How to Use Instagram for Beginners

Hey! So I am so excited. Here I am. My name is Sue B. Zimmerman, also known as the Instagram gal. And I'm excited, because I get to interview one of my really good friends, Rachel Luna, who I met-- actually, who I first met online through the Marie Forleo's B-School. And I love it when I have the opportunity to meet somebody online initially and take it offline. So Rachel and I had that opportunity in New York City. We both attended Tory Johnson's Spark and Hustle. And we're both on stage. So of course we got together and we did some Instagramming! Right? And Rachel is the author of Successful People are Full of C.R.A.P. C- R- A- P. There she is, holding it up. So Rachel, I want you to explain to people what that book stands for, who you are, what you're doing, and most importantly, how you're using Instagram to grow your business. And then we'll go through some of the strategies that you've been using in the past and some of them that you're using now to grow all your different businesses. How does that sound? All right, sounds good. Well first of all, thank you so much for having me. You know that I love you, and I'm excited to be here with you. So thank you, Sue, for the invitation. And I do have to say, before I even talk about my book. Because you say we started Instagramming at Tory's thing. And the truth is, I had an Instagram account. I probably had three pictures. But I didn't get it. And so you were the one that was like, no. You have to be on Instagram. And I was like, eh, all right, whatevs. You set it up for me, showed me how to do it. And I'm so glad that you did, because it seems that a lot of my audience, they really love it over there. And they're really more interactive on Instagram just in a very different way than Facebook. And I'm really thankful for your training, because there's still a lot of things about Instagram that I'm so-- I'm like a set-in-my-way old lady. And I don't feel old or anything. But you know that mindset. I'm so comfortable on Facebook. But you really made the Instagram process not so scary. So I've just got to give you a shout-out. You're the reason I'm on Instagram-- Thank you. --actively. Good. So my book, Successful People are Full of C.R.A.P. My goodness, I love this book. And not because I-- Yeah, because I wrote it. But it was my third child, my labor of love. And the title is cheeky. And a lot people tell me I should change the title, that it shouldn't be called "crap," that no one wants to be associated with the word "crap." And the thing is that nobody wants to be associated with the word "failure" either, but it's a series of failures that leads to success. And if you look at the most successful people, they were big-time failures. So I was trying to find a way to take something negative and make it positive. And that's what my life is all about. And as I started researching successful people, I realized that they have these common traits. They were all really courageous. They were resilient. They were authentic. And they persevered no matter what. And I thought-- --first time trying anything like that was really nervous. And I was scared to tell people that it was a good book. But you know what? I'm not scared anymore. This book is freaking awesome. It is. And if you're looking for guidance, and if you're looking for direction, you should get it. And the reason I feel confident to say that-- Yeah. The reason I feel confident to say that is because I get emails still to this day, every single day, Facebook messages from people that have read the book and have taken the action, and who have said to me that the book has changed their life. So that's that. Thanks for that-- And by the way-- --forum to talk about-- --I have that-- --my third baby. Well I love your third baby, because I have a copy, of course. And I read it. And you're absolutely right. It's a great read. And I'm glad that I have it to refer to if I ever need to go back to the advice that you give for a business owner. So Rach-- Thank you. Let's talk about your accounts. And what you named it, and why you named it what you did, and how we changed the name based on a few strategies that we worked on together. Yes. So initially, what I wanted to do was have all my names be the same thing on every platform. But on Facebook, I couldn't use my name, Rachel Luna, because I had started out as The Tailor Made Life, which is my website. TailorMadeLife.com. And I already had too many likes on the page to change it. And it was this whole big headache to change it back. So I was like, OK. But I did not want to be The Tailor Made Life on Twitter. I wanted to start branding my own name. Well, there was already a Rachel Luna. I never knew how common the name Rachel Luna is, but it's really common. So I said, well, I thought, well, I'll be The Real Rachel Luna. But that's too many r's. So I was like, you know what, I'm just going to put It's Me Rachel Luna. Here I am, it's me. And I decided to do the same thing for Instagram because I wanted that congruency. Now I also have a web show on YouTube called Tailor Made TV. And you were like, you should be Rachel Luna TV, because you have a show. And I was like, yeah, but I'm already It's Me, and it was this whole thing. But you know what? I really have to thank you, because being Rachel Luna TV is so much more in alignment with my message and with what I'm doing. And so my team is in the process of changing everything over. Ahh! Yes, with Twitter but when you have things on your website-- Yeah. --you have to make sure the things