How to Create Interesting Instagram Content: Go For Quality and Relevance for High Engagement

The most recent studies report that our average attention span has become shorter than that of a goldfish’s. It’s the time you’ve already spent reading up to this point: 8 seconds. For the average Janes and Joes who own and manage a business page on Instagram, taking this interesting trivia into account when formulating a content strategy can help them stay competitive in their niche/industry. This “8-second rule” is not the be-all and end-all of effective content planning, however. Keep reading to learn how to create interesting Instagram content that grabs, retains, and engages your audience’s attention. 

Create Interesting Instagram Content to Get More Followers and Engagement

Whether you aim to inform, entertain, inspire, sell, or get clicks, knowing how to create interesting Instagram content each and every time you post will help you consistently get more followers and engagement.

Creating great content is a must if you want to stay competitive and relevant on Instagram. Doing it consistently will keep your edge over the competition sharp. Take note that if you manage to get your hook on potential followers, you should be able to reel them in with more of your great content when they check out your profile. You want to convert these curious onlookers into avid followers; if they enjoy browsing through your content, they’ll want to see more of your new posts so they’ll give you a follow.

Tips on How to Create Interesting Instagram Content

Here’s your guide to creating interesting Instagram content that meets your audience’s needs and expectations and delivers more followers and engagement to your brand.

Know Your Audience to Create Interesting Instagram Content

Identifying your target audience is one of the critical steps towards successful Instagram growth, as your ideal audience’s interests, needs, and expectations will essentially set the rules for your strategy on creating interesting Instagram content.

To get to know your audience, answer these questions:

• How do they use Instagram?
• Why do they use Instagram?
• What types of accounts do they like to follow?
• What types of content do they frequently like and comment on? 
• What factors are important to them when they’re considering a product/service?
• What value proposition/s do they expect from a particular product/service or find compelling?
• What hashtags do they frequently use?

The answers to these questions will help you create interesting Instagram content that will connect with your target audience. Your audience-specific content will also help boost your discoverability among users who are looking for exactly the type of content you create.

Create Interesting Instagram Content by Using Different Content Types and Mediums

Variety keeps things interesting. Some content types and mediums will be more popular than others, but mixing it up will give your audience a “new” experience every time you post something that’s different from the usual.

Your overall strategy to create interesting Instagram content should include all types of Instagram content, namely:

• Feed
• Stories
• Live
• Reels
• IGTV

Feel the pulse of your audience and find out which content types are most suitable to your audience and brand and preferred within your industry — create more of these. But don’t shy away from using those that are not as popular with your audience. Doing a Live stream, for example, can help generate more interest in a feed post you’ve already published. So even if your Live stream doesn’t get as many likes and comments as your regular feed posts, it can drive more traffic to certain posts.

Another way to create interesting Instagram content is by using different formats for each content type. For example, if Instagram Stories are your audience’s preferred mode of content consumption, you can offer a mix of the following:

• Behind the scenes action
• Short product teaser
• A how-to series
• An informational clip/slideshow 

Just remember to find the right balance between having an interesting variety of content types and maintaining aesthetics and conceptual consistency.

Grab Your Audience’s Attention With a Catchy Caption

Whether or not the current 8-second attention span record is accurate, there’s no denying that most Instagram users consume content as quickly as their thumbs can scroll through their feeds. So knowing how to create interesting Instagram content also involves writing an attention-grabbing, thumb-stopping caption.

One-word captions may pack the most punch for certain posts; other captions may require a bit more creative crafting. But most experts agree that short and sweet captions are usually the best. If a lengthy caption is unavoidable, make the first sentence irresistible so your viewer will pause mid-scroll and spend more seconds on your post — hopefully long enough to convince them to like your content, at the very least!

Up to two or three, straightforward sentences should be enough to reinforce the message of your photo or video post. And make sure you’re familiar with Instagram’s character limits for captions and other text content.

How to Create Interesting Instagram Content With User-Generated Content

User-generated content definitely makes for interesting Instagram content. UGC is word-of-mouth, an organic endorsement that delivers authenticity to your brand and product/service.

Sharing UGC is also an easy way to add variety to your post and Stories feed, supplement your content lineup (particularly when you’re running low on original content), and reach more potential followers. As much as possible, ask for the content owner’s permission before sharing their post; while you’re at it, ask them if it’s also okay to tag them so that the shared post will also be visible to their followers.

How do you find user-generated content? Just do a search for any brand mentions on the platform. Always encourage your customers to provide feedback via their account or through DM, and ask them to tag you. Immediately share the post you’ve been tagged in, or save it for future use.

Learn From Popular Brands Within Your Niche

Knowing how to create high-quality and interesting Instagram content may be challenging if you’re an Instagram rookie. So learn from those with more experience. Do some research on your more successful competition and perform a thorough competitive analysis of their strategies.

Find their most popular mosts, i.e., those with the highest number of likes, comments, and shares. Is there a pattern among these posts? What makes their content effective? What needs, expectations, and preferences are these posts addressing? What hashtags are frequently used in their popular posts?

Use these crowd-pleasing pieces of content to inspire you, but remember that your content must still be original and be representative of your brand. You want to be taken seriously by your target audience, and even by your competition, so don’t just imitate what’s popular.

Create Interesting Instagram Content With Template

Keep in mind that high-quality, tasteful, and balanced aesthetics are a big deal on Instagram. Using templates to create interesting Instagram content will make it easier for you to maintain the quality of your posts and preserve your Instagram portfolio’s aesthetic consistency and harmony. Your templates can be Instagram filters that you feel best represent your brand’s identity; customized frames with your logo; or customized backgrounds. You can start playing around with Instagram’s photo editing tools, and then explore more creative options using Instagram-approved third-party apps.

Keep Content Engagement Going

Creating interesting Instagram content does not always guarantee high engagement. You can generate more interest in your content by actively engaging with your audience in the comments section. The more activity there is in your post’s comments section, the higher your post’s visibility will be and the more likely it that more people will like or comment on it. Ideally, you should promptly reply to all the relevant comments on your post; doing so increases the likelihood that the commenter will read your reply right away and respond to it. Regularly engaging with your commenters can also lead to eager engagement in your future posts.

How to Create Interesting Instagram Content With the Help of Instagram Insights

Consistently creating interesting Instagram content will become easier over time. Use Instagram Insights to evaluate the performance of each of your posts and determine a content formula that works best. Once you’ve figured out what types of content appeal most to your target audience, all you have to do is replicate the concepts that work.

Perfect timing is also an essential factor in an optimized content strategy. Use the data from your Insights to determine the best times to post on Instagram, i.e., the times when you can reach most of your target audience. You should also perform some industry research to find out the ideal times for your business; use this information as a baseline when evaluating your content scheduling strategy.

How to Create Interesting Instagram Content: Deliver Value and Make an Impact

Your content is the beating heart that pumps life into your Instagram existence. When you know how to create interesting Instagram content that delivers value to your target audience and makes an impact time and time again, you can be assured of productive growth on the platform.

If reaching the right people with your amazing content becomes a laborious and frustrating challenge, you may want to consider finding a reliable growth partner that’s an expert in Instagram growth strategy — a company like Path Social. Your Instagram journey can greatly benefit from Path Social’s proprietary advanced AI targeting algorithm and the expertise of their in-house team of strategists. Start growing and gaining Instagram followers today!