10 ways small businesses can leverage Instagram grids

Against minimal investments, small businesses can optimise the design of Instagram grids with creatives to get easily accessible lookbooks and catalogues.

Instagram can be used as an excellent mini-website where businesses, both big and small, can use the space as a visual display of everything that they stand for and have to offer. Small businesses can particularly use Instagram grids to their benefit, against minimal investments. Optimally using negative space and part images that are can be put together to complete a puzzle are two ways to make the most of Instagram grids. Here are a few brand pages and key lessons one can learn from them.

Connect the dots between pictures

Joining the pictures intended for the grid with the help of connector elements in the contributing creatives is a good strategy. Care should be taken to ensure that individual pictures don't look incomplete. They should intrigue people to visit the profile to check the bigger narrative.

Use half the feed but create full impact

You don't have to always go for a grid that spans across the entire feed at one time. Half-feed works just as well. The important aspect is to give a clear message and justify the space being consumed. Small is big!

Create a minimal website on Instagram

Instagram can be an excellent space for you to build a mini-website that is easily accessible to wide-ranging audiences. To direct people to a link in the bio or swipe up to visit your website may work but to have a website on the platform itself is definitely a plus! Bonus: It is a much cheaper option for small businesses!

Use borders that sync as well as separate

To create a pattern with certain strategically placed/posted images can help you get a grid design where you don't have to worry about posting half pictures or destroying the grid when you put up new images on the feed.

Also Read: A peek into OYO Room’s Instagram strategy

Build a catalogue for a festive collection

A new collection can be beautifully displayed using several half-images on the screen. You may even build a separate Instagram profile for a new catalogue during the festive season — tag it on the announcement post on your main profile. The catalogue profile can then later be deleted.

Create an easily accessible visual menu

Though creating a menu on the feed is very similar to putting across a catalogue, there is a slight difference — this is essential collateral to a restaurant. The caption space can be used to tell the story behind the dish or even tag a relevant wine company to highlight how a dish can be paired — a potential branded collaboration.

Follow a colour-based theme for a few days

Pick a colour for the week and be consistent about creating content where various hues of that colour are prominently on display. This is a fantastic option, especially if you are curating content for a season and using the Instagram grid as a blog.

Connect with small elements and spaces

Small elements and spaces that are common across posts can be a good tool to get symmetry on the profile. The benefit of this technique is that people don't feel there is something missing when they look at the images individually while scrolling their feeds.

Let pictures come together to tell a story

It is important to have a connection between consecutive posts so that when they appear together on the feed, they reflect a story as a whole. However, it is equally important for each picture in the mix to have an individual narrative of its own. Find a balance between the two and let your creativity flourish.

Text-heavy formats need special attention

An interesting aspect of how though Instagram is a visual-heavy medium, text on creatives does well when pushed out strategically. It can be a great way to profile or catalogue online. The only trick here is to find the balance between colours and text density and to choose visuals over the amount of information.

Have thoughts on how Instagram grids can be leveraged to the hilt? Write to us at content@socialsamosa.com or tell us in the comments. We would love to know your take and learn!