all agree. Excuse me, let me interrupt you. That's great. So let me just interject here for a second, because I think this is really important for the listeners. To your point, it is so vitally important to be consistent across multiple platforms as best as you can. And you build out a brand and you have multiple names. You have yourself, and your Tailor Made Life, and you have your TV. So it gets a little bit more challenging, especially when you've already established a following and a brand presence. And so this is a reoccurring issue I have with a lot of my clients that cannot get their name on Instagram. And this is why I tell people to get on Instagram as soon as you can, and at least grab your brand name or your name before somebody else does, even if you're not going to take the time to really understand how to use it yet. Just get your name. So when you tell me that you said someone had to name, Rachel Luna, and you came up with It's Me Rachel Luna, I did think that that was a great solution to the problem. In fact, I had one of my clients, Carol McWilliams, do the same thing-- It's Me Carol McWilliams. But then, as I work with her as I did with you, I realized that there's a bigger brand opportunity. And because, quite frankly girlfriend, you're so meant for TV and I see you going places, that stardom level of the word "TV" behind your name is so much more aligned with your brand and, more importantly, where you're heading. Because I totally can see you with your own TV show. Thank you! Speak it, girl! I'm claiming it! So I think that was a really good solution. I didn't realize that you were going to be changing your other platforms. And, of course, I love that there's only two characters-- T and V. So you're down one more character on your name. So I think it works wonderful. So anybody on the call that wants to check out the lovely Rachel Luna on Instagram, it's Rachel Luna TV. So that was a really good change for you. And also, Rach, let's talk about since we met back at Tory Johnson's Spark and Hustle, and you being a little bit resistant towards one more platform. A, because you're a busy mom with little kids. And B, you're building out your business. And C, it's just one more thing to do. And that is what I hear over and over again. Really Sue? You want me to do one more platform? Why Instagram? Why should I try one more thing? And as you mentioned, as it is for me, it's the one platform-- quite frankly, that I think is the most fun-- where I get the most engagement in the quickest period of time, and where I-- Yes. --am attracting my ideal follower, who I then can convert into a paying client. And that, quite frankly, is my business strategy on Instagram. So I'd like you to speak to that for a little bit. And then I'll talk briefly about a featured account and the difference between a featured account and a personal account. Because when I'm looking through your feed right now, Rachel, and I see that you've moved away more from your adorable daughters posts to more business-minded posting, inspirational quotes. And I want to just hear like how you've developed your new strategy and where you're at right now. Yeah. So like I said, when I first got on Instagram, it was just because one of my sorority sisters was like, oh, you'll love this. It's taking pictures and putting it up. And my response was, well, I can do that on Facebook. I didn't get it. I didn't understand what it was for. But I gave it a try. And then I thought, OK, well, you know what, I'll use that as my personal space, too, if I want to share about my kids. And I started doing that. But for me, brand alignment is really important. And I feel like I want people to see me across the board very consistent. And so my message is not really about being a mom and kids, because anybody that knows me knows that I really struggle with mommy-hood. I didn't have that instinct connection to my baby, my oldest child, when she was first born. Just this whole concept of motherhood is a battle for me every day. So I didn't want to be known as the working mom. Because I'm still learning that. But what I know that I am great at is helping people reach their full potential. It's motivating the heck out of people and getting them to take action. It's helping them bust through their own blocks. And it's giving them clear-cut action steps and strategy. I am that drink of water when you're so freaking thirsty. That's me. I'm your drink of water. And so for me, I thought, OK, I want to do something that's really consistent. Especially on Instagram, where people can know that every single day they can come to my Instagram page. And they can at least get a word of the day. What's going to push them. Right. So you are staying top-of-mind to your followers as well. Rachel, what we didn't do in the intro which I think would be great to do here, is to say exactly what you do and what your passionate about. Because you talked about-- Yeah. So why don't you start with that. Yeah, huh? We should have started with that. I am a Certified Professional Life and Business Coach. So that's my official title. But what I really am is I am a confidence and motivation expert. So if you're looking for strategy, if you are looking for branding, if you're looking for action plan, I'm your girl. But more than a plan, you actually need to know how to recognize your own inner blocks and you're limiting beliefs. And so I work on the total package. I'm not just branding, I'm not just strategy. I'm going to dissect everything that's going on and uplift you so that you can