IG as Your Portfolio

Today I wanted to talk about Instagram as your portfolio. I think a lot of times people may forget that Instagram really is your portfolio for potential clients. This is especially true if you are creative, or in the wedding industry. People are judging your Instagram; even if it’s subconsciously. They’re looking at it as a reflection of your work.

What You Put Out is What You’ll Get Back

It’s important to realize that whatever you’re showing on your Instagram, is what is going to be reflected back to you. I know that’s frustrating if what you’re showing online isn’t necessarily your aesthetic or exactly what you want to be doing in the future.

You have to be aware of the things that you are showing on your Instagram, because it is going to affect the kind of inquiries that you get and what people are looking for you to do for them (i.e. who your ideal client will be).

Think of it this way…

If you have certain talents or skills, or things that you love doing, and that’s the stuff that you’re sharing, then that is going to be the stuff that people KNOW that you can do. They see that, and they want you to replicate that for them.

I think we sometimes forget that, or we just don’t always use that to our advantage. You have to be conscious about this when it comes to the visuals and the content that you are sharing on Instagram.

The other thing I want to talk about, in terms of Instagram as your portfolio is:

How are you showing up in terms of the visuals that you use?

We know that Instagram is a visual platform, therefore people are coming there and looking at your work. Again, especially if you are a creative, in the wedding industry, or a coach, your potential clients are going to look at how you are presenting yourself visually.

Does your Porfolio look like it’s it’s a hot mess, or are the visuals that you’re using telling a story about your aesthetic, and your overall vibe. Don’t forget, textures and the color story that you are creating and sharing on your Instagram is really going to tell potential clients a lot about you.

For example:

I am not the only person who does what I do. There’s someone else that does something similar to what I do. If you go to our Instagram profiles though, they’re COMPLETELY different. This other person’s Instagram profile has a darker color, and the aesthetic is completely different. That aesthetic is going to attract different clients than what my aesthetic will. I’m talking from the coaching space; not even from the wedding space.

With the wedding space… that’s kind of a given. People are going to come to you. Look at your profile, feed and your pictures. They’re going to decide what your aesthetic is, and if it matches with theirs.

Going back to my point earlier: be sharing what you want to be getting more of. Ultimately, that is what’s going to attract the people that want to work with you. They want you to create for them, what you created for other people based on what they’re seeing. Your aesthetic and the visuals that you’re using in your portfolio (A.K.A. your Instagram feed) are going to be a clue to potential clients what your overall vibe is. Are you feminine and fun, or are you a little bit more hard, sleek and high end? All those things should not be overlooked.

I’m going to be releasing more information about my Social Content Story course where I break down creating a very intentional color story for your brand. I’ll over how to do this across your online platforms including your website, Facebook or your Pinterest so that all of your social platforms feel like “you” and blend well together.

If you do not have an intentional color story, that is something to be aware of and think about. If you want more info on that, definitely stay tuned, because I’ll be releasing a course on that.

First Impressions

The other piece of is the fact that Instagram is going to be the first place that potential clients are going to come to find out who you are. It’s very rare these days that people are going to go from your website first, and then your Instagram. It’s more likely the other way around. You have to make sure that what you are saying as well as what you are showing is actually capturing their attention.

The good thing is that if people follow you on Instagram first, they’re going to engage with your content, and get to know you first. Remember, people are not going to read what you put on your website as much as they’re going to read Instagram posts. This is because with Instagram, they’re only reading one post at a time. They’re not sitting down to read an entire website at that one time.

Be really intentional about what you are saying on your Instagram feed, and keep it really client focused.

I’m going to be touching on this, and more in my upcoming course for social content story. If any of these points resonated with you and you’d like to learn more, stay tuned! I’ll be releasing details for my upcoming course soon.

If you are looking for more support around creating an effective content strategy, then reach out to me at https://brandedwithapurpose.com/contact. I offer free 30-min strategy sessions. I’ll give you an audit of your brand. You’ll get feedback on exactly where your online presence is lacking. You’ll also get takeaways you can implement immediately! Start feeling confident about how you’re showing up in the online space!

Thanks for reading,