4 steps to get started on Instagram
Let’s talk about how to get started on Instagram as a digital influencer.
I’ll list 4 steps that I think are important to follow if you’d like to start as an influencer/content creator on Instagram this year.
I do not include it on the list, but creating a Business or Creator account on Instagram is the first step. Why a Business or creator account? Because that way, you will have the option to check your “insights” and analyze what’s working well or not. To create your Business / Creator account, you must also have a Facebook page. There are tons of texts on google where you can find how to do these things. I’ll not be going into this matter in this post as I want to jump ahead on steps I think are essential but more important to know.
1- Start by creating content
It seems a little bit obvious, but there you go.
If you want to be a creator, you should be creating. People quite often think they need to have a good audience or they need to have a massive number of followers to start making the content. It is not true.
I'm sure you've heard the expression "practice makes perfection" before.
This is the perfect example to show how wonderfully this works here.
You should start by creating content, especially for the niche you want to attract. So if you'd like to be a travel influencer, you should begin going places and creating content related to that.
Everybody lives somewhere that has tourist places nearby. There you go! It's your queue to go there and start creating content.
Every time will be different, and you will learn something new every time you go out to create. This still happens to us until nowadays! So push yourself to try to make one piece of content every day. It's hard, I know. But I've heard this challenge from a famous photographer/ YouTuber, who suggested people should shoot and post one picture daily for 365 days.
I guarantee you will improve and get much more confident with your skills and what you want to share with your community!
Plus, it's great to feel what your community like or not. If you haven't decided on your style or don't know what you will like or not, you should be posting and analyzing what the best content for YOU and your community is.
2- Follow people from your same niche
It's all about building a community, right? And technically, if you're here, it's because you don't have a solid one yet.
So my most profound advice is: start following people from your niche.
Do excellent research and find people that inspire you and do the same you want to do. Networking is essential when it comes to Instagram. You must start seeing and being seen by people and brands related to the content you wish to post.
Does that make sense? Imagine you just moved into a new neighborhood. You need to introduce yourself to the community. Engaging with them so you can one day be a unique part of it!
Remember, some people adapt to a new community/neighborhood immediately, and others take a little longer. But once you find YOUR PEOPLE within YOUR NICHE, everything else becomes lighter and more enjoyable.
Having a community on Instagram can mean getting to know a lot of amazing people around the world. So be kind to them and always give back to your community.
3- Plan a frequency of posts
We've all heard that "YOU MUST POST EVERYDAY ON IG." This is in the past. However, you do need to set a frequency on when to post and where you will be able to keep up with it.
For example, it does;t work if you post every day of a week and the next one you don't post at all. So when starting your account, you need to have content first and then start posting it.
So go back to phase 1, plan right and then start posting. See the number of content you have and for how long, and decide how many days of the week you will post.
It's true that if you post daily, you will attract more people and be seen more. So if you can post daily, this is the ideal setup. Especially if you're in the beginner phase, your growth can be exponential.
4- Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories is where you will bond with your community.
Of course, feeds are very important to attract new followers, BUT the stories are where you will keep them closer to you.
Interact the most you can with your community. Never think you're doing too much or that someone doesn't want to hear what you're saying or see what you're doing. If they are there, they are interested in seeing you. Even when you don't think you're doing something worth sharing, most of the time, your community would probably love to see that!
Invest in the stories. Invest in asking questions to your followers and answering their questions.
These four steps are the most important for those who want to start on Instagram.
You can also watch our Youtube video about the 4 steps we mentioned above here.
There is much more to share about the digital influencer life and many tips and tricks you should apply to grow your social media platform organically.
We'll keep sharing some insights here. But, if you'd like to be ahead of the curve, keep an eye out for our online course for those who want to take a step further. You will be able to learn everything from getting started to how you can monetize your content working as a content creator and influencer.
The course is in Portuguese. The waiting list for our online course is now open and if you'd like to guarantee your place and be the first one to know when it will be launched, click here.
