Instagram For Freelancers: Establishing a Brand and Attracting Customers

Why Instagram Makes Sense For Freelancers

Instagram has many different functions. But does this mean that Instagram is indispensable for anyone with their own business? No. However, if your target group frequents this platform, you should use it to your advantage. Especially in the creative sector, the social network is a useful tool for presenting your work with strong visual content. Here's what you can achieve with Instagram:

• Visibility for your brand
• Building a community
• Direct communication with the target group
• Direct traffic to the business website
• Strengthen your expert status
• Earn money

Decide in advance what goals you want to pursue with Instagram. Don't take on too much at once and think about what makes sense in the context of your business.

The Right Account Variant

Instagram offers three account variants with which you can present your content:

• Private account: As the name suggests, this account is suitable for private use. It does not offer any insights and you cannot place any adverts there.
• Business account: Here you get an insight into important figures. These help you to target your content even better and reach your target group.
• Creator account: This is an account for influencers with corresponding insights.

As a freelancer, a business account is the right option for you.

Important Points Of a Business Account

The business account gives you access to your Instagram statistics. Here you can find out the reach you achieve with your posts and where your target group comes from. You also receive information about who comments on, saves or shares your content.

You can store various contact options in the contact section - from phone number to email. This means users don't even have to leave Instagram to reach you.

A business account also allows you to place adverts. You can create these directly via the ad manager in order to define the most precise targeting possible.

Setting Up an Instagram Biography

The Instagram bio on your profile is like your business card. Therefore, make sure you have a meaningful name and a clear description of your offer. Users decide within a few seconds whether they want to engage with your content or not. Use this time to convince them.

The Correct Username

This is the name you use on Instagram and is visible to other users. When it comes to your business, your real name or a combination of your name and your activity is recommended.

In the ‘Name’ field, enter the name that you want to appear above your profile at the end. Instagram takes this field into account in the search, so you should also add a keyword to it.

Link To Website

Set up a so-called link tree in your bio. This is a landing page with branches to the individual subpages of your website. That will generate traffic. Don't forget to link your legal notice! Otherwise you could face written warnings and expensive claims for compensation.

The Biography

In this profile, you can tell something about yourself and your offer in 150 characters. Briefly explain who you are, what added value you offer and what users can expect on your profile. Emojis help to break up this list.

Corporate Details

Of course, it is important that you provide users with information about your business. Under ‘Edit profile’ you can select the industry in which you operate. Enter contact options such as an e-mail address, a telephone number or a business address. Below this, you can insert a call-to-action button - for example in the form of a URL to a booking tool. This makes it easy for interested parties to book an initial appointment with you.

Important Elements and Functions

Instagram offers many different elements and functions that can be useful for your business.

Individual posts: You can use images and graphics to provide insights into your everyday business life or share your expertise. They appear in your feed and remain there permanently - in a grid of three posts next to each other.

Carousel posts: Here, up to ten photos or videos are summarised in a slideshow. They are suitable if you want to tell a longer story - for example, how your offer solves a problem.

Stories: Stories disappear after 24 hours. They are ideal for quickly and spontaneously capturing moments or sharing the latest news with your followers. You can be particularly authentic here.

Highlight: You will find the highlights (if you have created them) between your biography and your feed. You can save highlights from your stories in the respective highlights. This measure is worthwhile for points that you cannot include in your biography - for example, customer testimonials, an ‘About me’, certain offers or a look behind the scenes of your business.

Reels: Reels are videos with a maximum length of 90 seconds. They offer a lot of creative freedom. You can show yourself, insert text, show photos or play music. This format allows you to increase your reach and show a completely different side to your business.

Live Videos: Here you stream in real time and interact directly with your target group. Whether it's Q&A sessions, product presentations or simply a casual chat with the community - live videos are a great opportunity to communicate with your followers.

Hashtags: Hashtags make content findable. If you use relevant hashtags for your posts, your content will be accessible to people who are interested in a specific topic. In this way, you can also increase your visibility.

Analytics: If you use Instagram for your business, you also need an overview of the performance of your content. You can get this in the analytics on your profile. Here you can find out not only how your content is performing, but also who is viewing it.

Caption: This is the text below your posts (or next to it in the desktop version). Here you can add important words to your content or call for interaction.

Comments: Instagram is a social network - so it's worth leaving a comment on exciting content and, of course, responding to comments under your own posts.

What You Can Post

Organise your content in advance in a content plan. This will help you keep an overview and know exactly what needs to be done and when.

1.Tell your story! How did your business start? What do you enjoy about your work? What difficulties have you faced?

2.Allow a look behind the scenes: Users find it interesting to see the people behind a business. Show how you work and what is important to you.

3.Share your knowledge. This point is a balancing act. Of course you want users to pay money for your offer. But if you give out useful information in good measure, you can arouse interest in your products and services.

4.Let your success speak for itself. Perhaps a satisfied customer will agree to talk about your work online? Achieving important milestones is also always worth a post.

5.Instagram is not a sales event, but don't hesitate to show the added value of your offer. You can also use Instagram to pique the curiosity of your community when launching new products.

6.Give personal insights. What do you do outside of work? What is important to you? This will help you create an even better connection with your followers.

Instagram As a Business Tool

Finding your way around Instagram can be a little overwhelming at first. But with the right strategy, an account doesn't have to be a time-consuming task. With good planning and authentic content, you will increase the visibility of your business in the long term.