How to Plan Your Posts & Why You Should

Post planning. “What is it?” and “why should I do it?” are two questions likely running through your head right now.

The answer is simple really: post planning is the process of curating your content and developing your posts before actually posting them.

“Why do I need to plan my posts in advance?” you may ask.

Well, truth is, you don’t need to, but you definitely should. Especially if your account has a large following that relies on you consistently producing quality content.

A strong story requires purpose and planning. It’s equivalent to a director filming a movie without storyboarding the script first. Not only does it make the entire filming process more challenging, but chances are, the end result won’t be as thought out and cohesive. And the odds of that film being a blockbuster hit? … well, slim to none.

STEP 1: CONNECT INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT(S) TO YOUR UNUM DASHBOARD

Use UNUM’s Grid to view your existing content, trends & insights, optimal posting days & times, best hashtags, and more!

STEP 2: IDENTIFY YOUR DESIRED AESTHETIC & COLOR SCHEME

The easiest way to do this is to pick out 2–6 colors you plan to continuously showcase on your feed. Take into consideration the kind of content that is already featured on your page and be sure to maintain a depth of field for your entire feed.

Creating depth of field means balancing your Instagram feed with content that ranges from being busy to having a lot of white space, breaking up bright colors with more muted tones, featuring various camera angles, and showcasing different numbers of photo subjects.

STEP 3: CREATE & CURATE NEW CONTENT

Post planning provides you with more time to consider and curate the type of content you share. Anticipating future posts enables you to decide what kind of content you need to capture in advance all the while keeping into consideration your brand image and previous posts.

STEP 4: OUTLINE & PLAN YOUR GRID

Use the UNUM Grid Planner to visualize how your existing content will appear with the addition of new content. Not only does this help you (the account holder) visually maintain your brand aesthetic, but it also helps to predict what your audience sees when they click on your profile.

The Grid Planner enables you to upload and rearrange any and all content you plan to post. Try and focus on designing a smart and cohesive feed! How you design your feed will intrinsically influence which photos stick out and how the overall flow of your feed is seen through the eyes of your followers.

STEP 5: DECIDE YOUR CAPTIONS, TAGS, & HASHTAGS

Take advantage of UNUM’s Caption Pen and Analytics features! The caption pen allows you to plan out and craft your message in advance while the analytics feature provides you with suggested hashtags.

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STEP 6: SET CALENDAR REMINDERS IN YOUR UNUM APP

If you know your top posts perform the best on Thursdays at 5pm and Sundays at 2pm, you can pre-set reminders that will automatically notify you when to post using UNUM’s Calendar Reminders feature.

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