Got your Instagram page up and running? but you’re not getting the amount of likes and exposure you would have liked to? or thought your tasty looking pics’ likes would have been sky-rocketing?
There are 4 important factors which should be addressed:
1. The quality of your image
Let’s address the quality of your image. This plays a big role in catching the eyes of Instagram users, natural light is always the best! But if natural light is not an option, good lighting is second best (find a way – even if you need someone to hold a lamp above your food). Hopefully you have a good camera, whether it be on your phone or the proper kind – this will result in beautiful images each time.
You need to get creative with your styling – it need not be out of this world, but if you’re stuck just remember that simple is always better. Having a theme to your page is always a good idea, consistency is a winner on the ‘gram’. Do not over-edit images, keep it as natural looking as possible. When taking images of restaurant food I recommend taking it from the top about 40cm away from the actual dish to get some other elements that are on the table in the shot.
Have a look at some of these totally inspiring Insta-images to get your creative juices flowing…
A photo posted by Jamie Oliver (@jamieoliver) on
The easiest No-Churn Passionfruit Cheesecake #icecream in the world #recipe #linkinbio
A photo posted by The Kate Tin (@thekatetin) on
A photo posted by idafrosk (@idafrosk) on
Doesn’t eating your weight in Mexican food sound like a good plan?? ?????????? Happy #CincodeMayo!
A photo posted by Julie Lee (@julieskitchen) on
2. The hashtags you use
Hashtags – there are so many to choose from and so many that will get you more likes and more followers. You certainly do not have to hashtag each and every ingredient you used in your recipe or every component making up the meal. Don’t forget to hashtag the time of day or meal such as #lunch or #breakfast. Don’t go overboard though – less is more, less of the unnecessary and more of the relevant!
Try some of these popular food hashtags:
#foodie– 38.7M (number of images)
#foodporn– 35.9M
#foodgasm– 18.8M
#yummy– 75.9M
#instafood– 61.7M
3. Re-posts
Ever scrolled down your feed and came across a pic that made your mouth water? Only to find out it’s not something the person you’re following actually posted themselves. And you now have to go and follow that other person- because, “me oh my!”, their food looks way too good! This is something that could give you more exposure, because re-posting something from another page could get you a re-post on their page, and in turn, their tons of followers could decide to follow you too! Give it a go – you have nothing to lose but ALWAYS give credit!
4. Regular posts
I cannot stress this last one enough! Having a page and hardly ever posting is just pure sin – a waste of space and time really. Posting regularly assist in maintaining your growing following and gets you more with each post. Imagine following a page that posts every second week? I’m sure you would unfollow them, since there’s nothing new to look at or no new recipes as promised in the Bio. Followers want to see new posts especially if they followed you for a specific reason, be it healthy food recipes or the latest restaurant review. Basically – you need to commit.
If you don’t know who to follow yet, we’ve got you covered (hopefully you get a re-post from one of them):
The best foodie Instagram accounts to follow in 2016
11 Vegan Instagram accounts that will have you scrolling for days
10 chefs with the most influential Instagram accounts
Go ahead, snap away!
Don’t forget to tag @Food24_sa in your foodie image and if you are not following Food24 on Instagram, what are you waiting for?!