How to Start and Grow your Instagram Food
Page (and become a food influencer) in 2023.
Admit it…you’ve dreamed about it.
Your very own Instagram food page and a grid full of your food creations! (And even perhaps working with brands).
You’re a fantastic cook, you get tons of compliments, you host fabulous dinner parties and most importantly, you’ve figured out how to cook efficiently with shortcuts and hacks and create delicious wholesome meals easily. Sometimes, when a friend asks you for a recipe, you’ve
shared generously and even provided some helpful tips. You wanted that friend of yours to succeed and not feel like it’s something only “Suzy can whip up.” When your friend called and told you how wonderfully the dish turned out, you felt happy.
There have been times when you’ve thought about how to share this “cooking knowledge” with the world and how you know you could teach people to be successful in the kitchen, at least if they follow your cooking instructions. Maybe an Instagram food page? And then you start
thinking of the beautiful food photos you’d need, the videos, the hashtag knowledge, the IG Lives…etc., etc.
Nah! It’s all too overwhelming. Your schedule is already stretched as it is- and anyways, you don’t know a thing about photography or video editing. How do these food influencers do it anyways? It all seems so effortless.
“No”, you say, “It’s not for me, I won’t be able to do this.”
I’m here to reassure you that you can! I have grown my Instagram food page from 0–30K in 2.5 years. I think that’s pretty good! More than the number, they’re engaged followers and that is gold!
You too can start and grow an Instagram food page with a little strategic planning and some hard work and even eventually become a food influencer! I can show you how, step by step.
Excited?
I hope so! Because let me tell you that in 2020 when I launched my food blog on Instagram @eatswithmish, I didn’t even know how to use Instagram. I only had a personal account on Facebook and thought Instagram was for teenagers.
An online mentor who I’d been following for some years and who is all about building personal brands was offering an Instagram Masterclass in early 2020 and in the email introducing the class, he wrote how Instagram is the platform on which to grow rapidly and how he would show us the steps. I felt excited and inspired (as I was already very interested in starting a blog), so I bought the course and plunged right in!
As part of the course, I started my Instagram food page and slowly grew my community. I learned, I watched, I implemented, I failed, I tried again, and I grew. And you can too! All you need is a huge, big WANT and a willingness to set aside time to work on your goal.
Firstly, why Instagram?
Instagram is a social media platform that has good organic reach for business and creator accounts. On the other hand, Facebook for Business has a less than 2% organic reach, and you must “pay to play”. Meaning you must invest in advertising, and lots of it! In Instagram the algorithm supports organic growth and although boosting an occasional post will become important, (more on that later), there’s lots of room for organic growth on Instagram and that is a fact! So, let’s focus on that for now. A regular posting schedule, using the features of Instagram, and following some trends will help you grow organically.
Where to Begin (pick your niche)
Okay, first things first.
To begin, ask yourself what you’d like to teach the world. What (food/dietary) problem are you going to be solving for your IG followers? There are tons of food pages, how will you be different? And I’m not even talking about how your photos or videos are cooler, but what is your page’s value proposition? What is unique about what people will learn from you? Are you all about hacks? Will you teach them dinner in under 30 minutes? Are you going to show them how to get started on a vegan lifestyle? Will you be teaching them how to bake delicious desserts that are easy to create and don’t need many decorating tools?
You must think about this deeply.
My page is about Indian food and there are many pages that are about Indian cuisine. My value prop is that I teach people how to cook Indian food easily with basic pantry items and most of my meals are under 30 minutes. So that means I stay away for elaborate complicated meals and cook basic Indian meals that are easily accessible. That’s how I eat and that’s what I present. So, my niche is people who like Indian food and eat it in restaurants but are afraid to cook it at home. So, I want to show them that you can absolutely learn to cook Indian food at home without getting lost in the aisles of the Indian grocery store-most of my dishes use basic
pantry ingredients.
So essentially, I am trying to lower the barrier to entry to cooking Indian food at home. I urge you to think deeply about the value you can bring to the world — something that’s authentically you and something that you enjoy and can sustain.
Pick your page name (this is your unique identity on Instagram)
I recommend brainstorming as many names as possible for your page. Something that reflects what your page is about. You can also include your name as part of it. I brainstormed and created about 30 names, tested them out with family and friends and then went with my gut with @eatswithmish. It has my name, and I also had the domain available. I’ll explain that in the next subhead.
Claim your domain (you’d want a website someday?)
