How to Have a Cohesive Instagram Feed
How do Instagram influencers curate those beautifully cohesive Instagram feeds? While many Instagram gurus admit to using professional cameras, photographers, and editing tools, there are tips and tools that you can implement to curate your own branded, cohesive Instagram feed.
Branding is more than just your logo- it’s also the colors, fonts, patterns, and textures that unify your assets. Your branding helps your audience know what to expect from you and grow to recognize you from the oversaturated Instagram crowd.
So how can you apply your branding in a recognizable way that isn’t just slapping your logo on everything? Color blocks, careful planning, and photo filters can help unite your content and give you that beautiful Instagram aesthetic you’re going for.
Color Blocks
Once you have established your branding, be consistent. A simple way to apply your brand identity to unify your Instagram feed is through color blocks.
Color blocks can be quotes, illustrations, reviews, lists, and more. Rather than a photo that is taken, these are graphics that are created through programs like Adobe Illustrator or Canva. Read through my 5 Tools to Help You Become More Confident & Consistent on Social Media to learn more about why I love and recommend Canva.
Your color block posts (like all of your Instagram posts) should provide value to your audience. Whether in the graphic or the caption, teach your followers something about your industry, relate to them in some way, solve a problem, or share more about your services. While these graphics can help your Instagram feed look consistent you also want to consistently provide value.
Scheduling Tools
Tools like Later and Loomly allow you to preview your posts and rearrange them to get the aesthetic you are going for. It takes the guesswork out of prepping your feed and is great for scheduling your posts in advance. Later and Loomly’s paid plans also provide analytics so you can see which of your posts are performing the best. Knowing what types of content receive the best engagement should inform your content strategy going forward.
Presets and Filters
Filters and presets allow for consistent, easy-to-use photo editing. Instagram has its own, native filters, or you can use third party editing tools like Lightroom, VSCO, Snapseed, and countless others. I prefer Lightroom, as it is easy to use, free, and you can find Lightroom presets everywhere. Your favorite photographers and influencers likely sell their own presets or you can search through the 48,000+ presets on Etsy.
While color blocks, scheduling tools, and presets can help your brand create a cohesive Instagram feed, don’t put too much emphasis on perfection. Pursuing perfection will stop you from actually posting consistent, valuable content. Your followers don’t care nearly as much as you do if your feed has a cohesive theme. They care about the information that you’re sharing. They care that you’re providing them with value, teaching them something, or sharing relatable content. While it’s important to stay on brand, a big part of branding is your voice and message. As long as that stays consistent, you’re doing great.