We have a confession to make. As much as we believe in the power of social media as a tool for musicians and as hard as we try to utilize it to the best of our abilities, there’s one platform in particular that we’ve neglected up to now. That would be Instagram. It shouldn’t be the case, as it’s fairly easy to keep up to date. In theory, all you have to do is post pictures with short blurbs on a regular basis. The trick is having a plan or system and sticking to it.
Why Instagram you ask? While it’s not one of the platforms musicians usually think of using like Youtube and Soundcloud, or even Facebook and Twitter for that matter, it can be highly effective. Instagram has a ton of potential when it comes to engaging with fans and can allow you to illustrate your brand in a visual manner while ultimately promoting strong brand loyalty.
So, with all that said, we’ve challenged ourselves to step up our Instagram game. In the process, we’d like to share with you some ideas we’ve come up with for 30 days of Instagram posts. Check them out below and take the challenge with us…
1. Books you’re reading
Post a picture of the latest book you’re reading and share what you’re getting out of it and why other’s should consider reading it. Also, it doesn’t have to be a music-related book either…
2. Non-music related hobby
You’re so much more than a musician. Post a picture of you performing one of your favorites hobbies and share why you love doing it.
3. Inspiring nature scene
Being in nature can be one of the most peaceful and inspiring things we can experience. Post a picture of an inspiring nature scene and share what it means to you. You get bonus points if it’s a picture you actually took.
4. Music you’re listening to
You can post a picture of the album artwork or better yet you jamming to it and write a little something about how the music makes you feel or inspires you.
5. Practice scene
Practice pictures can be some of the best! Share a picture of you practicing alone or with the band and talk about what you’re preparing for or what the mood is.
6. New song lyrics
Working on a new song? Share some of the lyrics. It can be as simple as your handwritten words on paper or in a meme form.
7. Merchandise
You can post a picture of one of your merch items and share what’s cool about it. Make sure to include a link so that they can purchase it too! PRO TIP: You’ll have to make the link clickable as part of your bio since links aren’t directly clickable in the post itself.
8. Home Recording Studio set-up
Post a pic of your beautiful studio and share about the project you’re currently working on. You get bonus points if you’re recording in the picture.
+ Related Article: Top 10 Must-Have Accessories for your Home Studio
9. Face mask pic
Never thought this would be a thing a year ago, huh? But it is 2020. Why not post a picture of you in your ‘hottest’ mask and share what your current thoughts are about the pandemic.
10. #WorkingFromHome
A lot of us musicians were working from home way before the coronavirus. Share a pic of you hard at work and talk about what you’re doing, or better yet, why you love working from home.
11. Motivational Quotes
Who doesn’t love a motivational quote and an inspiring image?
12. Morning routine
Do you have a fun or interesting routine? Maybe it involves a workout or a time of spiritual reflection. Whatever it is, post a picture of you in the middle of it and share with your fans what you’re doing and why you do it every morning.
13. Behind the scenes photo of your last Livestream
If you’re like a lot of musicians, you’ve been having to live stream your performances lately. Share a behind the scenes shot of something fun your fans would have missed if watching the show.
+ Related Article: Best Live Streaming Equipment for Musicians
14. Behind the meaning of a song
Include a video of your song and share a quick blurb about the meaning of it or why you wrote it.
15. Favorite instrument
Show off your favorite instrument and share why you love it so much.
16. A snippet of your latest song
This could be another video post where you just share a sample of your newest song.
17. Answer one FAQ
We all have questions that fans frequently ask us. Answer one and include a nice pic, or you can just do it in video form.
18. Before Coronavirus – Old photos
Speaking of the coronavirus, remember what life was like before all this craziness? Share a memory from back in the good old days and talk about what you miss the most.
19. Old promo shot and what you were thinking
Been doing music for a while? Post an old promo pic from when you were just starting out and share what you might have been thinking back then.
20. A little known fact about me
Let your fans get to know you a little better and share something about yourself they might not know.
21. What you’re most looking forward to after Coronavirus
This is similar to the previous post, but you can focus on the future and what you most look forward to. We all need a little hope, right?
22. What you’re doing for exercise during the quarantine
Even during the coronavirus, we’ve got to get our exercise. Share a picture of what you’ve been doing to stay in shape.
23. #QuarintineLife
The coronavirus has changed all of our lives in some way. Share a picture of you doing something that’s now a part of your routine that you never thought you’d be doing before.
24. Mood right now
When you’re frustrated or stressed out, a ‘Mood’ post always seems to fit the bill.
25. Recommend a Coronavirus resource
Got a good resource you’ve been using during the pandemic? Share it with your fans and let them know how it’s been helpful to you.
26. Free song download
Share a link to one of your songs for your fans to download it.
27. Behind the Album cover
Share a picture of your album cover and explain why you chose that artwork, what does it mean, who created the art, etc.
28. National Day Calendar Holiday
These days, there’s a holiday for everything. Check a calendar to see what this day is and post something to celebrate it.
29. Take a poll
Take a poll to see what your fans’ think about something. Could be about your upcoming album artwork or title, or maybe just their opinions on a current event.
30. Creative Space
Do you have a special space where you go to meditate or write your songs? Post a picture of it and share why it’s so special to you.
As you can see, there are a lot of fun things you can do on Instagram to engage with your fans and instill brand loyalty. Take the challenge for 30 days and see what kind of response you get within your community. And if you have any ideas we missed, please share them below.
Check out Anitra’s latest video here about how to keep your fans engaged when you don’t have anything to say.
If you want to read more, check out this great article by David Figueroa (Indie on the Move) about why visual branding is so important for musicians.
Download our free Social Media Content Calendar here
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I really enjoyed going through this challenge. With these topics, I always had something relevant to say. The cool thing about it is, I can use these topics every month by just adding a new spin to it. I have been really struggling with my IG posts. Just not knowing what to say or share. It’s a great way to express my brand visually, but I’m not always in the mood to take pictures of myself. But, it turns out you don’t have to always have photos of yourself! These ideas really gave me a new perspective.
Great! Thanks for opening up your Instagram page for us all to see and I hope you can build off of this momentum and keep it going.