I’m assuming that you don’t already have a website. Even if you get started on Instagram now, someday down the road you’d want to have your own website that ideally has your IG name as part of the URL. For instance, after 2 years of having had an Instagram food blog, I am now creating my website eatswithmish.com. However, I had claimed it a couple of years ago, so I could have the same name as my Instagram page. It just makes sense to have the same name across all platforms. To me that was important, although granted, I have paid for the domain without having a real website up for these two years. But I don’t consider it a waste of money
but an investment in my business.Now that I’m ready, I have my name already claimed and it’s a much more seamless experience for my users to connect my IG to my website. But if you already have a website, it’s fine too. People do have different IG names and web URLs. Another thing that you could do is have the existing website be redirected from a new domain that you choose which is your Instagram name. You can go to godaddy.com now and use their domain finder to see if your Instagram name is available as a domain to purchase. Then, purchase it, you’ll thank me later.
Create personas (not just any follower, a raving fan)
Have you heard of personas? They are avatars/descriptions of your ideal follower (who one day might be a customer). No fret if you’re not thinking of the business angle at first. Monetizing your page is something that will evolve gradually once you are fully in the game so to speak, and see
some results.
So, think about who you’d want to help with your recipes? A busy mom? Young professionals who need quick recipes and are tired of ordering out? A parent with a picky eater? An individual wanting to ease into a vegan lifestyle? The reason you need to think of the “ideal follower” is that you can’t or shouldn’t want to appeal to everyone. You’ll basically appeal to no one. Your page should be all YOU and will attract people accordingly. Because you’re you and you’re okay with being you!
To create personas, think of the gender, age, demographics, socio economic status, interests, and jobs of your ideal follower. Think of their challenges and how you could help. It will be easier to create posts if you can think this through first. It’s a bit painful, I’ll admit, and your head might hurt a little, but it’s extremely valuable to attract the right crowd for your page. If you’re going to put in effort to create content, you’d want it to be to be useful to the people who are part of your community. It’s all about providing a lot of value and building solid relationships.
Create Your Instagram Account (business or creator?)
After the above pre work is complete, you should then consider creating your Instagram account. When you create your account you’ll need to make a decision. Should you have a business account or should you opt for a creator account. There are people who think it doesn’t matter but personally I think it does. Instagram is obsessed with creators, They even have a @creators page to help creators and educate them to be successful on the platform. Instagram wants creators to be successful and be able to monetize their brand. I opted my account to be a creator account as that was part of my mentor’s instructions. I followed him blindly and I’m
thankful for it.
Plan ahead (action item #1 — create a content calendar)
A content calendar will be your BFF! Trust me on this. Taking the time to create a schedule of posts will help you plan effectively. Grocery shopping, cook day, shoot day, props needed if any, will all be easier to plan for while keeping you calm and in control. Of course, a content calendar is not set in stone, it’s a guide, but it’s essential! No cutting corners here. If you plan at least a month or two in advance you can take note of upcoming holidays and seasonality.
We all know pumpkin recipes are popular in the fall and baking recipes are popular in December. February is a month to plan for cute V-day treats and summer is where you could present cooling drinks and even recipes for popsicles. Occasionally flying by the seat of your pants is bound to happen but honestly having a content calendar makes things much simpler and we want simple, not complicated!
Plan ahead Action Item #2 (form your LLC)
“Whoa, whoa, whoa! “you’re thinking. Why??
Because it’s important to think of yourself as a brand from the get-go. Also, Instagram has recently started monetizing Reels (as well as other areas on the platform), and you must provide your EIN and LLC info to get the pay-out. Additionally for tax purposes, an LLC would serve you well. Consult a tax professional to get more detailed info.
Understand First Impressions (your Instagram bio)
Your IG bio is where it’s at! You have an enormous opportunity to compel people to follow you from how your bio is set up. If it’s not inviting and clear, people will bounce. People on Instagram make quick decisions- if they like what they see they follow. If they are disappointed, they
unfollow. If they are not excited, they don’t follow. It’s as simple as that. So, your best bet is to spend some time optimizing your bio. First off, use a great profile photo. It should be clear, and your face should be prominent, preferably looking at the camera (and with a smile). If you don’t
have any professional headshots, then you could consider getting one professionally taken. Or take a headshot with a good smartphone. Nowadays smartphone cameras are very advanced. Choose a neutral background so it’s not distracting and take some smiley photos. You could
consider taking an “action” photo-for instance, you are cooking in your kitchen.
