Writing good Instagram captions can be really hard. Should your Instagram captions be funny? Serious? Inspirational? Should you use emojis and hashtags? And what about your call-to-action? All of these are some of the few ingredients to stop instagram scrollers in their tracks and engage with your content – and the longer someone spends engaging with your post, the better your post will rank with the Instagram algorithm.
Captions are a powerful tool that can be used to encourage likes, comments, and even visits to your website. And, if your post gets enough engagement, it might even end up on the explore page. What’s more, captions are a huge opportunity to build a stronger relationship with your audience. While celebrities like Kylie Jenner can get away with a single moon emoji as a caption, for brands and influencers, lengthy captions that champion story-telling and authenticity are what usually drives great results. The “micro-blogging” caption trend is a great way to connect on a deeper level with your followers, which in turn can boost brand loyalty. Don’t forget that a good Instagram caption with an effective call-to-action (CTA) is one of the best ways to inspire your followers to comment on your posts. That means even more engagement on your account.
In a nutshell, you can’t afford to leave your captions as an afterthought.
While creating beautiful content for your feed is ultra-important, if you want to get more engagement on your posts, and maybe even reach new audiences, writing good Instagram captions that drive engagement is a great strategy. Here’s 5 ways that can make your captions stand out.
1. Write a killer first line:
Ever thought of the perfect joke after it was a little too late to tell it? We’ve all had a similar feeling when we come up with the perfect Instagram caption once we’ve already published the post. The lesson? Don’t rush the process. Instead, write a few ideas for captions down, sit on them for a bit. Making the first part of your Instagram caption super-engaging and enticing is a sure-fire way to boost the amount of time people spend viewing your post.
2. Highlight the important stuff:
The maximum character count for an Instagram caption (2200 characters) is basically a formality. But, the important thing to note is that captions are cut off in users’ feeds after three to four lines of text. That doesn’t mean you should keep your captions super short so users see 100% of it without having to click “more.” Instead, front load your captions with the important content or text calls-to-action and leave any hashtags, @ mentions, or extraneous information for the end.
3. Add a call to action:
The simple act of including a call-to-action in your Instagram caption and inviting your audience to comment or like a post can go a very long way when it comes to driving more engagement. And the best bit – the engagement doesn’t stop with Instagram! A good CTA can inspire your followers to engage with your business website, sign up to a newsletter or shop online. If you want more engagement on your posts, all you have to do is ask! Add a CTA to your Instagram captions, like double tap if you agree or ask a personal question to encourage more comments on your post.
4. Use a consistent brand voice:
Aside from the obvious tips on using proper grammar and spelling, one of the most important parts of any good Instagram caption is a consistent and accurate brand voice. Your Instagram captions should mirror your brand personality, and they should sound and feel like the rest of your marketing channels.
In general, it’s a good idea to understand your brand tonality and create communication around it, as this will make your posts more authentic, which is great for encouraging engagement.
5. Use emojis:
Emojis can add personality to an Instagram caption. That’s why a lot of brands use them in their captions – even the more “serious” brands. There are a lot of different ways to use emojis in your posts. For example, you can use them at the beginning of a post to catch people’s eye or replace any words with emojis or at the end of the caption to make it fun.
And, a pro-tip to add on to everything
6. Track & Refine captions:
Tracking and refining Instagram captions is the most important step as you test out different types of posts on Instagram. Keep track of how different post types work – including your captions. Instagram doesn’t have a whole lot to offer in terms of analytics, so you’ll have to do this manually. Try listing each post on a spreadsheet and keeping track of its URL, the time it was posted, the analytics and the feedback you’re getting from your followers.
Depending on your audience, your captions might need to be longer than a few words or a sentence. For example, if you’re a food company, you might post entire recipes in your captions, and that’s OK, as long as your front loading the caption with the most important information that doesn’t get cut off.
Conclusion:
Coming up with good Instagram captions might seem hard but if you want to be successful on Instagram, it’s important to not let your Instagram captions become an afterthought.
Also Read: How to Identify Popular Hashtags