have-- and this is so cliche-- but so you can have your own tailor-made life. I love it. Thank you. That's great. That's great. So back to Instagram with that in mind. So you've decided-- Because what I'm saying with you, and what I love, girlfriend, is that you're showing up in my feed daily, so I'm thinking of you daily. And not that I don't think of you. I always think of you, especially when I see you on Facebook. But now I get to think of you even more when I'm on Instagram. And so top-of-mind for me means I might know somebody out in California that needs your services. And of course you're the first person I'm going to think of if all the criteria of what they're looking for is a good fit with you. And simply by you posting on a regular basis there, not only keeps you connected with your followers, but also attracts new followers, correct? Want to talk about that a little bit? Yeah. So the other thing that I am finding is that the more consistent I am-- And that's important for anybody. Consistency is key. When you're consistent, you are always on that person's mind. And so they say-- this is some crazy statistic-- that people need to be exposed to something between 7 and 12 times before they actually take action. So if people are coming to me, and I'm constantly feeding them, giving them, if it's a word of encouragement, if it's a snippet of one of my tutorials that I do on YouTube on my show, that is feeding them. And when they really are like, OK, I need more, they're going to come to me. And case in point, I had someone today, this morning, send me a message-- and I've been feeding this person for a long time-- talking about, OK, I'm ready. I'll do whatever it takes. What are your rates? I'm going to put the money together. I need to make a change. Awesome. That's because I've been consistent. Now, from Instagram? That came over from Instagram? I do believe-- She already knew me. So she actually personally messaged me. But it came after I posted my word of the day. Nice. And she said that the word of the day was what she needed. OK. OK. So let's just stop right there. So I just love that you, A, are consistently posting now. B, you've learned what works for you by posting the word of the day. And you're consistently posting that. And I agree with you-- people sometimes need to see you or touch you seven times before they take action. So she took action, and you saw her conversion. Right? Yes. So that's just awesome. That's why I do what I do, Rachel. Thank you. Well, thank you. Because you really encouraged me. And I'll be honest, Instagram has always been an afterthought. I didn't get it. I'm learning it still, I'm going through your course. And that's really helped me. But I did the numbers, and in the past week since I told you-- because you know, you've been trying to really get me to dig into it, and I've been resistant. [INAUDIBLE] I've gained over 130 followers. That's awesome. That is awesome. I'm so excited to hear those numbers. I love it. And I know that you've been resisting. And one of the things I want the listeners to hear is another great reason why I love Instagram so much is that you can reach so many people. Not only attract your ideal follower within Instagram, but you can share that Instagram directly over to your personal Facebook page or your business page, or you can tweet your Instagram. So if you want to increase your SEO-- your search engine optimization-- online, it's a really good strategy to broadcast it to both of those channels. So Rachel, have you been sharing the word of the day over to Facebook? Yes, I have. I have And I would love to hear your opinion about this. I know we didn't talk about this. I hope this is OK. But one of things that I have learned over the years is that you should never share the exact same content at the exact same time across all platforms. So what I've been doing is I will share on Facebook and Instagram at the same time. And then I'll wait, and then I'll go back to old posts later and tweet it out. Because you can do that. Yes. You can go back and share it after the fact. Yes. Oh, go ahead. No, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you. Finish your thought, and then I'll tell you what I need to say about this. So the other thing is that I have a personal page and I have a "like" page on Facebook. So I immediately share simultaneously with my personal page. And then I-- confession-- I have my assistant go in and share on my "like" page for me that just got post. And then if I'm doing anything else on my "like" page that's not from Instagram, then that's me. OK. So no reason to apologize for the confession. We all need assistants, and we all have them-- or should have them, right? Yeah. It's a lifesaver. Oh, absolutely. I have a team. And without them, I wouldn't be where I am. So huge shout out to [? Leanne ?], Morgan, and Kendall right now. And Kimberly [? Wahika ?]