Update: At the end of January 2025, Instagram updated its grid to a rectangular 3:4 size. Bye bye square grids and farewell neat looking 9-image static grids. For a quick fix you’ll need to edit every image in your static grid to return it to a square shape. Find the three dots on the image, and choose ‘Fit’. More details here.
As a thought leader, trainer and coach, I fell out of love with Instagram a long time ago. My brand wasn’t tangible like a product business. It gave me a headache trying to develop a feed that looked cohesive. I didn’t want to film trending Reels anymore.
I wanted to write long articles exploring big ideas, and Instagram forced me into a 2,200 character count that no one came to the platform to read anyway!
I wasn’t ready to let go of Instagram forever though. Instead, I recently refreshed my approach to reposition Insta as a creative tool to:
- share my brand identity
- get personal
- spark engagement
If you’re a thought leader who hasn’t yet found a manageable and meaningful strategy for your own Instagram account, I hope my own experience can inspire you to shift your thinking and refresh your account too!
Balancing personal and professional interests
I’ve recently become interested in human sustainability, and I believe it’s not mentally healthy for humans to spend long periods on social media. Separating platforms for different interests can help manage this.
I’ve now reserved Instagram for scrolling around personal interests every now and then. LinkedIn is set aside for professional pursuits. Yes, it’s kind of obvious – no one is lying in bed at midnight scrolling LinkedIn for 70s shag hairstyle inspiration. But committing to this separation helps me maintain a healthy work-life balance.
How I refreshed my Instagram feed (and saved my sanity!)
I’ve been uncertain about what to do with my professional Instagram, The Storytelling Biz, for about a year now. A few years ago it was the perfect platform for an Instagram Live show I hosted called ‘We Rebranded’. I upcycled, recycled and reused so much content from three seasons of the show. But then it wrapped, my business offering changed, and I grew tired of fighting an algorithm that seemed hell bent on keeping me from my audience.
I never advocate creating content for content’s sake, to fill a neglected feed or to satisfy the algorithm (what is that anyway – a bunch of tech bros sitting in Silicon Valley adjusting data?). However, I do think that an untouched Instagram sends the wrong message about your professional availability and that old content no longer related to what you offer can be misleading.
Neglecting your Instagram could be a lost opportunity.
Saying bye bye to unaligned accounts and posts
In a bold move, I deleted all my old content. It was scary at first, and then I felt free.
I also unfollowed hundreds of people if they:
- were a better fit in my personal life (I refollowed them with my personal account, which I use less and less these days).
- were no longer inspiring me.
- did work that was too similar to mine (comparison-itis is impossible for many of us to avoid, and bad for our mental health).
- were outside my target market for future clients.
The static 9-grid Instagram feed
I’ve finally landed on a format I’m happy with for my Instagram: the static 9-grid. I’ve already released the first four tiles, with more prepped to come.
After reading Deanna Seymour’s article a year ago, I considered this approach but felt uninspired by my branding at the time. A recent rebrand, along with a mention of the 9-grid by a marketing professional I admire (thanks Mia), gave me the push I needed to implement it.
The Instagram 9 grid has two main benefits for me:
- Choosing just 9 topics to represent my brand forced me to distil my business into its core ideas and offering, making every post count. I now have a snapshot of my offering and business I can refer future clients to.
- I am now free from the Instagram hustle! There shall be no more digging around for content ideas to post. The 9 grid is truly a set-and-forget arrangement.
What I included in my Instagram 9-Grid
My tiles are a mix of:
- My downloadable freebies
- My main offerings: personal branding and storytelling
- Information about me
- Testimonials from my clients for social proof
- Big concepts I am known for including ‘Rebel’, ‘Manifesto’ and ‘Everyone a Leader’
- My brand mark (The combined ‘SB’ created by graphic designer Brodi-Rose)
- Plus a brilliant range of photos from my recent shoot with Prue Aja).
My new Link In Bio web page
I’ve created a near mirror-image ‘link in bio’ page on my own website. It’s only accessible from Instagram and not publicly listed on my website, but will boost my SEO. If you’re using a third-party platform such as Lnk.Bio or Link Tree, you’re losing an opportunity to increase visits to your website.
The human side of Instagram
Why am I still investing time and energy in Instagram? And why should you still consider it? There are a few reasons:
1. It can show that you’re a ‘real’ person
I’ve started experimenting with behind-the-scenes content that showcases ‘the real me’ and my attempts to experiment with thought leadership. I feel more relaxed on Instagram. This approach can humanise your brand and make you more relatable.
2. It adds another dimension to your personality
Instagram’s visual nature can capture the essence and energy of your brand through colour, motifs and key phrases. My new Instagram feed aims to capture the fun and disruptive side of my brand. I hope you get a sense of what it would feel like to work with me when you look at it. Yours could include infographics, quotes, illustrations or short video snippets that capture your energy.
3. It connects on an emotional level with people
I’ve had so many short and sweet messages from people off the back of my Instagram stories. It’s easy for people to shoot off a quick ‘Gosh, I feel like that too’ in a private message, or ‘I LOVE that you just said this honest truth about X’. It’s simply not as easy to be frank on LinkedIn, where you spend a few minutes or more composing a comment you know everyone will see on your profile. You could use Instagram Stories and Reels, or go a step further and try polls, Q&A sessions, and live videos to build real-time interaction.
Design your own Instagram 9 Grid
I haven’t finished rolling out all 9 images yet, so I can’t comment on how it contributes to engagement. But to be honest, engagement wasn’t my goal. I wanted an Instagram feed that was lively and professional that I could be proud of – and I am!
If you’d like to create your own Instagram 9 Grid, I highly recommend My Social Boutique’s 9 grid step-by-step guide along with their Instagram grid splitter. I designed my grid by myself in Canva, and played around with many layouts before settling on one that worked. You can always hire a graphic designer to build yours if you’re time poor or not creatively inclined.
If you do go ahead with a 9 grid, I’d love to see it, so please let me know!
Michelle.
