Top Mistakes People Make on Instagram, a Complete Guide to Instagram Success

Dritan Qarrica
Aug 22, 2017 · 4 min read

Instagram is one of the most popular social media networks of all time. Since its release in 2010, has reached a behemoth amount of users, 700 million as of April 2017.

That data tells us enough that we should create an account (if you haven’t already) and storytell about your products, services or whatever is you do.
Because where the eyeballs go, products and services should follow. As you see, on Instagram are millions of active eyeballs (users).

However, many businesses and personal brands are making bad moves. I'm going to show you which are considered as bad moves and how you can do things right. That way you won't look like an amateur in front of your clients or whoever your audience is.

Your profile setup

Bio
In the bio section, you should describe your service, product or what's that you do. Don't bewilder visitors, be clear and keep it short. People don't like long, long intros, they just don't care that much.

Website
There's a website section, where you obviously link your website or landing page.

Business Instagram Profile
If you have a Business Instagram Profile, then you should add other ways of contact such as location, email or your phone number (optional). Remember, never leave your bio blank!

Profile Picture
I recommend businesses to upload their logo or slogan or whatever is that represents you the best.
Personal brands should do the same, if they have a logo, otherwise upload a clear picture of yourself.

Image Size and Image Quality

  • If you’re just starting out, don’t post landscape (horizontal) pictures. Try to fit your picture to the 1:1 (square) ratio or 4:5 ratio. Engagement will definitely increase.
  • Don't post low quality pictures! Make sure your pictures are JPEG format for the best quality. You can also use PNG, but that goes as a second choice.
    One other thing is not to use oversaturated images.

Hashtags and Caption

  • You have to use hashtags, but please don’t use them on the caption. It makes you look unprofessional and spammy.
    Add your hashtags as a comment as soon as you post the image. It gives the same effect.
  • Never post an image with a blank caption. Even if everything is textually written on the image, if you don't know what to write, then rewrite what's in the image.
  • Use emojis, but don't overuse or misuse them. Add relevant and relatable emojis, it creates a much more modern environment.
  • The last thing I want to mention are links. Instagram doesn't yet support links on the caption, so don't add links there. Nobody will rewrite that link on their browsers. You can use your website section instead and redirect users there. Or, if you've surpassed 10k followers, you can add links to your Instagram Story.

Private Accounts

  • If you don't want anyone, except who you allow to see your pictures, then go ahead and switch your account to private. But if you want to broaden your audience and your account is private, then you're losing.
  • Through hashtags, Instagram allows its users to reach a wider audience (you know the search tab, down below you see pictures and videos based on your interests). And that's available merely for the public accounts. Switch your account to public or your audience won't grow as it should.

Instagram Bots

You've definitely encountered a comment like this on your pictures (if your account is public and you use hashtags): "Like!!"; "👌👌"; "I love this, let's connect"; etc.
Those users are using a third party website to comment to some specific hashtags or locations.
Don't use bots for commenting! You just be annoying and you may get reported as spam. Spend some time and leave genuine comments, it's much more appreciated.

I might agree with you, if you want to target specific hashtags or locations (based on your interests) and follow those users. You might garner awareness, if your content is relatable and good enough, somebody might decide to follow back.

Attention! There's a limit of following users, you can only follow 1000 users per day. The same goes for unfollowing them later.

Best Time to Post

Don't just post your image, try to post it at the best time. If you have a Business Instagram Profile, then at the Insights tab, there's a section which shows you at what time your users are most active.

You can also experiment with different posting times and measure your progress. I think this is the best way to find the right time. Sure, if you pay close attention to the stats.

Engagement

If a person comments on your image, please don't be too lazy to reply. You're being mean and rude. It's like someone says Hi! and you just pass by, like a robot. Comment back!

Respond to DMs and try to be as comprehensive as possible. You're a human too. Try to understand your audience wants and needs. That way you will succeed.

Thanks for reading! :) If you enjoyed it, applaud this post. Would mean a lot to me and it helps other people see the story.

Say Hi! to me on:

Instagram: instagram.com/dritsn

Twitter: twitter.com/dritanqarrica

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Dritan Qarrica

Written by

👔Family 📱Social Media Entrepreneur. 🐴 The Godfather aficionado. 📝Entrepreneurship | Social Media | Personal Growth.

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