! Sorry. OK. So Rachel, in terms of sharing out from Instagram, when you get through the whole course of instant results, you'll learn from the last module I talk about Statigram, which is an online web tool for you to really assess the data of what's happening on Instagram. And with that information comes stats on when your engagement is dropping on that Instagram post. So I know that six hours after I post on Instagram, my engagement decreases significantly. So that is when I generally choose to share it over to Facebook, to keep the engagement going. I don't simultaneously share-- or very rarely do I share. And yes, you can go into any Instagram post and share it at any time to either Facebook or Twitter. And that's what I love. Yeah. Now since emoticons are really popular on Instagram, they do not show up on Facebook or on Twitter. So if you're going to share an Instagram post and you put in a couple of thumbs up or smileys or hearts, when you're going to go to share it to Facebook, it's important to delete the emoticon so that they don't look like garglie words or text on Facebook. And the same thing on Twitter. And as you know, Rachel, but I'm going to say it for the listeners, when you share an Instagram post to Twitter, it better be rich for a tweet. Because it should only have at most two hashtags, and it should have the @ mention of someone that you want to tweet. So I will do an example of that from our Google Hangout. I took a screenshot of us talking. I'll create an Instagram post, and then I'll tweet it using your @ mention on Twitter so that you'll get the right notification. This is another reason why it's so important to have your Twitter handle aligned with your Instagram handle, especially if you're going to share it out. Let me give you one more example of a workaround with the username, because I think this is a challenge for a lot of the listeners. As you know, Michael Port is one of my absolute favorite-- I love him. --people in the world. Right. Don't we just love him? Let's give him a big heart. We love Michael Port! Michael, you don't know me, but I love you! [INAUDIBLE] his book. Anyway. Sorry. So Micheal Port is actually my business coach. And I am in charge of his Instagram account. Guess what? Somebody had the name Michael Port already. Go figure. You'd think there'd only be one amazing Michael Port. So I got out of the shower one day, and I had this revelation. I got it. I got the great idea for Michael Port. His account should be called Book Yourself Solid. Everybody knows him from that book. Even though he's written others, that's the book that put him on the map, far as I'm concerned. And it's a great book. Pause. If you're watching this and you haven't read it, please go out and get it. Do yourselves a favor. It is a great book, and that is not a paid endorsement. No, it's not a paid endorsement. And I'll top that off with not only do I have his illustrated version and his book version, Rachel, I have him on Audible and I listen to him in my ear. I have it on Audible too, and I just love it. OK, sorry. Go ahead. OK. You're going to meet him someday, I'll make sure of it. Anyway. So we needed to come up with a strategy. And he was resistant, too. He's like, oh, are you kidding me? I need to be on Instagram? I'm like, Michael. You have all these amazing quotes that we can brand from your book. You were on Sex in the City. You have this celebrity past. Third Watch. He was on TV. He started as an actor, and I love his career path. So he's got a lot of great content, visually, to share on Instagram. And now people feel even that much more connected to him, because he's sharing some of his past and who he was and who he is now. I just came back from a Speak Easy event and Philly, which was unbelievable, where he teaches you how to be a rock star on stage, if you want to do more speaking engagements. And when I was there, I took a lot of photos for him and a lot of videos, so that we can use that for his Instagram page as well. But my point here is there is always a workaround for your name. It's important to align yourself with your brand. Rachel, I love how you've done that. I love you embrace Instagram, even though it took you a good six months to get the kick in the butt. But that's OK. But you're doing it and you're seeing great results. And I just wanted to share that with the world, because there are a lot of young coaches out there like you that are moms and are juggling a lot and are trying to figure out, what is the best platform to get the most *** for my buck? And I knew that you could give a good endorsement for not only Instagram and my course, but just for entrepreneurs out there that are struggling with what to do to share content. And one of the things that I like about Instagram, too, is that it really encourages you to get creative. And I don't know about you, but for me, I've always been a very creative person, but when I started my [INAUDIBLE] the business that I was really losing some of that creativity. And coming to Instagram, I feel like my whole self again. Because I'm doing a lot of creating. I'm doing a lot of business. But it's also helping with my [? clients ?]. Because now the ideas-- I'm like an idea factory now. They just don't turn off. It's been great. Which is great. And I don't know if you realize this. So I have my Insta-Experts courses, the one that you purchase. I mean, Insta-Results. But we created an Insta-Expert course for people who are social media managers or virtual assistants or people that manage a team and want to empower the team to use the Instagram management tools. One of them, Rachel, allows you to create Instagram posts online and schedule them for the week. How does that sound? Yeah. I have to tell you, I think you and I disagree on this. I like that idea. And I have encouraged that for some of my clients that are like, look, I just can't do it. But me personally, I love to post in real time. I don't know why. No, I get you. I just love that engagement. But wait. I have a caveat. I have a caveat. But you know that one of my passions is also helping women, specifically, lose weight and get healthy and get fit. When I do a health and fitness challenge, I do schedule the posts, and