Is my Instagram boring? Probably - but don't stress it.

We see it all the time. Businesses think that Instagram is the end all be all of their creative marketing efforts.

SPOILER ALERT - it's not.

Algorithms change all the time. One day a post can go viral the next you get 3 likes. If that's not a mindf*ck then we don't know what is. A lot of people out there will tell you there's a formula. For every one business related post you should have three memes. They'll tell you to mix up the content and make it fun and personal. That's all mostly true but our biggest tip for Instagram - well it's the same as the other platforms - consistency and engagement.

A LOT of business pages are really boring though.

We know that's a tough pill to swallow. You made this amazing graphic to promote your webinar and no one is liking it. Why? Well, sometimes people don't want to be sold. Think about why you get on Instagram. Are you actively looking for webinars to participate in? We're guessing no. So, if you see a webinar post - are you going to double tap it and light up that heart? Nope.

The good thing is that you're getting the resource out there. In our previous post we talked about having awesome resources on your website and not sharing them - so you're already headed in the right direction. Just don't rely on that one Instagram post to make you millions of dollars [unless you spend a ton of money on paying to promote it and you still probably won't see millions but it'll get in front of a larger audience. If you're not sure how to do that let us know - we can teach you].

Here are a few things to consider before you decide to post and pray on Instagram that will help you get more likes:

• Tell your employees about the post - they need to be liking and sharing it.
• Tag people, products, & partners.
• Actively engage with your audience and followers by liking and sharing their content. Don't be afraid to send them the post directly and ask them to like and share for you.
• You hashtags. If you're not sure there are a ton of sites out there that will generate them for you. We like using http://best-hashtags.com/.
• Share the post to your story.
• Connect your Instagram to your Facebook account so that it shares across both stories and pages.

Circling back to what we said in the intro about memes and mixing it up - it's a good idea. Not every post should be about your resources. If your company specialized in machine learning then go out and find some funny memes. People get on social media to be entertained [and informed but again, think about why YOU get on to the platforms and what YOU would actively double tap].

Don't get bummed if your post doesn't go viral. Instagram is a HUGE platform and it changes all the time. Try and be like Dory. Just keep posting, just keep posting, just keep posting posting- what do we do? We post, post, post.