses, she uses different props (like flowers) to take fun photos and is known for her amazing dance moves.

@heleneinbetween: She shares photos of her travels, landscapes she loves, food she eats and her adorable 2 pups. Her Instagram account is like her personal journal of things she wants to remember and share.

PS: They both use Preview app to plan their Instagram feed.

2. What to post on Instagram for your brand / business

If you are on Instagram for your brand / business, think about this:

  • Think about your dream customer or client
  • What can you post to: help, inform, motivate, inspire, entertain, connect with them?
  • How should your Instagram feed look like to appeal to them?

Make a list of all your ideas.

Of course, you can post only about your products (for example, clothing stores do this: they only post about their clothes).

But don’t be afraid to think outside the box (Instagram is a place to have fun!).

Here are 12 Instagram post ideas:

  1. “About you” / personal posts
  2. Quotes
  3. Tutorials, how-to, educational posts
  4. Customers’ experiences / reviews
  5. Photos that reflect your brand
  6. Ask a question
  7. Fun photos
  8. Post about your product or service, provide an offer, or direct people to your website
  9. Give ideas of how to use / style your product(s)
  10. Before / Afters
  11. Behind the Scenes
  12. Work in progress

Examples:

Let’s have a look at 3 examples.

@lornajaneactive:
They are an activewear brand for women. What to post on Instagram?

  • Woman = pink vibes.
  • Photos = clothes on actual people, outdoors, living life
  • Health = fitness + food
  • Quotes = Fun quotes related to a healthy and fit lifestyle. These posts are awesome because they bring the community together to have some fun, chill and relax together.

@kindred.toxinfreefacials:
They are all about natural, organic skincare, self-love and bringing back peace into the body and mind. They want to create a feed that reflects all of this: natural, skincare and peace, and trust (skin is so personal and delicate, what can they post so you can trust them to touch and help your skin glow?). Here is what they post on Instagram:

  • Natural: photos of nature, plants, natural, earthy colors
  • Skin care: skin photos, skin products, skin care tips and expertise, skin-friendly foods, tools they use during their pampering sessions.
  • Peace: simple, minimalist photos, peaceful quotes
  • Trust: customer reviews, photos of their clients and photos of themselves (the facialists)

@laurenastondesigns:
She sells huge knitted blankets. What to post on Instagram to sell huge knitted blankets? Lauren got super creative. Instead of sharing photos of her knitted blankets and jumpers only, she takes photos of them… with a twist. She takes fun photos of her with her dog, or of her with a crazy knits landscapes (see below). Not only are her products amazing, but her creativity and personality shines through her posts. So you’re buying an amazing product, and you’re also supporting a super passionate small business owner.

These are just 3 examples to show you how you can style your Instagram feed according to your brand, your personality and your dream customers.

Don’t get stressed out. Relax. Start simple. Simple is always the best. These are just some ideas to help you start thinking about posts for your own account.

Instagram is all about having fun and creating a feed that you love and that your clients and customers will want to scroll through, to ultimately click on the link in your bio to book, buy or contact you.

That’s it!

Leave a big thumb up in the comments if you found this blog post useful.

And if you feel a little stuck, but you’re feeling very motivated and you’re not sure what to post for your account, tell me in the comments: what is your account about? We can brainstorm post ideas for your account together.

Alex