Don't choose a niche that is a burden to you. You need to enjoy what you are doing for your followers to enjoy following you. You need to feel comfortable sharing about yourself, and you need to be able to post authentic content.
Building your personal brand on Instagram also requires knowing your audience. You will need to consider:
- People they follow
- Posts they like
- Posts they comment
- Whether comments are positive or negative
- Content they post on their own accounts
That is a lot of work, so enjoy the process of being clear about yourself and getting to know your followers.
Pick a theme and stick with it
Your theme is the look and feel of your Instagram feed. It is all your photos laid together, inviting followers to your account.
You need to keep colors and style consistent and as attractive as you can. You don't necessarily have to use bright colors and predictable shapes. Dark colors and twisted shapes may work for some themes. But you need to keep your theme consistent so people will come to recognize your brand.
There are many apps that can help you with the overall theme of your Instagram account.
Stand out from the crowd
There is enough room on Instagram for everyone to be heard.
The biggest mistake micro-influencers make (you will be a micro-influencer, and that is not a bad thing) is to compare themselves to the biggest names on the platform and try to compete with them. Your best chance of success on Instagram is to find out what makes you unique and embrace it.
Do things differently. The more unique you are, the easier it will be for people to remember you. And one of the most important places people will meet you is your Instagram bio. Try writing funny Instagram bios as an exercise to help you find your voice.
Got all of this firmly in mind? Great! Now you are ready to write your Instagram bio.
9 ways to write your Instagram bio
Your Instagram bio is a description of your account that sits at the very top of your profile page, next to your profile picture.
Visitors to your account will treat it as a snapshot of your account. It is a quick way to introduce people to who you are and what your Instagram profile is about.
Since you only have 150 characters, you need to make your Instagram bio concise and easy to read. But that doesn't mean you can't have fun with it. Try writing clever Instagram bios that grab a visitor's attention. You might not write a good Instagram bio the first time, but you can keep changing it until you have a cool bio you are happy with.
Be creative
For example, Crocs uses an alligator emoji and a "rockin'" emoji for "If you ain't Croccin', you ain't rockin'." It's OK that it takes a moment to get the joke because it is a creative way to engage with visitors, but isn't likely to go over everyone's heads.
Be cool
Don't be obvious. For instance, tennis star Serena Williams introduces herself as "I'm Olympia's mom."
Keep it short
Don't use all 150 characters if you don't need them. Bobthedragqueen just says "Black. Non-binary." This captures what is important to this account.
Be clever
Tiffany Haddish hypes herself in a humble way, "People tell me I'm beautiful, but I am just happy to be me."
Be funny
Nothing is less funny than obviously trying to be funny. But sometimes you can be quippy and vague, like comedian Bowen Yang's caption next to a photo of him with swollen eyes, "I think it's allergies?"
Or you can play to your audience, like Bugles corn chips "America's #1 finger hat."
Use emojis
Describe yourself with emojis, or you can also use emojis as bullet points. This is a fun way to break up the text.
Get down to business
Business brands can introduce themselves by their ethical statements. Eco-Swim, for example, is "A lifestyle collective for our most limitless selves, to care for each other + our planet."
Use a quote
Borrow a great line from a celebrity who isn't on Instagram, like Albert Einstein, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." Or choose someone more up-to-date.
Sometimes the most important information you can convey on your Instagram business account is your location and the hours you are open.
If you are doing multichannel marketing, don't forget to carry your brand across your channels. Use consistent colors and photography so when your followers become your customers, they will immediately know who you are.