Next, think about what you should write in your IG bio. Have a look around. What are other food bloggers doing? Having said that, in the end, go with your gut and you’ll be fine. Remember that you’ll probably change your bio a few times down the road but it’s good to start with as solid a
bio as you can create. That’s because your bio is like your business card and it’s the first thing people notice or go back to if they found you through a video or from the Explore page. If they like your bio, they’ll usually give you a follow.
The character count is quite limited so clearly express what people will get from following you. Make it about them, not you. Use emojis. Instagram and emojis are synonymous. You can get emojis from emojipedia.com. You can also get online fonts and make your bio stand out a bit. Google “Instagram fonts’’ and you will get many choices.
Next, the link in your bio is really, REALLY important. So, if you have a website you can link to it. If you don’t have a website or another online destination to send people to where they can learn more about you, you can create a one page website (by hiring a freelancer,) or create a free
download (checklist, eBook, meal plans) that you can host on a landing page and drive traffic to, and grow your email list. I would get some freelance help to get this all situated and it’s going to be very worth it, believe me.
Understand Instagram SEO (how you’ll be found)
Instagram SEO is alive and kicking! People find lots of resources from doing searches and if you want to be found then you have to use keywords you want to be found for. The best area to place the keywords is next to your name. I have Mish Sen |Recipe Developer| Home Chef as
my keywords. So think about this a bit and make sure to implement it!
Know the lay of the land (IG features)
It’s important to use all the features of Instagram (at your own pace). Recently, I learned than Instagram has more than one algorithm. There are different algorithms for the various features of Instagram, namely, posts, Explore, Reels and Stories. So although Explore is not a place you
can choose to go voluntarily as that is where the algorithm may place you if your post has good engagement and reach, Stories, feed posts and Reels are all platform features you should utilize. I would start with static feed posts (although Instagram now has openly prioritized video). It’s more manageable to start with static image posts till you get comfortable with video.
You can do Stories almost everyday as they are informal and behind the scenes type of content. People expect to see what the life of the creator they follow is like, their family (if you’re comfortable), pets, vacations, what they “eat in a day”, any new restaurants they tried, and so forth. Or
perhaps some of their kitchen failures, basically anything that the creator is comfortable sharing. It helps people get to know you and build that relationship.
Is it education or is it entertainment? (Vary your posts)
While it’s true you are trying to teach something valuable, it’s good not to get too serious (or preachy) on Instagram. People are there for relaxation and entertainment and to perhaps pick up some good ideas and learn a thing or two. They’re scrolling on their lunch break or maybe before going to sleep. They don’t need anything heavy at that time and nor will they stay if you go that route. So it’s a balance between keeping it light as well as educating them and providing value. So when you plan your content keep that in mind. Over time vary your content so they get a variety of photos, videos, quotes, hack, tips etc. Change up the topic and change up the
format.
Be consistent (build trust and reliability)
Can you trust someone who’s flaky? Someone who blows hot and cold? Of course not! Same goes for Instagram followers. When they decide to follow an account, they are looking for regular posts and content like the one that got them converted. That dependable posting schedule is what will help them trust you and get to know you and love you. That is why consistency is so important. Otherwise people feel abandoned and not cared for. And then they either unfollow or stop interacting. Of course if you are sick or there are some life events that prevent you from posting, people completely understand-just let them know. Keep them
informed, that’s all.
Build your community (interactions and comments)
Instagram is a great platform to build community. People are there because they found some value in a creator and want to learn from them. So, providing that nurturing is important and that will lead to building community.
You will have to take the time to comment and not just add
emojis to your reply, even if your followers do. It’s better to add a sentence or at least a thank you in words, then add the emojis. Also, engaging with other creators is important. If you find some creators whose work you like, take the time to comment on their posts and even perhaps share their page on your Stories. It will be immensely valuable and also fun to make new friends on the platform.
Follow Instagram Trends
IG trends are not for everyone, but the common wisdom out there is to jump on one or two to get more eyeballs on your content. When you create Reels (later on), using trending music is highly recommended. A lot of the trending music or voice overs are a lot of fun to use. Also providing your own perspective on a trend is also fun. No doubt it’s work so don’t plan on doing Reels right away, but you’d have to start thinking about it from the second month onwards. Look up YouTube to get some Reels tutorials, there are plenty! You might even enrolL in some Reels classes.
