Instagram captions are like a kite’s tail. It shows little relevance, but it keeps the kite flying. And, it is a must – same as the captions on Instagram. We all stumble upon this confusing moment after easily posting an excellent picture on Instagram, the part where we write captions.
It’s easy to think about what idea would fit but when it’s time to write that thought down, we hesitate because we don’t want to spoil an amazing photo with lame text below it. So, how do we write a caption that’s as awesome as our pictures? The answers are all in this article.
Why Good Instagram Captions Are Essential?
A picture is worth a thousand words – so, why bother adding a caption? True, a picture can speak a thousand words but which words you want your viewers to absorb is the tricky part. Use a caption to connect better. It gives them your direct message, and it represents not only what you truly want to express but also speaks for your brand.
This makes your caption just as important as your uploaded photo. A good post is one that can make your audience be engaged not only by the image but by the caption. The more people engaged on your post, the better chance your post will be seen by users’ on their feed (Instagram’s algorithm will opt for a post with higher engagement) – thus, more likes and possibly more followers for you. This can improve your overall profile/brand/business from good to great – simply by adding a couple of words. This makes a good caption essential.
Writing Amazing Instagram Captions – 101
For writing the caption, a few things keep it attractive and engaging. Those captions are the ones that can deliver a sense of character, color, inspiration, authority, and engagement. How to write them starts with a good amount of imagination and understanding of yourself/brand.
Correctly Using a Call-to-Action
The first thing you should understand is the call-to-action; this is where many users fail to make the most out of it. A call-to-action is just anything that will make the readers do something. You can make them check your profile, bio, buy a product/service, use a branded hashtag on their posts, tag a friend, answer a question, and just about anything you would instruct. However, is not something that you should do on every post, it is critical when you decide you want to ask your audience to do something.
The proper way of using a call-to-action is to make it short, sweet, and simple. You shouldn’t provide long, detailed instructions when short would suffice. Place the call-to-action within the first four lines – but not at the beginning. It may sound ideal at the end of the caption, but not everyone will read the entire post. While placing it at the start will also spoil the engagement factor as no one would love reading a command on the first line. One perfect example that’s commonly used is instructing your audience to tag a friend – another way of simply gaining effortless followers.
Properly Using Emojis
Emojis may seem very common nowadays on all social media platforms; it shouldn’t be underestimated as it packs a lot of power for seeking attention. Emojis brings life to words – it’s that simple. When you want to express an emotion on certain words, you have to pick the right emoticon or emoji. It adds color, flavor, focus, and a sense of importance to where it is expressly in the text. A great tip is that you should place this on relevant keywords – perhaps your call to action needs a thumbs-up? Not only will it have a stronger message but it will also build up your profiles voice and character. Placing one on every post is nice, but placing too much without relevance to the picture or the post might give you a negative impact. So, just keep emojis, in moderation and choose an emoji that would match both the photo and your caption.
Correctly Using Hashtags
As most (perhaps all) Instagrammers know, hashtags are the only means of linking posts to a certain category and vice versa. It is a powerful feature that also helps improve engagement up to 12% by simply placing one hashtag on your post. However, users aren’t aware of how to make use of them proficiently.
I advise only using relevant hashtags and keeping them minimal. Three to four hashtags in one post is spectacular, going for more will make it look like unclear and spammy. Include one hashtag that’s popular and easy for anyone to search – one that never goes out of style is #love. Also, make your own signature hashtag, this will improve brand awareness and give a certain lively character on your profile and posts.
