Y’all Tuned In? Today I am going to show you exactly what your Instagram should look like.
There are 2 main strategies you can use to define your Instagram presence. You can go for a professional strategy by posting high quality photos, videos, with a calculated aesthetic. This will make you seem more serious, artistic and intentional. Or you can implement a personal strategy by posting fun/funny photos, memes, posting more of your interests/hobbies, posting your family or personal life. This will allow your audience to get to know you deeper and look at you as their friend.
The Professional Strategy
Most major label or signed artists will implement this strategy. It is considered the status quo so you can’t really overthink it. I wanna use an artist I follow called “Oblee Reed” as an example of someone doing this perfectly. I recommend you check out his instagram quickly then come back to this newsletter.
Reed has clear intentions with his profile. First notice how there is a clear pattern of the color green showing up. This is on purpose. Since he is from the Pacific Northwest USA, he showcases that rainy, hazy, lush green, fresh environment he grew up in.
He posts high quality photoshoots that were taken with a professional camera. He treats these like a magazine cover or album cover. This is good for press, in case a blog wants to write a piece on him or a YouTuber includes him in a video, or a promoter throwing a concert, they would be excited to use these professional pictures.
He posts clips of his music videos that were shot in 4k. This conveys that his art is of a higher standard or quality than the “average artist.”
He posts videos/photos of him performing live. This lets people know he has a real fanbase and he is capable of performing his talents.
One quick scroll on his page and its very easy to see he is serious, professional and has a specific vibe or vision for his art.
He doesn’t over think what to post or when to post. All he is doing is posting photos or videos that make him look aesthetically pleasing or him performing/promoting his music. Every single post he makes is essentially just a reminder that he is an artist who makes music. Their really isn’t much personality involved, he just looks cool, someone to idolize.
He might post 4 videos in a row and then a photo slideshow. He might post 3 photo slideshows in a row. It doesn’t really matter, what matters is that you post content consistently. I recommend 3 times per week. Some artists are afraid of “oversaturating their audience.” There is no such thing as oversaturation. 1.3 BILLION posts are shared on Instagram every day. You think your measly 2-3 posts per week is “too much?”
Additionally, always post a photo slideshow. Give the people at least 3-5 photos per post. You can even slip in a meme or a “low quality” photo mixed in with your high quality photos, this is a way you can get the best of both worlds. You can look professional on the surface but throw in some other random stuff to show your personality.
Another artist doing the professional strategy very well is Trevor Spitta. Check out his Instagram here.
Trevor has a very similar strategy as Oblee Reed. Singling out a specific color. Trevor is going with a Blue theme with Red and White accents. This is because he is currently rolling out a single called “Coulda Been President.”
Trevor likes to post more videos than photos. His visuals are always 4k and perfectly color graded. Giving off that upper echelon of quality compared to the average artist. Even when he posts a “low quality” iPhone picture, he makes sure his outfit or the background at least fits in that red white and blue aesthetic. Colors establish brand identity and recognition. This is why your favorite brands like Coke, Pepsi, Apple, Spotify all pick a color palette and run with it. Artists are the same way. I'm sure you can think of an album covers’ color before you can remember the name of it.
The downside of the professional strategy is that it is super common. Its industry standard. It’s easy for your page to look and feel like a million other artists. And no matter how good you get your page to look, there is some other artist out there whose looks better. Plus it lacks personality. Sometimes it can be hard for a fan to build a connection with you if they just consider you as someone who is kinda cool and makes good music. It might be easy for them to forget about you if they don't develop a deeper relationship with you.
The Personal Strategy
The next strategy is an approach that feels a little more organic and similar to the “ordinary” Instagram user. But make no mistake, its still intentional, but gives off the impression of someone being more casual with their public persona. Let’s use Dave Blunts for example.
On the surface Dave’s profile looks very simple. He seems to post himself in casual settings, being funny or silly. He posts pictures with friends and other artists. Him in the studio, making music at home or at the record label. It’s clear he makes music, but he isn’t posting high quality photoshoots or clips of his music videos. Instead he might post a performance video of his newest song with a selfie cam in his bedroom.
This DIY approach makes him feel more relatable. Like he could be your friend grinding to make his dreams a reality. He is not trying to glamorize his life, which is relatable to 99.9% of his audience.
Notice he is still aware of the value of brand recognition. He is always wearing the same track suit. The gray and black outfit has become a staple of his brand to the point where people notice when he simply wears a different outfit.
But these photos are not enough. The reason this strategy works for Dave is because he adds long captions that allow him to tell a deeper story about his life. He brings you on his journey as an artist and talks to you like you are his friend. His audience reads the caption as if they are having a conversation with their buddy on the phone. I’ve shared some examples with you below:
Another artist who does the personal strategy with long captions well is Savage Gasp. Check out his instagram here. Gasp will post regular selfies, “unprofessional” photoshoots, or flicks with friends and then photoshop in various anime/Pokémon/meme characters next to him. It seems like a silly gimmick but it actually leads to amazing fan engagement. Additionally he will write super long paragraphs, like a blog, summarizing major events in his life and milestones in his career. These will allow your fans to get a deep understanding of you, who you are and why they should support you.
The downside of the personal strategy is that you could not be taken as seriously as other artists. Since you share so much you might seem too open. They end up liking you for your personality, but don't care about your music. You end up building more of a “content creator” type fanbase rather than an artist whose fans deeply resonate with their lyrics.
If you don’t know what to post or what captions to write, just be honest! Share your favorite tv shows, your favorite cars, go to the local fair and make a post, go to the local market, go to the local park, do a dance, post your new outfit, post some new shoes, buy some weird sunglasses, take a pic next to a car you don’t own, post a hot take or controversial opinion. Do you ride a bike? Post about that. Do you watch the UFC? Post about that. Do you play a sport? Do you have a favorite restaurant? Do you cook? Do you go thrifting? Did you go on a vacation? Post literally ANYTHING that will allow people to get to know you.
Or go deeper: spill out your vulnerabilities, your insecurities, your weird thoughts. Share with them your dreams, what you want to achieve in your career. “Document, Don’t Create” is really great advice from entrepreneur Gary Vee. Don’t necessarily worry about creating something new or reinventing the wheel. Just document your life, what you are going through and where you want to be. You’d be surprised at how many people resonate and connect with that.
Good Post Examples
I'm just gonna list a bunch of good Instagram posts here by artists that either worked well for promoting their music or at least let you understand more about them:
You have to remember that as an artist people need to develop a parasocial relationship with you. It sounds weird but it's true. And whether you go with the Professional or Personal IG strategy is what will determine what type of relationship you will build.
Professional Strategy Fans - Your fans will idolize you, see you as larger than life, see you as cool, interesting, having some sort of mystique or allure that keeps them guessing who you really are.
Personal Strategy Fans - your fans will relate to you, see you as one of them, see you as cool, interesting, someone they would hope to become friends with.
Which one will you choose?
See you next week,
Patrick
415 NW 23rd street, Oklahoma City, OK 73103
Unsubscribe · Preferences
