5 questions I asked myself before starting my business account on Instagram

I’ve been using Instagram since 2013, but only privately. When I started my business in 2021, of course I wanted to use Instagram for my Business as well.

So, I wrote down the following 5 questions and answered them before I started my business account on Instagram.

1. What’s my goal on Instagram?

When I ask people about their business goals on Instagram, mostly they can’t give me an answer. But it is important to set a goal for Instagram. It helps you know exactly why you’re doing this. It also gives you a set size to measure your progress on Instagram. And it also helps you stay motivated even when things get tough.

What is your business goal on Instagram? If you don’t know, grab a piece of paper and a pen or use your laptop. Think about what you want to achieve on Instagram and write it down. If things aren’t going well and you’re a little frustrated, take a look at your goals. They will help you to motivate yourself.

Goals change from time to time. Therefore, take a look at your goals and adjust them.

2. Who do I want to target on Instagram?

In order to address the right people with your content, it is important to know who you want to address. Knowing your target audience is just as important, if not more important, than the goal you are pursuing.

Only if you know your target group very well, you can create posts on Instagram that your target group is interested in. This in turn ensures that people follow your profile on Instagram and interact with your profile which brings you one step closer to your goal.

Your target audience should definitely not be “everyone”. Because the target group everyone is not a target group.

Who is your target audience?

Find out, but don’t put pressure on yourself. Take your time and think about who your target audience is and how best to address them. Often, just by intuition, we are addressing the right target audience. Remember, if you have your target audience in mind before you even start on Instagram, it will be much easier for you to post regularly.

3. How often do I want to post?

We all have a limited amount of time. Especially if you’re a one woman or a one man show in your business, you’ve got a lot of tasks to do. Therefore, think carefully how often do you want to post on Instagram. Especially at the beginning, you might be a bit over-motivated and want to post on Instagram every day.

However, much more important than the frequency is the quality of your posts. It’s better to create fewer, but high-quality posts that grab the attention of your target audience.

Continuity is very important on Instagram. It won’t do you any good if you start posting daily on Instagram and then slack off because you don’t have time. This will cause you to lose interest and maybe only post once in a while or stop posting altogether. That, in turn, leads to frustration because you’re not making any progress.

Therefore, set yourself realistic goals. Don’t take on too much. It’s enough to publish a post three times a week, but continuously with high quality and tailored to your target audience.

Set fixed times for creating your content. Plan ahead. Because good planning avoids stress and helps you focus.

4. Which colors do I want to use?

You already have branding colors for your business? Wonderful, then you can also use them on Instagram to create a recognition value.

If you don’t have colors yet and are unsure what colors to use, think about what you want your colors to say. Colors have tremendous meaning. Do some research on the internet about the psychological effect of colors.

Yellow, for example, stands for cheerfulness and a good sence of humor, warmth, development and desire for freedom. Blue, on the other hand, is a symbol of harmony, balance, contentment and seriousness.

How do you want to be perceived and what values do you represent with your company? Try to apply this to your account color scheme.

Do not use too many colors. This quickly creates a confusing and restless impression. Four colors are ideal and ensure a harmonious overall picture.

5. How should I build my profile?

Of course, you can post your content the way you want. But Instagram is a visual platform and the first impression matters. The amount of attention on Instagram is 3 seconds. You should keep that in mind when creating your profile.

You don’t have to reinvent the wheel with every post. Think about three to four post formats that you would like to publish in your profile. Take a look at other profiles. How are they structured? What do you like best and what appeals to you? What is the first impression of the profile? Does it look harmonious?

Also search for profiles that don’t appeal you. What bothers you? Is it the colors or the structure? Does the profile seem too bumpy overall? Always keep an eye on the target group. What appeals to them? Are they more conservative or more extroverted?

And don’t worry. Once you’ve decided on a particular design for your Instagram profile, it doesn’t mean it has to stay that way forever. You evolve and so your Instagram profile does.

Do you have an Instagram profile for your business? What kind of questions did you asked yourself before you started?