OPTIMISE YOUR BRAND INSTAGRAM AESTHETIC
June 10, 2019
LOOKING SMART
FIVE WAYS TO OPTIMISE YOUR BRAND INSTAGRAM AESTHETIC
More and more sales are being made through Instagram, particularly so for lifestyle products. Equally, those that offer services are utilising the brand building potential of this platform with great success.
Instagram, along with up-and-coming Pinterest, are ideal places to showcase your brand visually in an engaging forum, where viewers are more inspired and less fatigued by the culture associated with some of the other widely used platforms.
Having beautiful professional imagery is obviously very important on these visual-centric platforms, but so too is how you use your images. In this post I will share my tips on ways you can make the most of your photography on Instagram, it requires a little work but it certainly pays off.
THE LATEST
It has been a very exciting time since I last wrote. For the many of you who asked, I can now confirm the sofa from the front page of the ES Homes & Property editorial I shot back in February, was from Loaf. Want!
Some very exciting upcoming launches will be appearing shortly! For now, head over to this case study get a peek at recent Fleur Real Luxury Faux Flower shoot and follow them on Instagram to see it all unfold first-hand. Also, the beautiful, new, case study for Suzanne Mills Luxury Cakes is up on my site; do take a look at the stunning detail of the delicious masterpieces.
I am particularly excited about the imminent Fleur Real launch. Currently, this super driven Surrey brand are behind the scenes working away, preparing everything for the fabulous launch. Hitting the ground running, they have already secured a listing at premium Surrey interiors store, Belle Epoque.
Founder of Fleur Real, Victoria Short and I have been discussing social media planning / strategies and the benefits of taking the time to plan out an Instagram feed. My work doesn’t just stop once I have delivered the images, I am always there for my clients and happy to offer my support in all the exciting things that happen next.
Inspired by the various topics that have come up in our conversations, I thought I would do a quick round-up of tips you can use immediately, to give your brand a visual boost.
To get that super professional looking feed, creating space and balance in the overall aesthetic is key. Taking this time will create an appealing shop window to entice your clients in and communicate your brand visually, just as you would with any design.
MY FIVE TIPS
1. Plan your grid – The Planoly and Preview apps are great for uploading and planning out your grid, ensuring balance and continuity of your brand look and feel. Break up busy images with minimal ones, and spend time thinking about how you can communicate your overall brand message throughout your feed. Once you have finished planning, these apps can also schedule the posts to publish automatically, allowing you to get on with running the business.
2. Download the Adobe phone apps: PS Express, Photoshop Fix, Photoshop Mix, brilliant for cleaning up images taken on your phone and getting creative. ColorStory has really lovely crisp filters to give a quick snap the wow factor. Use the same filters consistently to maintain a uniform look.
3. Don’t drop the ball when it comes to stories, the same rules apply; try using an Instagram stories template to ensure a consistent brand look.
4. Drip feed your professional images throughout your feed.
5. For text-based posts use the Canva app to maintain your unique brand palette and complementary fonts. These apps are ideal for throw away promotional content for social media and can be used with or without images incorporated. In Canva you can click the plus button next to the colour selection and enter the exact code for your brand colours, ensuring that consistency throughout your marketing. Canva also has different layouts for the various social media platforms, which is very helpful.
All the apps mentioned above are free, and although they have some paid features, they are usually extensive enough for most users.
I hope you have found these tips helpful. I am very much looking forward to sharing more visual brand building pointers in the coming months. Keep an eye out for my next post by following me on Instagram. If you are feeling inspired and would like to begin the process of building your very own unique body of branded images, do get in touch.
To find out more about my work head to my Home Page.
