5 easy ways to humanise your Instagram account
Because buyers connect with humans, not companies
Instagram has quickly taken over the social platforms as the one who boasts higher engagement rates with fans. With over 1 billion daily active users, Instagram is the best social platform to establish your brand image and find loyal fans.
Although authentic Instagram engagement can take some time and effort, having a couple of hundred loyal fans is better than a huge account with fake followers. Why? Because the loyal fans are the ones who will ultimately buy from you.
So, how do you get these loyal followers?
It’s simple – be yourself. Be human. People want to connect with humans, not companies.
Here are my top 5 ways to humanise your Instagram account
1. Tell stories
From a young age, most of us love stories. It starts with our parents tucking us into bed and reading a bedtime story. And you probably had that favourite story (or your kids do now) that you wanted every single night and you learnt off by heart.
Stories enhance your imagination, takes you out of your world and into another.
You’ve got to admit that leaving your world for a little bit and hearing about someone else’s world is fun, yeah? Especially if it’s got juicy bits! All the women’s magazines do this.
Since Instagram launched Stories a couple of years ago, people love them.
Your stories don’t have to be polished and allow you to show your human side. Share things like your top tips, insights into your world, and your business story (good and bad). Make them fun, unique, engaging and entertaining.
As with all things Instagram, knowing your audience will help you create stand-out stories. And don’t forget your hashtags!
2. Include photos of your world
One of the best ways to humanise your Instagram account is to show your fans that you are indeed a real human by sharing photos. These can be photos of you and your team and include some behind the scenes photos of your company.
Photos can help you tell your story and give your fans an insight into your world. For example, when something funny happens in your office, share a photo and create relevant hashtags such as #humansofsamsays.
You only need to look at the number of influencers on Instagram that are making a name for themselves (and some decent money) simply by taking photos and sharing the hashtag of relevant companies.
People love photos, and with Instagram being a visual platform, your funny, human photos are guaranteed to be a hit.
3. Share your personality in your content
‘They only share the best generic product photos on Instagram; I want to follow them’, said no one ever! It’s dull, it’s bland, and it lacks personality.
Most followers will look at the top 9 photos of your grid and if there’s nothing that captures their imagination (i.e. they are all boring product images), they likely won’t follow you.
Don’t get me wrong, product photos are ok, but add your personality to it. Show your product in use. If you make clothes, show yourself (or friends) wearing them. If you sell kitchen utensils, show them being used in a kitchen. Whatever you sell, show it in the real world.
Write fun captions that show your personality, your humour, your cheekiness – whatever is true to you.
And when your fans comment (the ultimate engagement), make sure you respond to comments as you, not as your brand – be the human of your brand.
4. Share relevant dates
When you’re planning your content, take note of important (and fun) days that will be coming up during the year. Not only do these days help you easily come up with content, but they can be a bit of fun.
There’s a day for almost everything! Find ones that relate to your industry and come up with some fun posts to suit the day.
For example, on the 5th of December, it’s International Ninja Day. You could share some fun photos of you and your team being ninjas while showcasing your product. It’s also Bathtub Party Day (perfect for those who sell bath oils or bombs), along with World Soil Day (perfect for all the gardeners and florists).
To help you plan your content for 2020, you can download my social media holidays calendar here.
5. Be funny
Now I know this may not come naturally to everyone, but injecting humour into your Instagram posts and stories will attract fans. Approach it like you’re talking to your friends – you know that flowing conversation where you laugh at silly, random things.
Don’t be scared to use this type of humour on Instagram. It’s human, it’s relatable, and everyone loves to laugh.
And if your content makes people laugh, they are likely to share it with their friends and networks. How often have you seen a funny meme and tagged a friend? Or better yet, shared it to your page?
Humour is clever advertising, and it works. It makes people feel more positive and joyous. And it’s often the humorous content that goes viral!
A couple more general tips for Instagram
To make sure your Instagram is working for you, here’s a quick checklist:
Optimise your bio with a branded hashtag, a slogan, a brief description and a link pointing to your website or promotion
Produce video content along with stories
Post your content at optimal times
Interact with your fans and respond to them
Include a call-to-action in your captions (encourage sharing, hashtags, links to your bio etc.)
Engage with other accounts
Create a content calendar with your audience in mind
Want to share your tips on being human on Instagram
If you’ve seen some brands who are genuinely revealing their human side and doing it well, please feel free to share. Or if you’ve got some tips to add, we’d love to hear them. Perhaps you’ve found the funniest post of all time – please share it with us so we can all laugh.
And finally, if you need some help with your Instagram posts or content planning, please feel free to drop me a line.