Summary

The web content provides strategies for using Instagram to promote Medium stories, emphasizing the importance of a 'link in bio' strategy, standardized post aesthetics using tools like Canva, and leveraging Instagram Ads for broader reach.

Abstract

The article on the undefined website discusses methods for promoting written content, particularly Medium stories, through Instagram. It suggests utilizing the 'link in bio' feature, often facilitated by third-party services, to direct followers to external content. The author, a self-identified digital native, advocates for the aesthetic standardization of Instagram posts, akin to the practices of major news publications, using design tools such as Canva to enhance the visual appeal of promotional content. Additionally, the piece encourages writers to explore Instagram Ads for increased visibility and to consider digital marketing as a valuable skill, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. The author shares personal experiences with these strategies and invites readers to share their own tips for bolstering online presence.

Opinions

The author believes that standardizing Instagram posts provides a professional look and improves the overall aesthetic of an Instagram profile.
Instagram's restriction on embedding links in posts is seen as a tactic to keep users engaged within the platform, with the 'link in bio' being a critical workaround.
The author regards Instagram Ads as a powerful tool for expanding viewership and suggests that learning digital marketing, including Instagram Ads, is beneficial for long-term personal branding.
Third-party services are recommended for efficiently managing the 'link in bio' to direct followers to various external content, such as Medium stories or e-commerce products.
Canva is highlighted as a versatile and user-friendly tool for creating standardized promotional materials, with both the main application and Canva Stories being free and valuable resources.
The author encourages continuous learning and adaptation, suggesting that even non-experts can effectively use Instagram for content promotion by utilizing available resources and learning from digital marketing courses.

Social Media | Instagram

Promoting Your Medium Stories on Instagram

Suggestions for how you can leverage your Instagram profile to give your Medium stories (or anything else really) a publicity boost

I am a digital native and I spend mindless minutes, if not hours, scrolling through the infinite sea of Instagram content. My primary social media platform is Instagram but I do not consider myself an Instagram ‘expert’. Even so, it is my pleasure to share some resources and observations regarding how you can curate an Instagram page to give your writing a publicity boost. This article is written at the suggestion of Dr Mehmet Yildiz, founder of Illumination, a publication that I have recently started writing with.

Suggestion 1: Link in Bio

For years, a common gripe among Instagrammers is that posts do not allow us to embed links. On hindsight, this restriction is probably to keep the majority of Instagram’s audiences within the platform.

The only obvious place one can include a link is on the profile page, through what is commonly termed as the ‘link in bio’.

The standard way to embed links is via Instagram Stories (short videos that expire after 24 hours) where audiences can swipe up to launch the link that is attached to the particular story. However, this feature sets a high bar for entry as Instagram requires users to submit an application and approval is based on the following guidelines as fleshed out on Instagram’s help page:

Authentic: Your account must represent a real person, registered business or entity.

Unique: Your account must be the unique presence of the person or business it represents. Only one account per person or business may be verified, with exceptions for language-specific accounts. We don’t verify general interest accounts (example: @puppymemes).

Complete: Your account must be public and have a bio, profile photo and at least one post. Your profile can’t contain “add me” links to other social media services.

Notable: Your account must represent a well-known, highly searched for person, brand or entity. We review accounts that are featured in multiple news sources, and we don’t consider paid or promotional content as sources for review.

Besides grappling for that elusive verified status, there is another way that you can better integrate links to your medium stories (or any other stories or even e-commerce products) on Instagram. This method capitalises on the aforementioned ‘link in bio’. There are third-party services that embed your posts to the relevant links and all of these are parked under a single, centralised link.

To get a better idea of what I mean, you can check out the Instagram pages of these established news publications: New York Times, Forbes and Washington Post. On these Instagram pages, tap (or click) on their respective links in bio and it should lead you to a landing page resembling the regular feed of these Instagram accounts. Selecting each post will now redirect you to the article the post is referring to.

New York Times and Forbes use Curalate, while Washington Post uses Linkinbio. From its pricing page, Curalate is free for individuals for up to thirty posts a month.

Suggestion 2: Standardising How Posts are Publicised with Canva

Having followed major news publications on Instagram for several years, I have noticed that their posts are standardised throughout. Standardising provides a sense of uniformity and it greatly improves the overall aesthetic of your profile. Again, you can visit the pages of the New York Times, Forbes and Washington Post to get a better understanding of what I mean.

To create these posts, Canva is my go-to application. Canva has a catalogue of templates for posters, invitations, business cards and flyers for a variety of occasions. I use the free version and even without Canva Pro features, Canva has served me well thus far.

I mainly use Canva for publicity posters in my activities at school but it is a versatile tool that is applicable in other contexts as well, including Instagram. Even if you do not wind up using Canva for your Instagram posts, Canva is a brilliant tool to bookmark for any publicity materials that you may need to craft in the future.

There is also a separate application, Canva Stories that has stunning templates for creating sophisticated, aesthetically-pleasing story posts. I use Canva Stories on occasion and I am impressed by the array of top quality templates that you can choose from, for free.

Canva and Canva Stories are free to download for both Android and iOS.

Suggestion 3: Instagram Ads (for those who are interested and willing to learn digital marketing)

For those who are serious about writing or looking to develop a personal brand for the long term, you may want to consider learning how to leverage Instagram Ads for greater outreach as well.

At the suggestion of a friend, I have started an online course for Instagram Ads on Udemy. I am currently exploring and learning how to utilise Instagram Ads to widen my viewership or perhaps for e-commerce purposes in the future. I purchased this course during a recent sale for SGD15 (about USD11) but I believe that the price has risen since then. The course I am currently taking has a 30-day money-back guarantee so you can try it out for yourselves. If this course is not helpful or simply uninteresting to you, you can request a refund.

There are other paid courses available on the web and I am sure there are free resources as well. You can even visit Instagram for Businesses to view tutorials and advice doled out by successful businesses and professionals alike.

I believe that digital marketing is a useful skill to have and Instagram Ads is just an offshoot of this field. Even if you have no intentions of marketing your personal brand with Instagram, perhaps you can explore other digital marketing courses (e.g. Facebook Ads, Google Adwords) especially since the majority of us are hunkering down amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

These are just three suggestions that I have for anyone who wishes to leverage their Instagram profiles to lend their Medium stories, blogs, e-commerce sites or personal brand a much-needed publicity boost. I am certainly no expert in this field and I am learning as I go but these are some of the resources and observations that I have encountered and am currently using.

Please reach out to me or respond in the comments section below if you have any other tips or suggestions for expanding one’s online presence be it through Instagram or any other platforms. I hope that this article has helped you in some way and have a great week ahead!