Instagram is hands down our favourite medium. It’s visual, lighthearted, and easy to curate your own feed. Puppies, fierce females, and the Good News Movement are a bitchin’ way to start your day.
I feel like a dinosaur asking my children for tech support. Their glazed eyes mirror my own pained look. The feeling I get when Mom grumbles how her emails disappeared…again.
These tips will help navigate Instagram, because when life closes a laptop, it opens an iPhone!
1. CLICK LINK in BIO
To connect to a website , you must go through the bio (profile page). When you see “click link in bio:”
a) Tap the bolded username above or below the picture (i.e. sangriasistersblog)
b) The profile page shows who they are, where to find them, and the website link.
2. STORIES
Instagram stories are a more engaging, less curated version of your feed. There are two ways to access them.
a) To continuously watch stories, click the circles in the top bar.
b) If scrolling, tap the small profile circle left of the account name.
c) Press and hold a story to read it longer, or stop it from moving ahead.
d) Swipe right to skip to the next story.
3. COMMENTS
We live for the applause! The more engagement (saves, likes, comments) a post has, the more traction it gets. IG has a wicked algorithm, punishing posts who don’t get much love.
To comment, tap the speech bubble icon below the picture. Remember, you don’t have to be witty, a 🤣 speaks volumes.
4. TAGGING
Tag friends in the comment section to enter contest giveaways, or to direct them to something of interest.
a) Tap the speech bubble under the picture.
b) Type their username with a @ symbol in front of the name (i.e. @sangriasistersblog)
c) If you don’t know a username, tap the magnifying glass (search) in the bottom bar, enter their real name, and their handle should pop up.
d) When a picture has a tiny icon of a person in the lower left corner, tap to see the names or companies tagged.
5. HASHTAGS
Hashtags are keywords preceded by the # symbol. Tap the #word to be transported to specific topics or events.
We use hashtags to connect with a larger audience, and add humour to our captions. Take me down to the #menopause city where the flashes are hot and the girls are sweaty…
6. UNFOLLOW
The Gram is refreshingly quiet, leaving most of the opinionated chatter to its ugly step-sister, Facebook. If someone doesn’t bring you joy, get rid of them.
a) Go to your profile page, press “Following” on the top right side.
b) Scroll to find the account you wish to unfollow, press the white “Following” icon. After you’ve unfollowed, the icon turns blue.
c) You can delete 15 accounts per hour. More than that and Instagram will temporarily suspend you from your own feed. It does this to prevent spam.
7. REELS
Reels are Instagram’s way of competing with TikTok. These 15 second multi-clip videos incorporate fun audio and effects.
Tap the movie icon on the middle lower bar to access all reels.
8. SAVE and RETRIEVE
If something strikes your fancy, save the post.
a) Tap the bookmark icon in the bottom right corner.
b) To view saved posts, go to the Bio/Profile page, tap on the menu in the upper right corner, and select saved.
9. SHOPPING
When a post has a tiny purse icon in the lower left corner, tap to shop the look or products tagged.
To access all of your IG shopping accounts, press the purse icon on the lower bar.
10. FIERCE FEMALES TO FOLLOW
Uplifting
Participation
@winewomenwellbeing
@camphooha
Shopping
@saltandlimeclothbar
@sublimeyyc
Lifestyle
Entertaining
Midlife
@mojo_and_moxie
@menopausechicks
You can do all that!!!! Thanks for the enlightenment.
Who knew right!
Super useful. I feel like an insider.
Maybe now you’ll stop asking me!
Awesome! Thanks for clarifying a few things for me.
It’s all so confusing!!