MY TIPS FOR MAKING A *SUCCESS* OUT OF INSTAGRAM

Howdy campers! I hope you’re all keeping safe and well during lockdown!

Today’s blog post is a little different and something I’ve wanted to write about for a while; It’s all about my relationship with Instagram.

I probably get asked a couple of times a week for any tips on how to make a *success* out of Instagram.  From starting an Instagram page from scratch, to gaining a following and getting likes which can lead to brand partnerships and collaborations.  

Before I begin, I would just like to make a disclaimer that I by no means think my Instagram page @Houselust is ‘super successful’ and if I knew all the answers then I’d probably have a lot more followers and get a lot more likes on my posts. However, I think success is all about how you perceive yourself and I’m proud of what I’ve achieved over on this little app and most importantly I love the network of like-minded people that I’ve discovered and the friendships which I’ve formed with fellow interior lovers, new mums, and recently new neighbours within my new neighbourhood.

As of today, I’ve got approximately 39,800 followers, I’ve posted 626 times, and I follow around 2,000 people. I’ve collaborated with over twenty of my all-time favourite brands from John Lewis to West Elm and to baby and kids brands like Stokke and Sleepyhead and I also have a @Houselust pinterest account which is linked to both my Instagram and blog and has over 300,000 views a month, and I do this all on the side of my full time job, looking after my two year old and whilst renovating our new home- The rat house.

My Journey

So, let’s go way back to the beginning. It was January 2016 and after months of deliberating a name for my blog I set up www.Houselust.co.uk – which is this website that you’re reading this on today. A month later I set up my Instagram account @Houselust in the same name.

 The purpose of my blog was to document our home renovation, do home tours, publish interior shopping guides and talk about what was trending in interiors. Coming from a fashion and trend forecasting background and having a passion in interior design it was something I had wanted to do for a while but after having an encouraging chat with my brother in law – a fellow Blogger I thought I’d give it a go.

I guess my point here is my blog came first and I set it all up with absolutely no expectation of earning any money, getting any freebies or working with any brands.

If you want to earn a quick quid or get a free footstool, then maybe your intention is all wrong.

But if you’re here for the community and you’ve you’ve decided on that Instagram page name, set your page to PUBLIC, then off you go….

*Footnote* Someone once moaned to me about not being offered any brand collaborations and their page was actually set to private. …! DUH!

Culture

My first advice to anyone wanting to make a success of an Instagram page is to remember that the Instagram world is a community.  You have to nurture it and give time to it like you would with any real friendships.

You must engage. ENGAGE, ENGAGE, ENAGE. What that means is, comment, like, share and basically spend a lot of time on your phone talking to fellow instagramers. When you post – tell a story, take people on a journey. Be sincere. If you’re already halfway through a renovation, don’t try going back to the beginning and pretending you’re in 2018 and have just got the keys. Start from now and take people with you on the journey of how you got to that pink wall that you currently have in your lounge. Perhaps you relocated, had a baby. It’s a network of over sharers, and although you can be on it and be anonymous, people like to be nosey and personally I’ve found that people like it when you open up. It can feel a little invasive, but again this is one of those things that comes with being an ‘instagrammer’.

 I’d also mention that if you’re trying to run several Instagram accounts all at the same time; perhaps all as a hobby – maybe one in fashion, one in interiors or a business and you have a full time job, I’d suggest just focusing on the one and make a success of that first. Unless this is your full-time job and you can sit on your phone a lot and create fresh content every day and engage with all the different people on your accounts.

 I built up my following slow and steady, gaining 6,000 followers over the course of the first two years and then in 2018 I had a baby and I hit a turning point.

Timings of when to post

I never knew there was a formula to Instagram, and maybe there isn’t, but what I discovered from being on Instagram A LOT in 2018 after having Otis is that you have to post at certain times of the day.

In the old glory days of Instagram, you could post at any hour of the day and your friends would see your posts in chronological order, so they never missed your latest post. Then Instagram mixed it up and introduced the algorithm and this changed the Instagram world as we all knew it.

My key times to post are…  

Monday – Friday - 6.00am-8am and 5pm- 8pm.

Weekends are a bit different as people get up later and anything really goes.

Obviously, this doesn’t have to apply if you have over a million followers and if your reach is global. But if your demographic is predominately in the UK then I’d try following this guide.

 It actually makes complete sense because ‘most’ people are at work during the day, so you’re aiming to capture those who have just woken up and looked at their phone and are looking for fresh content to accompany them on their daily commute – we’re like modern pocket pals.

There are also some instagrammers who will post TWICE in one day. Posting strategically 12 hours apart. These will of course help you beat the algorithm, but it’s a lot of work and you don’t want to overdo it on your followers unless the content really is good and doesn’t look spammy strategic and turns people off.

Content

This leads me onto the most important point to help you grow your Instagram account- The content.

Invest in a decent camera, lighting system, editing software on your laptop or the newest apple iPhone because old wonky photos won’t cut it. Don’t shoot in the dark unless you’re trying to show some ambience/ candle lit dinner and spend time editing photos if you need to. Airbrush out your bedside light cables, the dust a mark under your sofa, because even though people like real life, if you’re promoting a beautiful home, no one wants to see a tea stain on your bedding and the biscuit crumbs on your rug- unless you’re pitching it as a slummy mummy type account, then go for it :)

Hashtags

You get 30 hashtags, so use them! There are plenty of sites out there which will tell you what the latest trending hashtags are or look at what other people are using. Most importantly make sure you use ones which are relatable to the image in question.

Hardwork

If I haven’t put you off and you’re still here reading this then well done for sticking with me. I hope if anything I’ve made you realise that it’s not all easy peasy. Nothing is for free, but hardwork can pay off and you can make a ‘success’ of your own page if you put the hours in. 

In Summary…

Don’t have any expectation otherwise it won’t look natural and organic. I once read a post from an instagrammer moaning about not being offered any freebies. Her tone was all wrong and she lost hundreds of followers overnight, as I and many others immediately realised why she was here. She wasn’t here to make new friends or get DIY advice, but to be offered some free cushions and new bedding. Likewise, if you do get offered the odd freebie – which is super flattering and is a lovely thing to happen, be aware that nothing is for ‘free’ and in exchange you will have to promote the ‘gift’ and if you want to increase your engagement showing pictures of a free candle won’t necessarily have people tuning in and commenting, so be selective.

And MOST importantly, have fun with it and if you take away one thing from this it’s that you should just be you and be kind to others.