If you feel as though you’re spending hours each week on social media, but nobody is engaging or taking in what you have to say, you’re not alone. Many small business owners across New Zealand - and the globe - will either start strong on socials only to give up when the algorithm changes and people no longer engage, or it just feels so overwhelming that what’s the point of starting?
Well, here's some good news. If it’s the latter, you can read this and avoid making your Instagram a ghost town, or if it’s the first instance, you can revive your ’gram with more purpose, clarity and intention than when you started. You don’t need to go viral to be successful. You need to be focused, consistent and post content that's relevant to your business and your target audience.
Let’s look at how we can resurrect your Instagram and turn it into the go-to place for your target audience to learn more, and competitors to use as inspiration. Let’s go.
🧠 Audit Your Account, you need to know where you’re at to know where to go.
As John F. Kennedy said, “The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining.” He’s talking about keeping on top of maintenance before there becomes a problem. We’re going to look at your Instagram situation as though the sun is shining; you may not have high engagement, or any engagement, but you have a solid base to work from. We just need to figure out what’s possibly going to cause issues for you down the line, once you’re Instagram is thriving again.
We’re looking at everything BUT the content of your posts. Is your bio relevant to what you do? Is your profile image the right logo, and is it presented properly? Are you using the link in bio feature to its fullest capability? You get the point.
Use our quick checklist below to see where your Instagram is and what you can fix while the sun is shining.
Bio Clarity: Is it immediately clear what you do, who your target audience is, and what actions to take? You can go a step further to make sure you’re location is included.
Profile Image: Is it recognisable at a glance (not cluttered)? Is it clear and the correct logo for the circle so that people can easily recognise it?
Link in Bio: Are you using tools like Beacons or Linktree effectively, or is it just your homepage?
Brand Cohesion: Do your visuals match your tone and voice? Heck, do they match what you’re trying to sell? If your feed is only filled with quotes and sale posts, you’ve missed huge opportunities to share your brand, who you are, what you do, and what your products/services are.
Post Types: Are you relying only on statics and ignoring Reels or Carousels? Do you post only stories? While Reels will help to get your brand out there, Instagram is more.
Key Word Usage: Are you using keywords that will help your posts be found beyond Instagram, or generic ones that don’t convert? Now that Google will display public posts from Instagram in the search feed, you need to look at what words you utilise across your bio and posts.
Engagement Tactics: Are you just posting in your feed or starting conversations in comments, DMs, and stories? Don’t be that one-sided friend who only shares the highlights and asks for help when it’s relevant to them.
TIP: Ask ChatGPT to roast your Instagram. It’s confronting, but you may just have rose coloured glasses on, and the AI tool could help you see the thorns amongst the roses.
👀 You eat with your eyes first.
Instagram is a visual-first platform, and as users, we 100% judge a post based on how it appears on our feed. We’rejudgmental, even when we don’t think we are. That means your posts must be clean, clear, and instantly recognisable. Take the time to look at your website, brand kit, other accounts you like and - our personal favourite - Pinterest.
By looking at others' content and feeds, you will get a feel for what resonates and what reflects the story you want your social profile to tell. Think about sticking with some form of brand cohesion; you don’t need to be boring, but you do need to help people recognise your brand.
TIP: Create a branded carousel end slide that includes your logo and a CTA (e.g., “Save this post for later!”)
💬 Slide into their DM’s; Build your own micro-communities
Instead of posting and hoping to the Instagram algorithm gods, start using your DMs as a relationship tool. Build connections, friendships and customer loyalty.
It may seem time-consuming - well, it will be if you choose to do it genuinely - but it pays off. In such a busy, automated business world, when someone takes the time to write a thank-you card or send a message, consumers notice and remember.
Here are 3 things that you can do right now (and daily/weekly from here on out) to start building your little micro-communities.
Send a message to new followers. Introduce yourself, your business, and ask if there is any way you can help or answer questions.
Send thank-you DM’s when someone shares you’re content (either on their stories or as a repost).
Reply to every comment with a question or compliment. Questions encourage conversations, and compliments make people feel good.
Your DMs are where conversions happen. Keep it casual, friendly, and don’t be salesy - be you.
🔍 Keywords are the new hashtags.
Instagram is now a search engine. Optimise your content the same way you do your website. Focus on how you’re saying it rather than what you’re saying. Be clear, concise and comprehensible.
Use keywords to your advantage; in your bio, captions and the alt text for every image (SEO bonus points here). For example: Instead of “Our latest blog post is out,” say “Top tips for glass-like skin in winter — link in bio.” Or better yet, use ManyChat to increase post engagement and send the link straight to their inbox.
📆 Plan Like a Pro
Failing to plan is planning to fail. You don’t need to have a 10+page content plan for the week, but it wouldn’t hurt to sit down and think about what you want to post for the month. While we stress consistency is key, consistently posting shallow posts won’t help. We find it helpful to set out a day to plan and create content, then come back to it a day or so later to proofread and sanity check before scheduling.
Here at Chandelier, we work on a 2:1 schedule. We post content for 2 days, then nothing for the next 1 day. It creates a rhythm of content that decreases the stress of coming up with 30 pieces of content every month but increases the achievability of having a steady stream of information go out.
Super Generic Content Ideas:
Client results/testimonials
Product or Service highlight
Specials for the month (a bonus post could be highlighting a special service or product in more depth)
Facts/statistics
Team member highlight
Trending content - this is a great place for you to use reels
How-to videos
Two truths and a lie
Your company values
Green / Red Flags for your industry
Definitions of key terms you use.
You’re Not Shadow Banned.
You’re Just Invisible (For Now)
Turning your Instagram from dormant to explosive isn’t about spending every waking moment researching the next algorithm and posting a million times a day; it’s about strategy, consistency, and talking like you speak.
Nine times out of ten, small businesses get caught up in the number of followers that they have before anything else, but realistically, they just need the right followers. That starts by showing up with content that connects, builds trust, and drives action.
Start with one post. Then another. Then show your face. Then reply to a DM.
You’ve got this. We believe in you.