Three ways to show up “just enough” on Instagram

Social media is a complicated part of marketing your business. I know that I have a lot of ~feelings~ about it that range from hating it, to loving it, to being very, very scared of it. 

“Do I have to market my business on social media?” is one of the most common questions that I hear from solopreneuers. As I write about in this post, I generally find that there is something soft and tender lurking behind this question — it’s not always just a business decision but something else is coming up too. Often after pulling apart the feelings about social media, we decide that actually yes it does make sense to be on social media.

And that’s when my next question would be “what would it be like to show up just enough on social?”

Here are three ways to do just that on Instagram:

Don’t let perfect be the enemy of the posted

I am Julia Turshen’s biggest fan – as much for her damn near perfect recipes as her no-frills social media presence at @turshen, in particular her hand-written Instagram posts. These posts are great not because they’ve been zhuzhed up by a designer, but because the content is valuable to her audience! It also tells you exactly what you’re going to get from Julia’s recipes and cooking classes: simple, approachable, fun and personal.

I employed this strategy with a recent post I shared. With no time or energy to face Canva before school pick-up I knew it wouldn't happen if I put it off to tomorrow. So I grabbed my favourite fine tip Sharpie, scribbled down what I wanted to say, snapped a pic with my phone and hit post. That single IG post led directly to a client booking! I also shared this post as a story again recently and it again led to another client inquiry!

Decide on your social media boundaries

While social media apps are designed to keep your eyes on them as long as possible, you don’t have to be there all the time for it to be an effective marketing channel. You are allowed to be there when it makes sense for you and log off when it doesn’t. 

Online personal stylist Dacy Gillespie aka @mindfulcloset has it right in her bio that she’s only on IG on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Do you think any of her 11K+ subscribers miss her on a Tuesday? They probably don’t even notice. 

You also get to decide how you show up and who you engage with. Don’t want to be doing business in your DM’s? That’s cool! Put it in your bio like @goodbodyfeel and let people know how they can engage with you. 

Use your IG profile page like a website

You can use your Instagram like a portfolio so there’s something for people to see when they look you up, without having to be there all the time. Toronto-based architectural designer (also great friend and best hype-woman) Deborah Mesher periodically updates her @drolehouse page with “just enough” posts that showcase her stunning designs and a behind-the-scenes peek at her process, giving you a taste of what it might be like to work with her. 

I also love the idea of what social media strategist Amanda Kohal, founder of @thewolfe.co, has coined an “Instasite” - replicating the type of content you’d find on your website in your grid and pinned posts and then showing up in stories, which is a lot less effort day-to-day!

What does “just enough” social media look like for you? And if you’re looking to go deeper into these questions for your own business, let’s chat.