You can follow along with these screen shots of my phone as I create a post. Or, you can skip to the bottom of this page for a numbered list of directions.
Open the Instagram app
Click on the + on the top right corner of your phone
You will get a drop down called Create New that gives you options
Choose: Feed Post
Choose your photo from your phone’s photo Gallery
Edit your photo,
straighten the horizon and choose a filter, if you want.
Click on the Blue arrow at the top right corner of your phone to get to the page where you write your message
Type over Write a caption….
Write a comment that add values and invites engagement
Add hashtags
Tag People
Click on your photo and start typing your Instagram name to tag yourself or anyone in the photo
Tap the blue check mark at the top right of the page
Add location
Click on your photo and start typing your location to tag yourself or anyone in the photo
Share to Facebook
When your post is live answer people’s comments
First Steps to Make an Instagram Post
Load the Instagram app on your phone.
Open the Instagram app
Click on the + on the top right corner of your phone inside the Instagram App
You will get a drop down that gives you options.
Choose Create New
Choose: Create post
Choose your photo from your phone’s photo Gallery
– Edit your photo,
– straighten the horizon, choose a filter, add text and stickers if you want
Click on the Blue arrow at the top right corner of your phone to get to the page where you write your message
Type over Write a caption….
– Describe your photo with a comment that add values and invites engagement.
Add hashtags
Tag People
– Tap on your photo and start typing your Instagram name to tag yourself or anyone in the photo
Add location
– Click on your photo and start typing your location
Share to Facebook if you want to
Tap the blue check mark at the top right of the page to load your post
TaDa!! Good for you!! You did it! Have fun!!
I would love to know if this was helpful for you and what other questions you have. Please drop me a line or message me through Instagram.
Instagram is a social sharing network mobile app, that you load onto your smart phone for sharing photos and tidbits about your day. It started in 2010, was bought by Facebook in 2012, and has more users than Facebook and Twitter. Insta (instant) Gram (telegram) is an easy way to share photos that you can enhance with built-in filters and simple edits. You can share photos and video real time and add fun stickers with details like location, temperature, time, day and mood. You follow friends and people who align with your interests. People can follow you back and make comments about your photos. They find you with hash tags #.
Even if you don’t understand or wish to use Instagram at least set up an account with your branding name to reserve the name for when you decide to join the fun. My company name is EileenDreams and I missed out on Twitter and got EileenDreamsD – pretty lame. While you are at it, do the same for SnapChat etc if you plan to expand with Social Media….
The easiest way to use Instagram is to use it how it was originally meant to be used:
Take a photo,
Post it,
Add a relevant comment and a couple hashtags.
To Get Started:
Download the Instagram app on your smartphone and sign up for an Instagram account.
Add your profile photo and information. If you are better with a keyboard than a smart phone you can fill in your bio, profile, links, and upload your profile photo on your computer at Instagram.com
Link your new Instagram account to Facebook, Twitter and all your social media platforms and invite your friends to follow you.
There are enough features to edit photos within Instagram itself. There are photo editing tools, filters, tools to level out your horizons, and there is even a rule of thirds grid. Instagram is known for their filters so have fun experimenting with them.
Insanely Simple Photo Editing Sites To Create Memes if you don’t like making your own graphics and are just starting out. (Only use this if you really have to because it screams newbie.)
http://www.canva.com/
http://www.picmonkey.com/
I only ever use my own photos and I find great pleasure in taking my own photos. (To each his own.)
If you need photos, try these free sites:
https://unsplash.com/
http://deathtothestockphoto.com/
https://picjumbo.com/
https://www.morguefile.com/
My 2 favourite graphics sites for images and fonts are:
www.Creativemarket.com
www.inkydeals.com/
Take it up a Notch
First, decide what your goal for this Instagram account is and then have a vision of what you want it to look like. Always remember your own personality, voice, and look. While you should stay true to the look and feel of your brand, some Instagram accounts stay so rigid to their brand that they have become boring. When I started I just wanted to learn how to do it and jumped right in. If you post photos that are not in line with your branding image you can always delete them later while you are still learning. Authenticity is key so don’t worry if it’s not perfect.
If you want to get fancy with your photo, add text and filters, I use an app that I downloaded to my smartphone called “TextGram”. I have tried others but I prefer TextGram because it is simple and it doesn’t load a bunch of advertising crap onto my phone. With TextGram you can add text, frames, filters, fancy effects and it is fast on done on the fly.
Have Fun 🙂
Turn on your phone’s location. Look at other people’s posts and start interacting with them. It is good etiquette to always reply to comments. Manners count just like IRL (in real life).
“Is it t-shirt worthy?” Sometimes it is just relevant or newsworthy but it helps keep the quality of my posts.
Speak to your Uncle (or ideal customer, or friend). Instagram is all about connecting with real people.
Keep your posts positive. You have to be authentic but people turn to Instagram for an instant feel good feeling and appreciate a little smile. When desperate for an idea; Cat photos always work. This is a proven fact. Seriously.
Try https://ifttt.com/ to save time if you wish to cross post to your other social media platforms.
Ideas To Increase Engagement
Using the search option is a great way to find like-minded connections. If you view someone’s profile and honestly like their photos, they might also enjoy your photos or content and start looking at your posts and may even become a follower. Take advantage of your profile section with a photo of you, what you do, and the link you want to share. My IG account is a business account but you can set yours up as a personal account and easily change it later if you want to. When I started I participated in a weekend hashtag project hosted by Instagram. These are fun and always provide an unexpected perspective. Use #hashtags. (a way to define searches.) Occasionally there are rumours about Instagram changing the way it feeds. People get in a big panic and post all sorts of things to get to be at the front of a feed. Honestly, unless you have gazillion followers it really doesn’t matter unless maybe you are in high school.
