Instagram is a free mobile app where you can exchange photos and videos via your mobile phone. The use of Instagram has grown enormously in recent years. With this, your business can actually grow on Instagram (groeien op Instagram). It is an ideal platform for the promotion of your book! There are so many great options, you can easily reach the right target group and there is no lack of inspiration!
Building Your Author Platform using Instagram
Here are tips for setting up and using your Instagram account to promote your book.
1. The name of your Instagram account.
The name of your Instagram account is very important, with this you can be found. When you think of the name, ask yourself the following question – What do you want to achieve with your account? Do you want to share your writing process, are you looking for inspiration, do you want to inspire others? Or do you simply want to promote your own book? As soon as you want to use Instagram to promote your own book, you can name your account after your book. Perhaps you have written several books then you can, of course, use your own name or company name.
2. A good profile photo.
The first impression of your profile is very important: on that basis, people decide whether they want to follow you or not. So think carefully about your profile photo. Keep it simple, professional and make sure that everything that you want to show in the profile photo suits you well and remains legible.
3. Make a catchy biography.
Your biography is the text that is the first under your account name. It shows at a glance what your followers can expect on your Instagram account. Share who you are, what stage of writing you are in, what your book will be called and when your book will be published. Is your book already on the market? State in your bio where you can order your book. It can also be useful to add your own e-mail address to your biography so that followers can make direct contact when they are interested.
4. Make sure your profile is public.
With a personal profile, you can opt for a public or private account. With a closed profile, you can of course never promote your product. In this case, provide a public profile so that Instagram users can always find and follow you.
5. Post your first photo.
Post good quality photos. The rule is that photos must have a minimum format of 1080 x 1080 pixels. You can give this photo a filter or edit it for an even better look.
6. The caption with your photo.
Place relevant texts with your photo. For example, you can use your post to tell a story about your writing process, what the book looks like, or you share the quote that inspires you today. Your posts show what you are doing, what you are proud of and what inspires you. Tip: make sure that your post encourages followers to take action, for example, to buy your book or to follow you.
7. Use hashtags.
Tags are search terms that people use to search for photos but that also makes your photo findable. You can place this in the caption of your photo or in response to your photo. Always place relevant hashtags.
Note: it is not about the number of hashtags, your followers often do not like to see this. Between five and ten tags is a safe amount. Don’t know which tags are relevant? Just go look up these tags, how many results does this yield? Do these photos that you come across fit with your post?
8. Use Instagram as a source of inspiration.
Instagram has a lot of followers, so also enough inspiration! Press the magnifying glass and discover what others post. This way you can start following other people or companies that are of interest to you.
9. Share your story.
Another option that Instagram offers is sharing your story. This allows you to share a snapshot or photo that disappears after a short while. So you can use your story to share what you don’t necessarily want to keep on your timeline. You share your story by pressing the photo camera at the top left of your screen. Tip: go play with the options boomerang, superzoom, the playback video and make your story personal by adding texts, drawings, and emojis.
10. Ensure interaction.
Do your followers respond to your photo? Respond back! Ask a question in your post and provoke a discussion, share your writing tips or experiences. You can also respond to photos of others, thereby encouraging them to take a look at your profile.
11. Instagram shopping.
You can now also turn your Instagram page into a store. This way you can tag products and offer them for sale via your photo. For this, you need an Instagram company account, Facebook store, and 9 salable products. Will that work out?