Social Media
Instagram Collabs: Easy Post Ideas for New Creators
Have you used the Instagram Collabs tag yet? In 2021, Instagram introduced this tag – to enable creators to invite another creator to collaborate with them as co-author on Reels and Feed posts. Now it’s easier to leverage your marketing partnerships with transparency and greater reach.
In this article, we explore the following:
- How Instagram Collabs works
- Tips to start your first collab
- Why use it?
Instagram Collabs Explained
Instagram Collabs work just like co-authoring a book or a project document. The final content that you create features the handles of both the creators and is published on both profiles.
The algorithm ensures that collab posts natively show up in the feed of the other creator so that you can amp up the likes, shares, and comments for the same post. Collabs can also make creators more discoverable on the platform and get noticed by a more extensive set of audiences.
Starting Your First Instagram Collab
If you plan to use the Collab features, here are some ideas to kickstart your journey.
Tip 1. Create a video with another creator
Creating an eye-catching video with your fellow creator can help you boost your views. Unlike static posts, videos can convey a lot in a short time. And given that Instagram allows you to upload videos between 3 seconds to a minute extended, you have plenty to experiment with.
Depending on the genre of content you like you create for your audience, you can record different videos. For example, if you are a digital creator who showcases easy-to-do makeup tutorials, team up with a makeup artist or a fellow creator and record a quick tutorial using five products. Both of you can create two different looks using the same products.
The more creativity you showcase, the better your chances are of getting more followers. And even though it may sound like a lot of work to create these collab videos, it is straightforward.
You can even use your smartphone camera if you don’t own a DSLR. Make sure to edit your videos using a free online video editor to look more polished. Playing around with transitions and filters in your videos is also good to keep things interesting for the viewers.
Tip 2. Start an interactive challenge post
Challenges are one of the most potent content assets on Instagram. Not only are they fun and entertaining for your followers, but it also helps you to expand your digital footprint, thanks to better reach and impressions. Plus, you can even add a direct call to action to automatically get your audience to share your post on their pages and invite their friends to join in.
For instance, you can start a dance challenge with another creator and ask your viewers to join in. Keep the rules simple — ask them to like your post and follow both the handles, post a video of them having a dance-off with their partner or a friend, and add the hashtag for the challenge (make sure to add this to your posts so that participants know what to use), and challenge two more friends by tagging them.
Always keep the challenges easy if you want your followers to participate. High-effort challenges can work against your goals by intimidating and alienating audiences, and the excitement can fizzle out too quickly. It is also a great idea to leverage ongoing trends or pop culture moments and create a challenge around that. Such challenges are more likely to keep your viewers hooked.
Tip 3. Launch an online contest together
Running a contest together is an excellent idea for Collabs. Contests are a fantastic way to get the audience to engage with you and increase your brand awareness. To make the most out of this opportunity, you can ask the participants to follow your individual handles and like and share the original post. This can entice other audiences to join the contest themselves.
Take inspiration from this collaboration contest hosted by Lifebox Food and Punks and Chancers. While Lifebox Food offers nutritionist-recommended vegan and gluten-free snacks and supplements, Punks and Chancers carry ethically traded organic cotton clothing. The instructions for the contest were straightforward: follow both the handles, like the post, and tag a friend.
You can use the same strategy while hosting a contest with another creator.
Why Use Instagram Collabs Tag
Are you ready to collaborate with your favorite creators?
Regardless of your niche, Instagram’s Collab feature offers you an excellent way to keep creating exciting content and driving your engagement through the roof.
Moreover, given that a chunk of the target audience spends a lot of time simply scrolling through their feed quickly without really engaging with any content, they are likely to miss posts where other creators are merely tagged.
As a bonus, Collabs also help save on expenses that usually go into creating content, as you can split it with another creator.
Plus, it helps drive faster conversions, with users clicking the brand or creator name to view their profile.
So, if you want to supercharge your content results and take your social media strategy to the next level, you cannot afford to miss Collabs.
All sites, including social networks, need high-value content that engages users, so they keep coming back. To get your Instagram collaborations to convert and exceed your expectations, also have the goal to create and share content that resonates with your followers and helps them get what they need from following your brand.