here's why. And this is when I actually love using auto-schedule tools. Is when you know that you have to provide content for someone every single day because they're counting. So my word of the day would be definitely something that I would auto-schedule. And my encouraging quotes for my challengers who are trying to lose weight? Definitely. Because what if I'm sick one day? And I can't post it. But for just the regular, when I feel like my audience gets to see me, that has to be real-time. Yeah. I am right there with you. OK, good. Completely. Completely aligned with your whole philosophy of auto or not auto. My @suebzimmerman page, which is my personal page, is me in real time. What you see is what you get, me living in the moment. And on my featured account, which is the account called The Instagram Expert, where I only share content that is how to use Instagram for your business with tips and tools, that I have scheduled. Because, like you just said, every day people are counting on getting content from me to help advance them with their Instagram strategy. And as an entrepreneur, using it as a business tool. So I think if you have the opportunity to sit down one day for an hour or an hour and a half, however long it takes you, and schedule out those post. Especially if you're running some kind of program or contest, it makes complete sense. I just wanted the listeners to know that there are tools out there, if you're just feeling totally overwhelmed and you don't even have time to breathe throughout your day, never mind start posting on social media. So that's a really exciting thing. And-- Yes. Sorry. I'll add one more thing. And this is another thing that I personally do when I am auto-scheduling. Is you can outsource that. You can go on Elance or hiremymom.com. That's where I found my assistant, and she's been great. And I just tell her, look. This is all of the stuff. Or these are the themes. Find me content that works with this. Send it to me for approval. And then once I say yes, auto-load it. And it costs you maybe $25, but it's done. Right. And you have all that time. Right. Yeah. And like you, Rachel, I try to take as much off my plate as I can so I can constantly do the things that I love. And lately I've been loving coaching my clients to help them get more successful online. Yes, so there's a fine balance. And everyone has the same amount of time in every day, and you have to figure out how you're going to prioritize and use it to really have that work-life balance. Which I know that we all strive to have that. So Rach, let's close with let the listeners know if you have anything coming up that you want to invite them to. And I'm going to let people know that I will put all the links, obviously, over on YouTube. But you can follow me on Instagram at suebzimmerman, which is my-- I'm one of the lucky few that have my name everywhere. I'm so lucky. That's why I had to throw in the B. Rachel, so when people introduce me and they don't say Sue B Zimmerman, I'm like, oh, they forgot the B! Because that's how I'm branding myself, is with the B. And you know that I have the B in my SueBDo store. Anyway. So I have that everywhere. And then, as I mentioned, I opened up this featured account a little over a month ago. Really, really excited about the conversion rate on that account is eight followers to every post. Wow, that's fantastic. Which is pretty exciting. Because on my personal page, it's only two followers or one follower per post. The conversion rate is very-- Because more people want to learn than see what you're doing all day. Right, yes. Yes, yes. Anyway. So that's where you can find me. And I'll leave all that in YouTube. But Rachel, go ahead, take it away. And let's end on a really happy note with you. Yeah! Well, listen. I would like to offer your audience members the free Tailor Made Life kit, which includes what we were talking about. Everyone wants more time, they want more money. So I have a video tutorial and PDF. That's called your Charge Your Worth PDF. And your productivity log. And I promise you, just go through that. You're going to find at least an extra hour in your day, and you're also going to get comfortable with your rates. You might even learn that you have to raise your rates. And of course, you get Chapter One of my book, Successful People Are Full of C.R.A.P. And that's all for free. So you can go to TheTailorMadeLife.com. You'll put a link, right Sue? Yeah, of course. So just go right there. It's on the header. You can't miss it. Just put your name and email on the box and you'll get that right away. And then you'll also get an invitation here in a couple weeks to join my 30-day, get-anything-you-want challenge. And that's what I spoke about on stage at Tory Johnson's Spark and Hustle. And let me tell you, the women were saying that that 10-minute talk was a game-changer. So imagine what I could do with you in 30 days. All free, because I love to give. With no sales attachment. Because I hate that! I have when people give stuff and then try to sell you. So it's totally free. Come and hang out with me. And I would love see you there. So thanks. That's awesome, So Rachel, I'm just, again, so thrilled that you took the time to hang out on Google with me and get this message out to everybody, that is really struggling with social media, what platform, how do I embrace Instagram. And you too can get Insta-results, just like Rachael did. So again, I will definitely put all the links that Rachel mentioned over on YouTube. So thanks! Thank you! We're signing off. OK.