Youth Media Training

Instagram Basics: What Makes A

Great Post?
IMAGES
Plan ahead, decide what you want your feed
to be about
• As with any social media platform, you need your
posts to reflect your brand identity.
• Before you post anything, you need to ask yourself:
– What are you about?

– What aesthetic are you going for?

– What content do you want to share with your followers?

 Think before you click
• If you’re planning to include photos you take in your
Instagram feed, then it’s important to remember not to
rush to take that snap.

• Rather than taking hundreds of shots then sifting through

to find the best one, pause for a moment and look at
what’s before you.

• Your eyes can frame the picture and find the best angles
for the perfect picture.
 Have a clear point of interest
• Before you post, ask yourself this: is there a clear point of interest in this
image? Some text, or a certain aspect of the picture you want to highlight?

• You need to draw the viewer’s eye and guide them to look at what you
want them to see.

• Good photos have one or two points of interest, great photos have
multiple points without feeling cluttered.

• That’s another aim – don’t clutter your photo and make it ‘noisy’. If there’s
nothing that stands out which will attract attention, your viewers will lose
interest.
 Use the grid feature
• When it comes to taking a good picture, the
Instagram grid feature is a valuable ally.

• By mapping the image with a grid of nine

squares, you can see how well it balances, and
where the focal points of the image are.
 Utilise outside apps
• Don’t be afraid of using apps outside Instagram,
such as CortexCam for handheld, or Slow Shutter
Cam which requires stable support like a tripod.
• Check apps that helps with phone picture
editing/ text–on-photo
 Consistency is key
• If you use Instagram on a regular basis, you’ll know that viewing one image at
a time on your feed is how it usually goes – but then you visit the profile of
someone you follow, where you can see all their posts at once.

• Some profiles use this to their advantage, posting individual images which,
when viewed all at once, create a larger image.

• Take a look at what you post. Is there a recurring theme, or colour scheme?

• Do some images stand out simply because they look nothing like the rest?
This can be jarring for the viewer. Make sure to keep your feed consistent, so
the way your images are composed becomes synonymous with your brand
identity.
CAPTIONS
 The best captions encourage people to
engage
• Whichever social media platform you’re using, the caption
should invite people to engage. The same, of course, is true
of Instagram.

• Short titles, and key phrases associated with the image

you’re sharing, provide the viewer with something they can
remember easily.

• Asking questions in the caption will encourage viewers to

comment, which in turn can spark conversations between
users and raise brand awareness.
 Write drafts
• You don’t have to caption an image with the first thing you
think of. Of course, you can edit captions on an Instagram
post, but it’s simply easier to post exactly what you want to
say and then let the post do its thing.

• Don’t rush the process of captioning. You could write a few

ideas down and choose the best one, consult with others, or
even ask them to answer a poll on the best option.

• In general, take your time to come up with the perfect

caption.
 Put the important stuff first
• Instagram captions have a character limit of 2200 characters,
which admittedly sounds like a lot – but you should note that the
caption will be cut off after 3-4 lines of text.

• Yes, the user can simply click to ‘see more’, but if you put the
important stuff at the beginning of your caption, they won’t have
to.

• You don’t have to keep your captions short – sometimes this just
isn’t feasible – but make sure to put crucial content, hashtags, or
calls-to-action at the beginning, and leave the rest for those willing
to seek it out.
 Call To Action
• Speaking of a call to action, there are several different ones you can use
in an Instagram caption.

• You can ask a question, or request your followers share related stories in
the comments. These can be great for developing interest or sparking
debate.

• As clickable links in captions are currently not possible, you should try
and direct users to the link in your Instagram bio, if you have one.

• Instagram contests are also a great idea to spread the word about your
brand. Feature a specific hashtag in your caption, and encourage your
followers to post their own images using the hashtag.
 Be careful with hashtags
• If you make your posts public, anyone who searches for a relevant
hashtag will find your post. In this way, hashtags are a fantastic
way to connect users who are interested in your brand and similar
topics.

• However, use them sparingly. Posts where every other word of the
caption is hashtag, or which end with a stream of tagged words
which (if you’re honest) aren’t especially relevant, look unwieldy
and oversaturated. Put simply, it looks like spam.

• We would advise you place your hashtags in the comment section.

 Emojis
• Emojis can add personality to your captions, making it
seem like there is actually a person operating your
Instagram and portray that you know how to have some
fun with them and be creative.

• There are different ways they can be used – in place of

words, at the beginning of a caption to catch the user’s
eye, or at the end as a sort of ‘punchline’.

• Try experimenting, and see what gets you the best results.
 Check your spelling
• As previously mentioned, it is possible to edit a caption
after it’s been posted.

• However, if you make an error, there’s no telling how

long it will be before you catch it yourself, or before your
viewers notice and decide to let you know.

• Always take the time to check your spelling, grammar,

and phrasing, before you post. In order for your caption
to engage your followers, it needs to make sense!
HASHTAGS
 Tricks and TIPS
• Don’t use irrelevant hashtags.
• Use the right amount of hashtags (10 max!)
• Use specific or niche hashtags
• Make sure that hashtag means what you think it
means
• Create a hashtags for our page (short and easy to
remember)
INSPIRATION
 ACCOUNTS

@elevationworship
@mightypursuit
@prochurchmedia
@jcm_rccg
@vouschurch
@elevationchurch
@kingdomcultur3