Implement Instagram Stories
Instagram stories are a must from the start. It’s like I mentioned before, a good way to show people the face behind the account. Also, if you are posting say three days a week on your feed, your Stories will keep your audience connected to you even if you are not posting every day. It’s a much easier schedule to follow as stories are truly informal. Also Instagram has many fun story features like GIFs and polls and questions and other “stickers” as they call them. It’s a great interaction building tool and also a wonderful way to get to know your audience. I have often utilized these story stickers to understand what my audience is looking for in terms of recipes, what dietary restrictions bother them, if they are looking for something for the upcoming holidays, etc.
Utilize Instagram Live (in due time)
Eventually you’ll need to go Live. I know it’s nerve-racking but honestly, once you do it a couple times you’ll feel more comfortable. Start preparing for Lives by using voice overs in your stories and in your videos when you start creating them. Then record yourself for Stories. You’ll hate
seeing yourself and listening to your voice initially but it will pass, I promise you. Instagram Lives helps you connect with your followers in real time and it’s a thrilling experience. Most of the time followers love it when the creators they follow go live. Yes, be prepared for some trolling once in
a while but IG has some good tools nowadays to help you. You can block trolls or assign a moderator who can do that for you easily without you being distracted. For the most part, going live will make you feel very connected to your audience and you can answer their questions in
real time and just chit chat.
Use the highlight feature (Canva will be a trusted friend)
Your page on Instagram is not searchable. So, this is where highlights come into play. As a rule, you must share all your post to Stories. For one, it helps you with creating a Story easily and second. you can then save that story as a “highlight” . I have highlights for main course, breakfast, appetizers, drinks, chutneys etc. So, people can use my highlights to see what I have
shared before and go directly to the posts and get the recipe. It’s a very useful feature and perhaps a little underutilized. Canva, an easy designing platform that is free, could be used to design highlight covers. That’s what I used. So sign up for Canva and play around in it. Search for Instagram highlight covers and you will get many templates to choose from.
Learn photography basics
You’ll have to learn some photography basics and photo editing. I would advise investing some time to understand how to create beautiful recipe photos using your smartphone and an editing app like Lightroom CC. There are lots of courses and YouTube videos on the topic so you’ll get
the hang of it very soon. Later, you could think about investing in a DSLR but that is not something that you need to think about right now.
Learn video editing (Instagram’s current focus)
Instagram has formally prioritized videos in 2022. It started as a photo sharing platform in 2010 but now they want to be a video sharing platform (competing with Tiktok perhaps). That doesn’t mean that photos are dead.You should and must post food photos. People love staring and
drooling over food photos, no matter what Instagram may say. But people are also beginning to expect to see more videos, and more specifically Reels videos, so eventually you’ll need to create those. You can create Reels on the Reels app or “outside” on third party apps and upload
to Reels choosing a trending Reels track. I use a mobile video editing app called InShot and I love it! It’s easy to use and very Instagram friendly.
Boost posts
I would invest some greens in boosting posts say from the 6-week mark. When you boost a post, you’ll be prompted by the app as to how to set that up and according to the audience you choose, Instagram will show that particular post to a targeted audience. The hope is that after
viewing that boosted post, people will tap your bio, read what they like and give you a follow! So for that reason, you should have a variety of posts for people to peruse and decide if they want to follow you. Don’t boost too early, it will be a waste of money (in my opinion).
DO competitive research and SQUASH Imposter Syndrome
It’s natural- as you look at other accounts in your niche you may feel a bit overwhelmed and inadequate. It happens to most of us. My advice to you is that when you do competitive research or if you are interacting with another account, take note of what they are doing and maybe aspire to some of it but don’t compare yourself. You are just getting started and you have no idea how long ago this other page (or pages) have already been doing this, if they have a team or other types of support/resources that allow them to do what they are doing. You just focus on what you can do well now without overwhelming yourself. Slow and steady will win the
race and there’s room for everybody on Instagram. Take care of your mental health and believe in yourself!
Consider hiring a contractor
If you have the funds available, you might consider hiring a virtual assistant or a contractor to help you with certain tasks. Do remember that in a business, investments are important for growth and it’s not a waste of money. You can hire contractors from Upwork or Fiverr and even
on Instagram.
Use hashtags
I recently heard that Instagram will be moving away from hashtags. It was music to my ears but before they make a formal announcement I still use hashtags for most posts and Reels.
