Some businesses do great even without Instagram, but the truth is that today most businesses must maintain a polished and professional Instagram page with a high level of appearance and design—simply because Instagram is a visual platform. So if you are on Instagram with your business, you should invest in creating posts. Invest in learning what Instagram design is, how to maintain creativity at a high marketing level, and how to build a quality business page, because Instagram is the place you have to be today to market your business. So why is it so important and how do you do it?
We have prepared an overview for you on the importance of Instagram post design for paid promotion on Instagram as well as organic promotion, the key tools for designing Instagram posts, and great tips that will set your posts apart from the competitors.
Why It Is Important to Pay Attention to Instagram Post Design
There is one main reason to invest in Instagram post design – Instagram is an entirely visual platform, based on photos and videos. Therefore, a business that has a well-crafted, well-designed, and planned profile with a unique and consistent appearance conveys professionalism and attracts attention.
Here are several additional reasons:
- Proper visibility for the business on Instagram increases your exposure by double digits or more.
- A huge number of audiences of all kinds are on Instagram all the time; therefore, with proper targeting and professional design, you can reach any target audience you want in large numbers.
- Studies show that people who follow a specific brand on Instagram (which is almost everyone) buy much more.
- Instagram appeals to young, up-to-date, and influential audiences. Therefore, if you want to stay relevant in the long term and cultivate loyalty among a young audience over time—you must be there.
- Videos are popular content across all age groups and account for over 80% of all online traffic as of 2021.
- Visual content receives more shares and views than any other type of content.
- Designed images help increase conversions by hundreds of percent.
Therefore, designing Instagram posts is a must-have tool for marketing the business.
How to Design the Feed Perfectly
Ultimately, all tools are intended for one purpose—to create a perfect feed for you that users won’t want to leave. They will become your loyal followers because your feed is interesting, attractive, and well-curated, and eventually, they will also become active and loyal customers of the business. Here are some important rules:
- Work with a plan – Uploading photos spontaneously might be fun, but it is recommended to create a grid for your feed with matching photos, flow, order, and consistency. Set aside regular times for preparing Instagram posts, photos, and videos that will wait ready on your computer, so you only need to upload them according to the schedule that suits you.
- Use a consistent color palette – You can use COOLORS to make it more precise, but a consistent color palette allows you to create a feed with a defined character that is easy to recognize, and also gives it uniqueness over other advertisers.
- Publish only edited photos – Even if a photo looks perfect to you, it can always be improved. Use the available tools to upload only photos that look amazing, making everyone want to stop and take another look.
- Upload videos too – Video is an essential tool for marketing on Instagram, whether Live or in Stories. It’s recommended to match them to the feed on an aesthetic and design level, as well as make corrections and add filters.
- Do not compromise on quality – Only upload content that looks great, refined, and designed before presenting it to your audience.
6 Free Tools for Designing Instagram Posts
If you have the option to hire a professional for designing posts, photos, and a business Instagram profile, that is of course preferable. But you can also do it yourself with some quite good free tools. Some of the tools offer an extended paid version with a greater number of features and design options. Get to know the main tools:
Canva
Software that you can work with from a computer or phone. Canva offers countless templates and graphics suitable for designing various types of visual elements—social media posts, logos, promotional flyers, posters, and even book covers. It is easy to use and has a free option or a paid premium plan.
Snapseed
A photo editing app for Instagram that allows you to crop, add filters, adjust contrast or add drama, remove unwanted elements from the photo, improve the look of facial portraits, and more. A must-have tool for photo design.
Adobe Spark
A tool for designing and creating visual content, with lots of beautiful free fonts and thousands of images. Excellent software from Adobe that helps us professionally edit photos, integrate text, and also adapt the new design for various social networks.
Coolors
A free tool that allows you to create the perfect color scheme for your profile. This is important because it allows you to create a unique and consistent look, which is one of the key principles in creating a professional business feed. It is convenient and easy to use, and if you are creative, you will probably enjoy it too.
Landscape
A free dedicated tool for resizing images for social networks—allows the creation of images in various sizes to easily fit the image to any profile, post, or campaign with great ease.
Headliner
A dedicated video editor for social networks that allows quick and easy use in the browser or via an app. Using this tool, you can easily edit videos or add audio to existing videos.
How Much Do Instagram Designs Cost?
The cost of designing Instagram posts, profile design, photos, and videos varies depending on the designer or the company whose services you use. But it also, and primarily, depends on the package size you purchase or the quantity of posts (some designers price by packages of 5, 10, 50, 100, etc. – varying by designer or company), the level of design and professionalism you require, with or without paid promotion, and more. The point is, if you invest a little more in the professional design of your Instagram posts, you also get a much higher return—faster growth in follower numbers, more shares, greater exposure, long-term retention of large follower numbers, and ultimately—this is reflected in sales, of course.
Tips for Designing Photos on Instagram
You can download a free app to your smartphone for designing Instagram photos (Snapseed, for example). Here are some rules that will help you create perfect photos before uploading them to Instagram:
- Straighten the photo – Often, taking photos with a smartphone creates crooked pictures. This can cause discomfort for the viewer, so it’s a good idea to straighten the horizon line, the width, or any other element appearing in the photo to create a straight feel.
- Precise cropping – Before uploading a photo, stay focused—what message should the photo convey? Now crop the photo so that the main subject stands out and is emphasized.
- Pay attention to lighting – A photo might be too dark or too bright and blur the main message. Therefore, check the brightness level and adjust it as needed.
- Color intensity – You can play with color intensity between black and white and strong, bold colors.
- Focus – A sharp photo looks more professional and beautiful.
- Remove unnecessary elements from the photo – A passerby peeking into the frame, a utility pole stuck in the middle of the landscape, or even an annoying pimple. All of them can be removed using the appropriate tools.
- Capturing a flawless face – If you are photographing a face, such as a model’s, it is recommended to use a tool that provides filters to create a perfect face, or manually adjust the skin tone, smooth facial skin, and more.
- Add drama – Sometimes a photo with a filter is more attractive and interesting than a regular photo. Try the relevant filters to add interest to the image.
Designed Instagram Posts That Make the Difference
In Conclusion
Designing posts for Instagram is a must for anyone who wants to use a business profile for marketing purposes. Instagram is a visual tool based on a visual experience, and therefore—the better your posts, photos, and videos look, the more you will be able to increase your followers, retain them long-term, convey professionalism, and turn your visitors into loyal customers. Here we went over the importance of designed posts for Instagram and the tools that will help you distinguish your Instagram from competitors, as well as help you convert traffic from this platform into business customers.
About the Author
Liad Ovadia – Graphic Designer and Owner of the digital agency Liad Solutions.
