Zen-promo 
The Guide to Captivate Your Audience With Catchy Instagram Captions
The Guide to Captivate Your Audience With Catchy Instagram Captions
The most important things about your Instagram feed may be your pictures and videos, but your captions are a vital part of the content you share as well.
How do you decide what to write to accompany the images you share? When is humor appropriate? When should you focus on inspiration, or keeping things serious? How many hashtags are too many, and which ones are simply played out? Most importantly, how do you use captions to motivate your audience to take the action you want them to?
A good caption can lead to more engagement.
Instagram recently created a new algorithm that’s designed to give posts that have received a significant amount of engagement a boost. As posts receive more comments, shares, and likes the algorithm will give it higher ranking on followers’ feeds. Ultimately, the posts that receive enough engagement could end up on the exploration page.
One of the driving factors behind engagement is your ability to write a great caption. This includes a compelling call to action.
The Anatomy of a Great Instagram Caption
To start with, your Instagram caption should provide followers relevant information in context. Next, captions should be infused personality if you are your own brand. If you are a company, then it should reflect your brand voice. Finally, the caption should nudge Your followers or words answering your call to action.
Look at the profile of Justas Galaburda, an icon designer. You detect his unique style at once and will never confuse with anyone else.
Source: https://www.instagram.com/iconutopia/
How Long?
There is no hard or fast rule when it comes to the length of your caption. It really depends on what you're trying to accomplish, and what the image or video you shared requires. Sometimes, minimalism is best. You can make a big impact with a single hashtag or adjective. On the other hand, other posts need a lot of context. You have 2200 characters to use, although you probably shouldn’t reach that limit.
If the content speaks for itself, a minimalist caption is enough:
National Geographic combines spectacular photography with insightful captions:
Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/BbnvgaAjIXm/?utm_source=ig_embed
Ultimately, engagement is the ideal metric. If you're getting that, you're probably doing something right.
It can help to focus on benefit. Before you publish the post ask yourself if or how what you have written benefits your audience. Does it give them additional information, for example? Then consider whether the caption enhances the visual. Finally, you don't want your captions to be to promotional, but it's okay To write them in ways that also benefit your online marketing efforts
Avoid instagramming without a plan
If you've got a great picture or video, it's pretty tempting to just throw it up on Instagram with a quick caption. The problem is that you often end up with a cool visual accompanied by a throw away caption. Consider taking a bit more time to do something a little more special. Unless it's time-sensitive, wait to publish so you've had time to compose a great caption.
No one knows whether this post of Stefano Gabbana lacked a thought or simply failed to reach its goal, but social media had a lot to say regarding the “Thin and Gorgeous” inscription.
Source: https://skedsocial.com/blog/instagram-fails-17-controversial-insta-moments/
Remember that there are tools that allowed you to schedule your posts. Imagine that you have some free time and are feeling inspired.you could write multiple captions. Then, simply let the scheduler Publish them for you.
Emojis in Your Instagram Captions
While they can be overused, and aren’t a great fit for every brand, emojis can certainly add something positive to your captions. They can convey emotion, and add a bit of a visual break to your words. Emojis are welcoming, friendly, and inviting. Just be sure they add to the message, rather than detracting from it.
Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/BmJ6FX4DB4V/?utm_source=ig_embed
Writing Quality Matters
Instagram is a fun, visual platform. It’s largely casual, and your captions should reflect that, but you shouldn’t presume that the quality of your writing doesn’t matter. Take the time to write captions that are relevant, creative, and grammatically correct. Use resources such as Grammarly, TrustmyPaper, and Hemingway to ensure that your captions are always well-written.
Your Call to Action
With other content, it’s normal to add your call to action at the end. That makes sense. You give readers their value up front, then hit them up with your CTA. With Instagram captions, you should do the opposite. Because they get truncated after the first few lines, go ahead and lead off with your call to action. Examples of a CTA are:
-
Asking a question
-
Link in Bio
-
Branded hashtag
-
Tag a friend
Use action words like join, save, or learn to tell users they should take action. Use emojis to make your CTA stand out even more.
Example: Save money on your ‘19 beach look today! #Beachwear! Link in Bio.
Foster Goodwill With Mentions
A mention is the inclusion of other Instagram handles in your captions. This is a great way to boost others, and build great relationships with influencers who may be relevant to your audience. You can include a mention to give someone credit, or as a shout out if you’ve partnered with them to help both of your brands build up your engagement. Even if you don’t have an agreement, a mention can be the start of a mutually beneficial Instagram relationship.
Your Voice Matters
Your voice is one of the key elements that distinguish your brand from others. Take the time to develop a voice that works for your brand, then be consistent in using it.
The Ins And Outs of Hashtags
Done correctly, hashtags make your Instagram posts more engaging, and searchable. You can include them at the end of your post, the most popular method, or sprinkle them throughout your caption. The second method is a nifty technique, because hashtags show up in a different color. This can make your posts visually interesting to readers.
Before you use hashtags, it’s good to have a bit of a strategy in place. First, don’t expect much benefit from the most popular hashtags. You won’t get much traction from #Loved or #Blessed. Instead, stick with hashtags that are a bit more descriptive, and brand representative. For example, #realestate is associated with more than 23 million posts. It’s pretty easy to get lost in the crowd there.
On the other hand, #TinyHouse has just over a million.
Consider following hashtags before you start using them in your posts. Look for ones that are truly engaging, and seem to get the most action from people that match your customer personas.
Don’t forget to create a branded hashtag or two as well. These can be used to encourage your followers to engage with your brand. If you plan on encouraging user-generated content, ask your followers to include your branded hashtag.
Finally, use location tags! Posts that have these get up to 79% more engagement than those that don’t.
Sponsored Posts
If you are receiving compensation to promote products in your Instagram posts, you must disclose this. Use hashtags #ad or #sponsored in your captions to be certain that you are in compliance.
Final Thoughts
Use this guide to create Instagram captions that make your posts even more engaging. You’ll have a better time getting your audience to answer your call to action, and get more out of every picture or video you share.
Diana Nadim is a writer and editor who has a Master degree in Marketing.
She combines her passion for writing with her interest in research and creates thought-provoking content in various fields. Diana also runs her own 3to5Marketing blog. What inspires her the most in her writing is traveling and meeting new people. Follow her on Twitter.