If you want to experiment with content to reinvigorate your audience OR if you’re just drawing a blank on content ideas, here are 14 Instagram post ideas to get the wheels turning!
We’ve been using Instagram since 2013 and oh how the times have changed.
Stories, filters, IGTV—it can be hard to keep up with all the new features (not to mention the algorithm). However, the first feature Instagram started with (Posts) has stood the test of time and will continue to be one of the most valuable parts of the platform.
In this article, you’ll find 14 unique Instagram post ideas that can help your content stand out from everyone else’s! Don’t know what to post to drum up engagement? Pick from this list and put your own spin on it to see what resonates with your audience.
Sound good? Let’s dive in!
Unique Instagram Post Idea #1: Embellished Photos
We had to start with the Instagram OG—photos! Want to bring more life to your photos? Try using the markup app on your phone or apps like Procreate and Over to add illustrations or layers to your photos.
We love the way Arabella adds fun embellishments to her photos which really make them stand out next to a see of other photos in the feed.
We love using the app Over to add embellishments, so unsurprisingly Over’s Instagram account is a great place to look for inspiration!
Unique Instagram Post Idea #2: Quote
Again, starting simple here because quotes are everywhere, but with good reason! Take a line from your best article or newsletter and turn it into a quote card with branded elements like we did here:
OR…you can take a page out of Amy’s book and keep the design super simple to let the words shine.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #3: Branded Status Update
It’s the era of embracing cross-platform content! By using a design that embraces the status update layout of Twitter, you can grab someone’s attention with a longer quote.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #4: Branded Digital Tools
Similar to the status update idea, this is about using digital tools we all recognize (reminders, emails, etc.) to enter your own custom message.
Refinery29 recreates a “compose email” set up here with their own brand fonts which is a uniquely compelling way to present a basic quote.
🔥 Tip: use an app like Over to insert a fun background image or pattern in your brand’s color story.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #5: Quirky Illustrations
Think of a sentiment you want to communicate and what visual object or illustration could enhance the meaning.
Not the best artist? That’s cool. 🔥 Tip: You can still search for royalty-free illustrations or drawings online or with an app like Over and pair with text.
Artsy Affirmations could have included this text as the post, but the addition of the large scissors adds a nice visual element.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #6: Animated Illustrations
Already using illustrations? Take them up a notch by adding an animated element. 🔥 Tip: You can use an app like Procreate or Rough Animator to draw frames and export as an .mp4 video file for easy uploading to Instagram OR you can actually use Keynote to make a frame animation and export as a video as well!
Unique Instagram Post Idea #7: Moving Photo
You can use a cool app like Pixaloop to make parts of your images move, adding an eye-catching dynamic quality to your images. You can also use Google Photos automatic animation feature to take similar photos and turn them into an animated photo.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #8: Process Video Clips
This is especially great for artists, but it’s not exclusively for them! People love seeing behind the scenes of how others work, so think about how you can share your process in a helpful/interesting way.
We love the way Gal Shir shares his illustration process in these gorgeous videos.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #9: Micro-Blog Carousel
More and more people are using the multiple-image carousels to teach or inform. Think of it as a mini slideshow presentation. How can you share valuable content and tell a story? You can also the same functionality to share portfolio images.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #10: Infographic and Data Visualization
An infographic is a visual way to express data or information. You could share steps in a process, statistics, or use a graph to share something relatable that makes your audience feel connected to you.
Spark Sustainability is using data here to promote conversation about climate change.
We love the way Liz and Mollie incorporate data visualization with relatable illustrations.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #11: Meme
See a popular meme going around? Think about how you can customize it so it will be entertaining for your specific audience.
For example, The Everygirl knows their audience are mostly millennial women who will appreciate this Rachel Green from friends reference.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #12: Caption a GIF
Look for reaction GIFs and add your own captions that are relevant for the kind of content you share with your audience.
🔥 Tip: You don’t have to go looking for reactions, you can create your own. Take a short reaction clip of yourself and add your caption.
Hello Sunshine used this popular reaction gif to relate to their audience about coming back to work after a long weekend.
Unique Instagram Post Idea #13: Testimonials
Find a way to highlight awesome things your customers have said about your business in a visually interesting way.
This is a simple but effective execution from The Social Media CEO. Screenshot great comments or emails and put them over a fun photo background:
Unique Instagram Post Idea #14: User-generated content
This works especially well if you have a physical product, but encourage your audience to share their own photos using a specific hashtag and you can repost (with a proper credit shoutout of course!)
The Start Today Brand does this with their Start Today journals, sharing customer images of the journals in real life.
Don’t Be Afraid To Experiment With Instagram Post Ideas To See What Works For YOU
If you want to create content that grows your visibility, the keys are experimentation and listening.
Try different types of visual content and see what your audience responds to. It might take a few different executions of each idea for you to figure out if it’s something you want to keep doing.
Here’s an example of the first micro-blog carousel (idea #9) we tried versus one that was created a few months later:
*The 10x growth in shares and saves proves that our IG audience has really started to enjoy these types of posts as we’ve continued to create new ones!
One last tip for your Instagram posts: Don’t just look at likes.
Look at other engagement metrics like saves and shares. A post might get low likes but a ton of shares, and that’s what you want to keep doing because it will lead to people discovering your business on IG.
Most of all, have fun with the platform, engage with your audience, and share content that feels right for YOU. 👍
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