Recently, we covered 3 To Do’s when marketing yourself on Instagram, which you can find here.
I don’t know about you, but I often figure out what to do by understanding what NOT to do.
Without further ado, let’s look at the flip side of successfully marketing yourself on Instagram.
Here are 3 Not To Do’s that you should AVOID AT ALL COSTS:
- Don’t be fake. When you present a façade or only present the glamorous parts of your life, your audience can pick up on your masquerade. Nobody’s perfect, and everybody is human. Your audience wants to see your humanness so that they can better relate to you and support you throughout your journey, both on Instagram and in life.
Your associates in real life also have social media – if they find significant disconnect between the “real” you and the “social media” you that you present to others … well, they may call you out on it. And totally undermine your credibility. People aren’t plastic – they don’t want fake. They want real, authentic, and genuine connection. It’s really easy to do … just be yourself! You’ll attract the right people into your life, whether in person or on Instagram, if you stick to being YOU.
- Don’t lose yourself. As you gain more traction and followers on Instagram, I urge you not to let the numbers get to your head. When you value sheer numbers, either in likes or followers, over the value of your content, your content starts to falter. Then your numbers will likewise falter. Even worse, when you value sheer numbers over the community you’re fostering, you’ll lose your community. Then your content won’t be relevant, and you won’t be relevant either. Remember to continually engage the community you’re creating – you must actively approach your community by responding to your audience and seeking their input for continued content and feedback.
Your audience will appreciate your transparency; more importantly, your audience will claim ownership in helping foster your community. Plus, you may be surprised by your audiences’ ideas – your community may just inspire your next brilliant business move! Use your community to grow your brand and the community itself. In fact, I recommend incorporating your community into your marketing so your followers genuinely feel a part of your success … because they are!
- Don’t expect overnight stardom. Overnight success doesn’t exist – an “overnight success” is just the tip of an iceberg covering years of grunt work invisible to passing ships. If you expect yourself to hit the ground running and acclaim thousands of followers in your first couple weeks or months of self-marketing, you’ll be tempted to stop running when your progress doesn’t match your expectations.
Resist the urge to throw in the towel. Pick up your towel, wipe your brow, and prepare yourself to sweat as you push out more content, learn from your experiences, and apply your insights to develop better content and branding in the future. Consistency is key – if you put in the work and intelligently approach your work, you will do just fine in building your brand and providing value to your audience over time. The more value you provide, the better following you will amass. Keep your perspective and don’t be afraid to play the long game – success is NOT an overnight phenomenon.
Avoid these 3 Not To Do’s and you will experience significant gains in your audience size, relationships, and level of impact. Don’t be fake. Don’t lose yourself. Don’t expect overnight stardom.
If you need help with leveraging Instagram’s marketing offerings, especially with your volume of DMs and your frequency of engagement with others, The Five Day Startup provides a cost-effective, holistic solution tailored for your marketing needs. Check us out at here and let us help take your Instagram marketing game to the next level! Take action today and reach out. We look forward to serving you and your marketing needs.
By Scott Bartnick
