Hi, this is Jay P! We have Jordan Zobrist with us today, and she’s going to teach us how to create a strong brand on Instagram.
This video is sponsored by Black Rapid’s new Nicole Elliott Camera Strap. It’s a strap designed for women that is based on the way babies have been carried for centuries. Nicole Elliott by BLACKRAPID takes the pressure points away from your neck and shoulders by “hugging” your shoulder to evenly distribute the weight. Allowing you to have full mobility and making your camera feel virtually weightless. Shoot for hours without feeling fatigue, discomfort or pain!
The strap is reversible – black on one side, black and white pattern on the other – business and party in one unique design. The shoulder strap has two pockets for lens caps and two zippered pockets for memory cards, batteries and whatever other small accessories you want to keep close. The strap has a release trigger snap hook that locks in place when hooked to the 1/4″ screw that attaches securely to the bottom of your camera. And the strap adjusts to up to 63” in total length, ensuring a perfect fit for any body type.
#1 Post Every Day
The purpose of Instagram for photographers is to show your work, and the best way to do that is to consistently post every single day. That may be challenging, but if you find yourself not having enough content to do that, that’s a sign that you need to get out and shoot more! When you post every day, Instagram’s algorithm picks you up as an active user and they will bump up your posts to get seen by more people.
If you’re running low on new photos, then pulling old content from previous shoots isn’t a bad idea either.
#2 Post Examples of Work That You Want to Attract
Sometimes if you’re scrambling to try to make that daily post schedule, you might choose content that maybe doesn’t represent the kind of work you want to attract for future business. For example, if you want to be a wedding photographer and attract newly engaged couples, it’s probably not the best idea to post photos of your dog or family portraits.
#3 Post the Best Examples of Your Work
Sometimes we might want to post personal photos or things that are meaningful to us. Jordan suggests getting a separate Instagram account for that, or posting it on your Instagram stories. Stories are where your more unfiltered, more personal content can go so people get to know you better. But your Instagram feed should be as professional and polished as you can make it. Treat it like your portfolio.
#4 Develop Your Own Consistent Shooting and Editing Style
With the way Instagram is laid out, it puts your photos right next to each other in a grid on your profile. So, people get to see your work set next to each other from different shoots, people, and times of the day. And the way that you establish your brand is strongly determined by the way you edit. Some people like muted Earth tones, strong contrast & high saturation, or light & whimsical etc. You want to showcase a body of work that shows style and similarity, but doesn’t become the SAME for every post.
#5 Have a Clear And Concise Bio
In case you didn’t know, your Instagram bio is the text that you put underneath your profile photo, follower count, and name. People want to know right when they get to your profile what kind of creative work that you do. If you’re a photographer, state that at the top and include what kind of photography you specialize in. It’s also important to state where you live and if you travel a lot, where you’re going in the near future.
On the subject of hashtags:
Instagram allows you to attach up to 30 hashtags to one post. Jordan thinks that you should try to use all of the 30, but you shouldn’t put them in the description of your post. Instead, post them all in a comment so people don’t see the multiple lines of hashtags and have it distract from your caption.
You should also make sure that the hashtags you are using are relevant to the photo you’re posting and to you as a photographer.
What time of day is the best to post? If you’re listed as a business on Instagram, you can go into your insights and see what time of day on each day of the week your followers are most active. You want to try to post when your followers are on Instagram so that they see your photos
Here are some general good times for the week:
We had Jordan show us how she works while trying out the Nicole Elliott strap.
A few things Jordan really liked about the Nicole Elliott strap is the lens cap pocket on the front
The comfortability of the wide fabric at the top of the strap
Last but not least, she loved the simple but elegant black and white design! For more info and to purchase a Black Rapid Nicole Elliott Strap, click here.
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