Just continue to keep engaged and authentic, and have fun! This is my Instagram feed if you are curious. Hopefully you see a theme here:
Grateful for today. A friend talked me off my lazy butt for a walk at the beach. Oh my goodness, the sunshine, wind, & waves were a treat!
The wind surfers put on a show flying above the whitecapped waves & sea spray. We found treasures at the White Rock Museum Art fair, then watched a very, very early sunset.
Such a wonderful day to spend outside breathing fresh air.
Grateful for today. A friend talked me off my lazy butt for a walk at the beach. Oh my goodness, the sunshine, wind, & waves were a treat!
The wind surfers put on a show flying above the whitecapped waves & sea spray. We found treasures at the White Rock Museum Art fair, then watched a very, very early sunset.
Such a wonderful day to spend outside breathing fresh air.
Grateful for the light and beauty in this world. Oh my goodness, it is a beautiful world, and the artists that share their love and light overwhelm me.
Grateful for the light and beauty in this world. Oh my goodness, it is a beautiful world, and the artists that share their love and light overwhelm me.
Grateful for the privilege of travel. Oh my goodness, it`s wonderful here in Puerto Vallarta. Today, the Dia de Muertos celebrations are on, so it`s even more colourful, festive, & vibrant than usual. It is also much hotter than typical here by 5 degrees Celsius. Humid, melting & loving it. 🌞
Grateful for the privilege of travel. Oh my goodness, it`s wonderful here in Puerto Vallarta. Today, the Dia de Muertos celebrations are on, so it`s even more colourful, festive, & vibrant than usual. It is also much hotter than typical here by 5 degrees Celsius. Humid, melting & loving it. 🌞
Grateful for the colours of Fall. Oh my goodness, this has been a splendidly beautiful Autumn season. I drove up to Revelstoke last weekend, and the mountains glowed in gold, orange, yellow, and red, boasting a completely different colour palette from a few months ago. The most beautiful scenes aren’t captured here, partly because I was driving, but mostly because no photo could truly capture the brilliance of those colours and the magnitude of the mountains that looked like they were on fire with colour.
This province astounds me at every turn, so I had to throw in a few photos from this Fall, taken here on the Peninsula, and Vancouver Island.
And, of course, what I am most grateful for is my family and the time I was able to spend with them. Happy Thanksgiving, my friends and family. I am grateful for you.💖
Grateful for the colours of Fall. Oh my goodness, this has been a splendidly beautiful Autumn season. I drove up to Revelstoke last weekend, and the mountains glowed in gold, orange, yellow, and red, boasting a completely different colour palette from a few months ago. The most beautiful scenes aren’t captured here, partly because I was driving, but mostly because no photo could truly capture the brilliance of those colours and the magnitude of the mountains that looked like they were on fire with colour.
This province astounds me at every turn, so I had to throw in a few photos from this Fall, taken here on the Peninsula, and Vancouver Island.
And, of course, what I am most grateful for is my family and the time I was able to spend with them. Happy Thanksgiving, my friends and family. I am grateful for you.💖
Grateful for a walk from Blackie`s Spit, along the Dyke, through Dunsmuir Gardens, & around the Crescent Beach neighbourhood. Oh my goodness, what a beautifully colourful Autumn. These photos are from today`s stroll.
I spent Sunday with a friend who tested positive for covid, so I have been laying low & keeping my distance just in case. I was grateful that today she felt well enough to get outside & invited me along.
Have you ever walked that loop? Everybody says hello. 💕 It`s a most wonderful feel-good way to connect with nature & people & I am grateful I got off my lazy a** & did it.😁
Grateful for a walk from Blackie`s Spit, along the Dyke, through Dunsmuir Gardens, & around the Crescent Beach neighbourhood. Oh my goodness, what a beautifully colourful Autumn. These photos are from today`s stroll.
I spent Sunday with a friend who tested positive for covid, so I have been laying low & keeping my distance just in case. I was grateful that today she felt well enough to get outside & invited me along.
Have you ever walked that loop? Everybody says hello. 💕 It`s a most wonderful feel-good way to connect with nature & people & I am grateful I got off my lazy a** & did it.😁
Grateful for my friends and the privilege of living in this beautiful province of BC. I recently had the pleasure of traveling up Pitt Lake with my besties. No roads, no social media, no cell service—just a million stars, pictographs, boat rides, lime green lichen art on cliffs, green water, blue skies, quick dips in the lake, and laughter. There were a few moments where I thought, "How did I get so lucky in this wonderful world?" (Thankyou Cathy!)
I hope you had a special end to your summer too, my friend.
Grateful for my friends and the privilege of living in this beautiful province of BC. I recently had the pleasure of traveling up Pitt Lake with my besties. No roads, no social media, no cell service—just a million stars, pictographs, boat rides, lime green lichen art on cliffs, green water, blue skies, quick dips in the lake, and laughter. There were a few moments where I thought, "How did I get so lucky in this wonderful world?" (Thankyou Cathy!)
I hope you had a special end to your summer too, my friend.
Grateful for sunshine, friends, the freedom of a long weekend, & the beautiful Fraser Valley. I took a road trip with my besties in the Cherry Bomb. We went our own way, & took the long way there & back again. Oh my goodness, it`s a beautiful world. 💖
Grateful for sunshine, friends, the freedom of a long weekend, & the beautiful Fraser Valley. I took a road trip with my besties in the Cherry Bomb. We went our own way, & took the long way there & back again. Oh my goodness, it`s a beautiful world. 💖
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