Instagram Design Tips: How to Perfect Your Instagram Feed to Boost Your Business

Instagram is the 4th most popular social media app in the world in terms of monthly active users. With 90% of its two billion-plus users following at least one brand, it’s no wonder why the platform is so popular among marketers. But Instagram’s popularity presents a challenge—how does one stand out in such a crowded marketplace? 

Despite how the social media app has evolved through the years, one thing remains the same. It’s all about design and aesthetics. 

When it comes to grabbing attention, your Instagram feed matters. The average attention span is 8 seconds, and users get a considerable amount of information from all sides, so they are picky when it comes to giving their attention.

Your Instagram feed is your chance to make an excellent first impression. It’s what potential customers see when they land on your profile and could help them decide if you’re worth following. 

If you want to sell on Instagram, in addition to having an engaging and eye-catching visual brand, you have to ensure that your content works together as a whole. Your Instagram feed is like a mood board. It can summarize who you are in a matter of seconds. A well-curated feed can help you stand out from competitors, increase your following, and boost your business.

With 25 million businesses on the platform, having a well-designed Instagram feed can stand out from the crowd, boost your business, and leave your competitors behind. 

When we talk about your Instagram feed, we don’t just mean the photos and videos on your grid. Let’s walk through the essential steps for creating a great profile and discover creative Instagram feed ideas for your business along the way.

Your profile photo is crucial for branding on any social media platform. Customers and followers should be able to look at your picture and know who you are without looking at your username. So, as a business, using the same photo across all your channels is essential.

Because Instagram’s space for profile photos is tiny, you must optimize it for the platform and ensure all critical elements – if using a logo – are visible. 

Food website Eater uses a variation of its logo for its Instagram profiles. Instead of spelling out the entire word like its primary logo, the brand uses a big “E” with a bright red background. The effect is simple yet eye-catching and memorable. 

Another example comes from Taco Bell. The company’s brand identity has remained unchanged for over two decades. Thus, it’s no wonder the company uses its brand logo as the profile image to help visitors quickly understand which company stands behind it.

One way to improve your visibility on Instagram is by incorporating relevant keywords into your name (the one displayed in your bio) and username. This helps people find you when searching for options regarding a particular topic or idea.

For example, if your business sells swimwear, instead of simply using your brand name, it will be helpful to include terms like “swim” as part of your username or display name instead of merely using your brand name. This technique is particularly helpful for startups and those who have yet to grow their following.  

If you want to keep your standard brand name as your username, adding a keyword to your display name will also help you appear on Instagram searches. 

Other keywords to consider aside from your industry include your location or best-selling product. This can help you target the right demographics and allow Instagram to connect you to an audience whose personal data matches your target audience. 

Your username is of the most critical aspects of your feed. With the strategic use of keywords, you can help potential customers discover your brand on Instagram effortlessly.  

Your Instagram bio is the first thing users see when they visit your profile. It has all features to tag connected profiles, add relevant hashtags, or even link back to a landing page which can be one of the most effective lead-generation hacks. 

You only have 150 characters to summarize your business and explain what you do, so it’s important to choose every word and emoji wisely. While a concise description is important, creativity is the key to success. Consider it a chance to show your personality. 

Check out how Dunkin wows its audience with a short yet powerful Instagram bio:

Dunkin’s play on its tagline for its Instagram bio is as straightforward as you can get, but the brand’s personality shines through. Using the coffee and donut emoji is a simple way to summarize what Dunkin’ is about without using words or maxing out the character count. 

Here are some other important aspects to consider when crafting your Instagram bio: 

You already know the value of updating your Instagram highlights. But many brands overlook creating Story Highlight album covers to differentiate them. Since you only have 15 characters to label your Instagram highlight, you have very little space to explain it. A good social media team knows this is where a highlight album cover can help you. 

Not only will your Story highlights appear more organized, but having album covers can also help entice followers to view them. Here’s an example of descriptive covers from BaliBody. 

Want to inject more creativity? Take a look at these Instagram Highlights album covers by BarkBox. Since Barkbox sends out monthly themed subscription boxes for dogs, each of its Highlights album covers shows the month’s theme.

Here are some benefits of creating Instagram Highlights album covers: 

A well-designed grid can help boost your engagement, increase your followers, and drive sales to your business. 

Before a new profile visitor looks at your content individually, they will see your grid. That’s why many social media marketers plan their posts at least nine tiles ahead. 

For example, Coach has a vertical line feed.

And M&M’s chooses to split one visual into nine posts and therefore tell a story:

Deciding on your grid style is a fun process – there isn’t any tried or tested formula. You just have to get creative. Like the example above, many content creators and brands follow a pattern or alternate between filters and “moods.”

You can use tools with pre-made editable Instagram templates to make it easier. Feel free to check out other brands for some Instagram feed ideas and inspiration.

You may already have a logo and visual brand identity guidelines for your business. 

All you have to do is apply them to your Instagram posts. For instance, if your logo is predominantly blue, you can use a blue-tinged filter or integrate blue accents into your posts. Intel is an excellent example of this strategy in action:

Moreover, during the early days of Instagram, best practice once meant using a single filter for your entire grid. 

Alternatively, the world-renown advertising agency, Grey, uses only black and white images on Instagram – no wonder the company sticks to this color palette.

However, the majority of creators and brands alike embrace variety. If you want your grid to look cohesive without looking monotonous, identify three to five brand colors and add them as pops of color to your posts. 

Known for popularizing “millennial pink,” skincare and makeup brand Glossier always sprinkles a touch of powder pink across its grid.

Being consistent with colors can help you increase brand recognition, especially when running Instagram ads. 

Now that Instagram has expanded well beyond its strict square photo requirements, users can publish content in a range of formats: 

Experimenting with different types of content can help you determine what works best for your audience. At the same time, being consistent with the subject of your content will increase your chances of the algorithm suggesting your profile to relevant audiences. 

But identifying your post types goes beyond deciding whether you post photos or videos for the week. It also means mixing your content with product photos, behind-the-scenes Stories, how-to videos, user-generated content, and more. 

Identifying the type of content in your pipeline can help you plan your grid and ensure you’re on track. Plus, it’s also a great way to avoid repetition.

Travel and luggage brand Away combines its content with product shots, inspirational content, and instructional videos.

Instagram feed planners allow you to visualize your feed before you publish. It also helps brands stay consistent and build a beautiful mobile shopping experience for their audience. After all, it’s all about the visuals. 

Here are some advantages of an Instagram feed planner:

Luckily, many options on the market help you create, preview, and schedule your content in advance. For instance, SocialPilot is one of the most popular social media marketing tools to help you design your feed, analyze the best-performing posts, and collaborate with other team members. 

As a business, your Instagram feed is your digital storefront. Without a well-designed storefront, people who visit your profile won’t follow you or learn more about your business. 

Remember that your Instagram feed doesn’t just consist of the content on your grid. It includes everything from your profile photo, username, Story highlights, and bio. Ensuring every aspect of your Instagram business profile is optimized to increase your page’s interest and boost your sales.