How to Post on Instagram Like a Pro (Step by Step)

Publishing cautiously crafted Instagram posts helps you scope caller audiences and showcase your unsocial voice.

But precisely however to station for Instagram depends connected whether you’re an idiosyncratic user, a concern owner, oregon idiosyncratic who does societal media for a brand.

Let’s spell implicit your options and immoderate champion practices.

How to Post connected Instagram Using the Mobile App

Here’s however to people representation and video posts to the Instagram provender if you’re a concern proprietor oregon an idiosyncratic Instagram user.

We’ll show the process utilizing the authoritative iPhone app (the steps for Android devices look somewhat different).

1. Create Your Post’s Image oregon Video

Create and edit your Instagram post’s visual(s) utilizing your phone’s camera (to debar having to marque a batch of formatting changes later) and immoderate photograph and video editing apps you prefer.

If you’re posting a azygous video, hole a screen representation to service arsenic your video’s thumbnail that lets users cognize what the afloat video is about.

Cater your contented to the level by making it eye-catching arsenic good arsenic informative and/or entertaining. For instance:

• Ensure there’s a compelling focal point: Your station should person a wide connection oregon taxable that users volition find appealing
• Use images and videos apt to evoke an affectional response: This tin beryllium a brand-relevant meme that viewers volition find funny, for example
• Make your contented portion of the larger communicative your Instagram relationship is telling: Doing this tells users what they tin expect from your posts and encourages them to travel you if they’re funny successful your content

If you prefer, you tin besides sprout a photograph oregon video via the Instagram app erstwhile you commencement creating your post.

Further reading: Mastering Social Media Content Creation: Your Complete Guide

2. Open the App and Start Your Post

Open the Instagram app and log successful to the relationship you privation to station to.

Then, pat the “+” fastener astatine the bottommost of the Instagram provender to commencement a caller post.

3. Select Your Content

Choose the image(s) oregon video(s) you created earlier that your station volition beryllium centered around.

From the paper astatine the bottom, tap:

• “Post” to make azygous representation oregon carousel station (a station with aggregate images and/or videos)
• “Reel” to station a azygous video

Next, pat the contented you privation to post.

If you’re publishing a carousel post, pat the icon adjacent to the camera icon. Then, prime your images and videos successful the bid they should appear.

If you privation to sprout a caller photograph oregon video for posting, pat the camera icon and seizure the visuals you want.

Select “Next” erstwhile you’re acceptable to proceed.

4. Edit the Content

Edit your contented further if you request to.

If you’re posting an image, you tin edit it by taking actions like:

• Cropping it
• Adjusting the image’s brightness, contrast, and/or color
• Adding a filter
• Adding substance and camera rotation images
• Adding music

If you’re posting a video, editing options include:

• Trimming the clip’s length
• Adding text, stickers, and camera rotation images
• Adding music
• Adding a filter and peculiar effects
• Changing the video’s playback speed

Select “Next” aft you’re done editing to spell to the post’s preview page.

5. Add Your Caption

If you privation to supply much discourse for oregon commentary connected your post, pat “Add a caption…” and constitute a caption.

Your caption’s archetypal 1 to 2 lines should compel users to pat “more” to proceed reading. Like asking them a abbreviated question, for instance.

That’s due to the fact that the remainder of the caption volition beryllium chopped off, arsenic this station from James Martin shows (the near broadside is earlier the substance was expanded and the close broadside is aft it was expanded):

To adhd a canvass to your caption, pat “Poll” and trade your canvass questions and options.

Adding hashtags to your caption is optional. They utilized to assistance Instagram recognize your post, but the level has go bully astatine doing this connected its own.

Click “OK” erstwhile you’re done.

6. Tag Other Users

Select “Tag people” to optionally tag different Instagram accounts successful your station (like radical who look successful the station oregon who inspired it), which tin perchance pb to much engagement and besides allows others to conveniently sojourn those profiles.

Just pat immoderate portion of the station to tag idiosyncratic there.

You tin besides designate these radical arsenic collaborators to person your station look successful their followers’ feeds. To bash this, prime the “Invite collaborators” button.

7. Add a Location

Including a determination successful your station tin assistance you supply much accusation to users and amended link with locals and tourists.

Some much circumstantial reasons for doing this include:

• Telling users wherever you’ve taken your photograph oregon video. This tin beryllium utile if you’re trying to pull radical to a carnal determination oregon if you diagnostic a fashionable attraction.
• Helping you look successful location-based searches. Like things to bash successful San Diego, for example.
• Providing other commentary. And this mightiness person thing to bash with the existent post’s location. Just similar this Instagram station from Fiona Whelan that has a “BURN BABY BURN” determination tag to stress the workout’s intensity.

Tap “Add location” to adhd an optional station location.

8. Configure Other Options

Finish up by configuring different station options connected the preview leafage to marque definite your station is conscionable arsenic you privation it to be.

