You know what Instagram is and how it works, so I won’t bore you with the mechanics. Instagram’s platform is a perfect way to showcase your work and brand yourself as an filmmaker or artist. There are many ways to leverage Instagram towards new eyes and potential collaborators. We will be covering your profile, posting, and what I call, scratching.

update your profile

Your profile is a great place to show the world who you are and give them a call to action. My first suggestion to leveraging instagram is using your profile description to place a link. Links cannot be found in your post or descriptions, so it is important to have one in your profile. Your website, youtube channel, Vimeo, etc. are all great ways to drive people to your other content. In the end, it’s about driving followers towards your content. The bigger your instagram becomes the more eyes are on your links and the more people will follow that link. For example, my instagram links to my website, so they can see completed works, blogs, and get to know me.

Your profile photo on instagram is a bit different than other social media sites. Other social media outlets spotlight your profile picture more than instagram. In fact, on your phone it’s pretty small. On the computer it’s a bit larger. However, most people will be viewing instagram on a mobile device, so it’s going to be small. Thus, I would recommend a simple image with a big subject. Keeping your profile picture clean will make you more legit and be easy to interpret while viewing from a mobile device.

Something unique about Instagram is the ability to rename your Instagram handle at any time within your settings. Be careful when you change your handle, because it changes the link to your Instagram. If you have links to your feed on external platforms those will need to be updated. If people have tagged you in their posts with your old handle it will no longer link to your profile. Which can be a bummer on popular posts. Despite all of that, this is a great option to have when you feel you have outgrown your handle or want to do a little re-branding.

Another great feature is the ability to create a business account with Instagram and connect it to your Facebook business page. With this connection, you have the ability to include a “contact” button on your profile and add options like “call” and “email”. This can come in handy for production houses or direct to client freelancers. Just another way people can get in touch with you.

Post regularly and with relevant hashtags

In my experience the most important part of growing your reach on Instagram is regular scheduling. If you want to get serious about expanding, make a game plan. Stick to a regular schedule of postings. It can be a post once a week, every other day, every day. Whatever you choose make sure it’s in the realm of possibility and realistic for yourself. Scheduling your posts do three key things. (A) it gets you out creating content for your feed. It’s a great incentive to be creating. If you stay strict to a plan you will find yourself more likely to be taking pictures and working on content. You will be on the lookout for good content, because you will have a feed to, well, feed. (B) It forms habits. It creates routines for your creative process. Mainly it forms the habit of being on the lookout for a shoot. Finally (C) it increases your presence. The more you post, the more your content will be out in the public. With more content means more connections you can make. When you post more your name will be on people’s feeds more often and that constant reminder will be there for people.

Hashtags are a big part of Instagram and how you connect with others. They can be powerful if used correctly. When using hashtags put them into the photo's description and start by including five lines with a dot on each one before the hashtags.

.

.

.

.

.

#light #photooftheday #setlife #35mm #vsco  #etc

I like to create a default of hashtags in notes on my iPhone so I can copy and paste them right into Instagram

This is a great trick to avoid cluttered hashtags on your feed and images. Also, apart from aesthetics, using popular hashtags in the photo’s description is a great way to get your work seen. The more the tags have relevance the more people will connect with them and your feed. Do some research and find those popular tags that apply to you.

Tag others in your photos. This may sound a bit obvious, but the more connection you can have on Instagram the better. Take photos of other people that have a following, use them to leverage their audience. When you include others in your photos it creates a bigger audience and it also helps everyone involved. Getting others involved in your feed is an important part of growing.

Also, make sure to respond to comments on your own photos.

Instagram is a special balance between quality and quantity. Quality of your content is important for obvious reasons, however, after my experience, what really matters is just creating content. When I was new to Instagram I was afraid of what people would say or think about my work. I was afraid it was never going to be good enough. Those thoughts kept me from creating and sharing my work. Truth is, my work will never be good enough for me, but I can continue to practice and get better! Getting your content seen by people and increasing your exposure is what it is all about. Your quality will come with time and practice, but it’s more important to just get out and start shooting. Post what you have. Don’t wait for some sort of permission to post your work. Just do it.

engage with the community you want to influence

Spend about 10 to 20 minutes a day doing what I call scratching. Scratching is the idea of digging through Instagram to find other people’s work. Find people and feeds that you admire. Connect with those people and start building out your network. Those are the feeds that are going to be populating your home page and giving you inspiration. There are many ways you can go about scratching on Instagram here are a few of my ways.

Search people you know and follow their handle. When you follow someone similar feeds will pop up. This is a great way to connect with and find new like minded individuals. Also, following people can be a great way to get yourself noticed by them. They might even follow you back! Try following individuals with a small influence or just starting out. Those are the people that are much more likely to follow you back.

Like other peoples work. Go and find content that you enjoy. Go and like the photos on your feed and the people you are following. Search up popular tags and go through the recent uploads to find photos and profiles that you enjoy. That is, by far, my favorite method of scratching. I will go to #vsco or #35mm and find images and profiles I enjoy. I like them and follow their handle.

Go one step further than just liking, comment. Leave a comment on content that really sticks out to you. Make sure they know that you really like it! In my experience, leaving a comment is a great way to get others to check out your work and hopefully follow your feed.

It’s all about growing your web of connections on Instagram. The more connections you make, the more presence you have, and thus, the more eyes see you and your work. It’s a powerful tool to help brand yourself and show people your style. If you are not using Instagram to its full potential you are missing out.

add value to your audience

 It isn’t enough to just create content, have the right hashtags, or engage with other. You need to be adding value to people’s lives. You need to think about what are you giving them in return for that like. Maybe it’s as simple as a beautiful thing to looks at, but what if it is a tip or a how-to. Think about your audience and what they would like to know, learn, or see. Share what you are into. Share the cool new camera that just dropped. This is a huge way to grow your influence. Be the person that gives.

This is how instagram works. People like your photos, if they like them enough they will view your feed. Then they may like your other posts. If they like your other posts enough, they will follow you. When they follow you, they may click on your external link, out of curiosity. Make them curious for more. With those tips shown above you are sure to make a curious feed indeed.