How To Build A Purposeful Social Media Presence

Now that the head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, announced Instagram will be moving towards a video platform versus an image-sharing app, the heat has been kicking in. Don’t sweat it, it’s still a thriving image-sharing platform and now it’s time to mix it up. Adding reels, more stories, live’s, and all that good stuff make for a more engaging Instagram people actually can learn from and want to follow. Which is key.

The best route is to add some purposeful content that can inspire others. We don’t have to give up on enjoying social media and sharing what matters. You can be inspired or you can inspire someone or brands to do the same, and that’s what it’s all about. We shared some tips below and stay tuned for more branding growth strategies to come.

Reels, stories, and going live

There is something about live and engaging Instagram stories, reels, guides, and going live that creates a sense of belonging to your followers. Reels are where it is at, and who doesn’t love scrolling and learning from reels - even if it’s just to laugh! Reels have added so much excitement to the platform and rightfully so. Going live is an amazing way to connect with your community as well – ask them what type of content they’re interested in seeing, and move forward based on their thoughts. The whole point is to share and listen - make it worth it for your followers. Engage with them and stay true to you. They follow you for a reason and you should always be up for giving back and not losing sight of why they followed you in the first place! Instagram stories are a great way to help promote your blog posts and share behind-the-scenes content.

See more of Entire Magazine on Instagram!

Quality vs. Quantity

Brands now know that the one thing that they could definitely depend on for authenticity is engagement.

There are no more days where brands pay or invest in influencers just because they have millions of followers. The real ROI for them lies in how many people they can actually pull back to their brand after they work with an influencer, and how invested their followers are in the partnerships they make. No more fighting or buying followers, now it's about quality versus quantity and how real engagement and excitement for a brand are shown.

If you’re an influencer with a small but engaged audience, know that you have the ability to grow and shine out to some who have 100K followers. Brands are more willing to collaborate with you; rather than throwing money at millions of impressions with no real promise of a solid ROI.

Think about the most well-known brands in the world today: one thing they are all guaranteed to have in common is an engaging, active social media presence. Create compelling content that will spark shares and engagement, and be effective and supportive back! Instead of brands spending millions of dollars on advertising they can pay YOU! 

Mix real life and business

People are moved by not what you sell but the story behind it all. They will shop from small businesses because they want to support you, the person behind it all. It makes it all be real because it is. Getting to see a behind-the-scenes peek into how you run things and what your life is like. It lets people connect with you and helps you stand apart from your competitors. So mix it up and share away!

Plan your grid

The best way to draw new people to your account is to have an A+ looking grid and using all of its real estate. You need to see what the layout looks like versus throwing stuff on your feed making it look messy or undesirable to the eye. We use Planoly and UNUM to see how it all lays out before posting and it is key. Planning your grid in order of colors and types of photos makes your feed feel well balanced. Also, almost every app for photos has a cropped aspect for full portrait images on Instagram. A full-length shot is more appealing than a cropped one.

Be Authentic

Make sure you can always deliver for yourself, your audience, and the brand investing in you. Do not mislead them - transparency is key. Even more so because they can see exactly what you are doing. Most of all, be authentic to your audience. Never lose sight of them. Take that extra step to TRULY engage, and see how your audience returns the favor by staying loyal to you. Don't just comment with "cool photo" or "love it," add more! If someone can take the time out to add a great comment to your post, you have the time to do the same.

Most importantly, BE IN THE MOMENTS. We know capturing a great photo or video is important, but do remember life is short and every second of your life matters. Don’t was it thinking social media is everything. Breathe and take it all in.