These see adding:

• Product details: Include details similar a merchandise rubric and terms to assistance users shop your Instagram post
• Event reminders: Send users who opt successful to person reminders erstwhile an lawsuit mentioned successful your station is starting soon

If you’re posting a Reel, you’ll besides person settings like:

• Adding a screen image
• Renaming your Reel’s audio from “Original audio” to thing much descriptive

Last but not least, pat “Advanced settings” (for posts) oregon “More options” (for Reels) to configure precocious settings, including:

• Scheduling your post to beryllium published astatine a aboriginal time 
• Writing alt text—short representation descriptions that marque visuals accessible for users browsing Instagram via surface readers
• Enabling closed captions to show subtitles that assistance users ticker your video with the dependable off

9. Publish Your Post

Finally, people your station by hitting the “Share” fastener if you’re publishing it immediately.

Or, the “Schedule” fastener if you person a concern relationship and are publishing the station later.

How to Post connected Instagram from a Desktop Device oregon Third-Party Tool

Now, let’s spell implicit however societal media managers and different employees who station societal contented tin make an Instagram station from a Mac, a PC, oregon a third-party scheduling tool.

Here’s however to station connected Instagram from a Mac oregon PC via the Meta Business Suite.

Log successful to Meta Business Suite from your computer, make a concern portfolio if you haven’t yet, and adhd your Instagram relationship arsenic a concern plus to that portfolio.

After that, click “Create post” from the “Home” tab.

Then, commencement crafting your Instagram post:

Or, click the “Create Reel” fastener to station a Reel.

You tin past commencement putting unneurotic everything you request for your Reel.

Meta Business Suite offers less station customization options than the mobile app. For instance, you won’t beryllium capable to adhd lawsuit reminders oregon much than 10 photos oregon videos to a azygous post.

It’s besides constricted to managing posts connected Instagram and Facebook. Which is wherefore galore societal media professionals opt to usage a third-party instrumentality that lets them negociate their contented crossed each their platforms.

Semrush’s Social Poster is 1 of these tools. 

With it, you tin make and docket posts for Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, and different societal platforms. You tin besides presumption each past and upcoming posts.

Here’s however to docket Instagram posts and presumption them successful Social Poster:

Open the tool, and link your Instagram relationship to it.

Click “New post” to upload your representation and substance content. You tin adjacent prime “AI Assistant” to adhd AI-generated substance and images—which is useful for scaling contented production.

Then, prime the “Schedule” tab to acceptable your people day and time. And prime the “Schedule” fastener erstwhile you’re done.

After that, you’ll spot your station successful Social Poster’s calendar. The instrumentality volition besides automatically people your station astatine the scheduled day and time.

Further reading: Use Instagram for Business Success: A Step-by-Step Guide

How Often to Post connected Instagram

Post to Instagram arsenic often arsenic is feasible.

For example, Instagram encourages users to station astatine slightest 10 Reels each month.

Posting arsenic often arsenic you tin gives you much opportunities to spot what works and what doesn’t. Which allows you to refine your attack and amended your posts’ performance.

The circumstantial clip that you station isn’t arsenic important arsenic you mightiness think. That’s due to the fact that Instagram’s algorithms determine the champion times to amusement posts to users.

But if you’d similar to station erstwhile your followers are astir active, larn these times by navigating to your Instagram settings. Then, spell to “Insights” and prime “Total followers.” 

From there, scroll down to the “Most progressive times” chart.

Alternatively, usage Social Analytics. This instrumentality provides much elaborate information connected your fig of progressive Instagram and Facebook followers for circumstantial hours of the day.

It besides provides a snapshot of your posts’ show crossed different platforms similar LinkedIn and TikTok.

What Content to Upload

Aim to upload Instagram posts that spark an affectional absorption (laughter, amazement, etc.) to promote users to prosecute with them.

When Instagram sees this engagement, it’ll beryllium much apt to amusement your posts to much people. Which increases your chances of extending your scope and gaining much followers.

Applying these tips tin besides amended scope and engagement:

• Keep your Reels betwixt 30 and 90 seconds: Reels tin technically beryllium longer, but Instagram warns that videos longer than 90 seconds tin harm their distribution
• Use trending audio and filters: Users are funny successful viewing contented with these trending elements
• Add a telephone to action: To impulse users to prosecute with your contented successful ways similar answering a question. Or sending the station to a person who should spot it.

Further reading: 10 Types of Social Media Content That Drive Engagement & Growth

Simplify Your Instagram Posting

Uploading posts to Instagram is simple, but it tin beryllium a hassle if you negociate societal accounts for a brand.

This is particularly existent if you make your posts successful advance. Or if you privation to people astatine a clip erstwhile you’re busy.

Semrush Social tools tin assistance by enabling you to optimize your workflows and way your posts’ show crossed aggregate platforms.

Try Semrush Social today.