To prepare for the launch of Photographer Social SchoolI asked you to give me all your burning Instagram questions. And just as I knew you would, you delivered! 

We’ll be doing a more strategic deep dive on all aspects of building your brand with Instagram in the course, but to give you a sense of what the hot topics and challenges are within the ESB community, here are some of the most common questions you have about harnessing the power of Instagram for your business.

What’s the most efficient way to build up my following?

Okay, bad news first: there’s no shortcut to building up a healthy, engaged following. The good news is, it’s not rocket science! It takes work. It takes good content (which, as a photographer, you’ve got no shortage of). But most importantly, it takes consistency.

So work out a schedule you can reasonably stick to, and either set yourself a reminder to post on those days, or take advantage of one of the many scheduling apps that exist and be someone your audience can count on. Don’t forget to use hashtags as well — more on my hashtag strategy here.

How do I convert my followers to clients?

This is a simple question with a multi-faceted answer, but a few things are must-dos to improve conversion. One is to engage with your followers like it’s going out of style. Be that person who always responds to comments, and go deeper than “thank you!” or “I love that!” wherever possible. Another is to post photos that evoke strong emotions.

When your followers see themselves and their families reflected in your content, you’ll become the natural choice to capture their beautiful family milestones.

This one is key: don’t forget to let your audience know you’re available to book! At least one post per week should have a CTA that guides your clients toward working with you. Check out this post for a great example of how you can sell yourself without being salesy.

Is there a formula for writing captions that hold people’s attention?

There are a couple of surefire ways to hold my attention: one is to tell me a compelling story, and two is teach me something I can use. When you’re trying to figure out what to write, it can be helpful to establish 3-4 content pillars, and make sure each post fits within those pillars. Maybe on Mondays, you share tips for clients, like questions to ask when hiring a photographer, or what kind of clothing shows up best in photos. On Wednesdays, maybe you share a sneak peek from a recent session and a tender moment from the shoot. Fridays might be the day you share a glimpse of your personal life and why you’re building your business on your terms.

Be sure to check out Part II of this post where we get into showing up on video and boosting engagement.