Hashtags help you with your reach and to acquire new followers. You are allowed to use 30 hashtags but the wisdom that I’ve gathered this past year is that 3–5 hashtags is the sweet spot. Creating a few sets of hashtags that can be rotated throughout the week is a good idea as you start off as Instagram does not like it if the same hashtags are used in every post.
To make it look less spammy, some people post hashtags in comments. Some leave a lot of room in the caption and post it at the bottom.
There are hashtag tools that help you figure out what hashtags to use and IQ Hastags is a great tool.
Work with Brands
As you grow your community and create good content, doors will start opening. Brands have scouts that are scouring Instagram to find mini influencers and influencers. They are looking for creators with an engaged community to work with and that is why having a community that is
engaged is much more valuable than the number of followers. No traditional media will provide brands the kind of targeted audience an influencer could provide. So know your power and make sure to negotiate with brands. It’s exciting when brands reach out and it’s okay to do a
barter or two in the beginning but eventually you need to charge, know your worth, and stick to your asking price.
If you love certain brands (we all have our faves), do tag them when you post. That gets you on their radar and sometimes they post tagged content as UGC (user generated content). Or, if you tag them in your Stories, then they could repost your story on their page thereby providing you a
lot of exposure. It happens, trust me, it has happened to me many times and to others. If you continually tag brands you like and want to work with, it’s kinda like building a relationship with them. So when you reach out and pitch a collaboration it’s not completely out of the blue.
Reaching out and pitching to brands does take time and effort. One way is to set aside 30 minutes every Friday or a chosen day in the week. It’s also important to create a media kit so you have your stats ready to share with the brand. Regularly monitor your Insights so you know all your analytics. You can easily create a media kit on your own or pay someone on Fiverr a
very small amount to create it. It’s worth it. Sending a media kit when you pitch to brands makes you look more professional.
Have fun!
Lastly, but definitely not the least, DO have fun! Instagram is really fun. So many people around the world are connected on this platform, people you can interact with and get to know even. I have a few followers that I have become virtual friends with. In fact one of my follower’s son guest posted on my Instagram food blog. He’s a budding cook and I gave him a platform. It was awesome. He was so thrilled and his mom was even more thrilled! He now sends me wishes on New Year’s and photos of meals he’s been cooking at home. It’s adorable and he is only 9.
Then there are other creators who I’ve gotten to know and we support each other. You’ll find a lot of joy in building your community and growing your circle on Instagram, believe me! So there you have it, your roadmap to your Instagram Influencer journey! This is all tried and tested and in fact a blueprint to cut short your learning curve.
However, before you create your Instagram food page, consider this:
Instagram is a commitment! If your attempt is half hearted, or if you have the mindset of “I’ll create a post today if I have time”, I can forecast minimal growth. You’ll get frustrated and bored real soon and stop posting or you may give up your goal of being a food influencer. Remember,
success (however you define it), comes from hard work, setbacks and working through setbacks. It requires resiliency. You’ll have loads of fun and lots of successes, and there will be occasional frustrations and failures. Don’t let those get you down, it’s all part of your Instagram growth! Keep at it and you will grow your followers, create a community, and become a food influencer in due time. All you need is to make a commitment to yourself to do this seriously at least for 3 months and see what happens. You’ll see the magic unfolding and then you’ll be hooked!
Feeling a bit nervous? Wondering if you have it in you to be consistent and follow through with this commitment? Well you won’t know till you try. You don’t want to think about this when you’re much older and say, “Why didn’t I at least give it a shot?”
So I say, do it! Give it a shot, your best shot!
I have a list of daily affirmations (that my mentor provided) that has helped me. I’d like to share
them with you and hope they help you in this journey as well:
● Somewhere, someone will be helped by what I share on the Internet.
● I will strive to add value and not struggle for perfectionism.
● I am authentic; I share things from my heart with integrity.
● I share content that is easy to read, watch and engage with.
● I am fun, dynamic, and a passionate influencer, here to serve millions of souls.
● I ensure to be productive when I am on social media
● I will not compare myself with anyone else and deliver my level best.
● I will work towards growing my Instagram channel organically and through paid means.
● I will collaborate with brands and aim at adding immense value through my reach.
● I will let my audience know when I collaborate with brands
● I follow other influencers and collaborate with them to create more opportunities
● I am a teacher, I am also an influencer.
If you have any questions, do post them in the comments and you can also email me at mish@eatswithmish.com.
All my best wishes on your journey and I am right here to help if you need it.
I’m rooting for you and I know you got this!
