April 21, 2025 • 18 mins
You’re doing “all the right things” on Instagram—Reels, carousels, showing up when you can—but it still feels like nothing is working. The leads aren’t coming in, your grid feels messy, and you’re tired of guessing what to post.
This episode answers the real Instagram questions you’ve probably been too overwhelmed or burnt out to ask. From what format to prioritize, to how to actually use your content when you're not actively launching, we’re breaking down how to use Instagram with strategy- not stress.
Here’s what we’ll cover:
- Should you focus on Reels or carousels (and how to choose)?
- Can you run a successful business account without showing your face?
- Is it okay to stop posting to your grid? (Spoiler: only if you do this first.)
- Why you're not getting leads—and how to fix the gaps in your content
- What to post when you’re not selling anything (but still want sales later)
If you’re tired of winging it and ready to make your content actually work for your business, this episode is for you.
🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned:
📹 Trial Reels Guide – Learn how to grow with intention, not trends
🎯 Instagram Strategy Quiz – Find and fix the missing piece in your content strategy
💫 Join the Membership – Learn exactly what to post and how to use Instagram to make more sales in less time
📩 DM me your IG questions for the next FAQ episode → @socially.yours.strategist
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Sydney (00:00):
Do you ever open Instagram, stare at your screen and think,
(00:03):
what am I even doing here?
You've got a product or a servicethat helps people and you wanna
get it out there and you wanna makethe sales, but Instagram just feels
like a time suck and you're noteven sure if it's doing anything.
Today I am answering real questions,the ones that have been floating
around in your head and have beensent to me on Facebook and Instagram.
But the ones you have beentoo burned out to even Google.
(00:25):
Let's fix that.
(01:06):
Hello and welcome back to MompreneurMastery, where we don't just
talk Instagram, we talk about howto actually use it when you're
juggling a million other things.
Half a cup of cold coffee and a kid whorefuses to eat anything but Dino nuggets.
That is literally my youngest.
Today I am answering real questionsI've gotten from you, questions that
come up when Instagram stops feelinglike a tool for your business and
(01:27):
starts feeling like an energy suckingblack hole that gives nothing back.
So I put out a request onto the internetinside my membership, and I asked
people what Instagram questions theyhad that I could answer in this podcast.
And if you have more,
feel free to DM them to me on Instagramat socially dot your strategist
and I'll answer themin an upcoming episode.
(01:49):
So today we're gonna goover reels versus carousels.
Faceless marketing onInstagram, doing a nine grid.
And why you're not getting anyleads or sales from Instagram, and
what the heck to post when you'renot actually selling something.
And as always, I am digging intothe strategy side of things so
we're not wasting time on fluff thatdoesn't actually help our business.
(02:12):
And let's get into it.
So the first questionwas reels or carousels.
What should I focus on?
If you're asking this,you're being strategic.
So great work, you're notoverthinking or anything.
You want to use your limitedtime on what actually works.
But here's the thing.
This question assumes that the formatis what makes a post work and it's not.
(02:35):
What makes a post work is having a cleargoal, a message that fits that goal, and a
structure to the post that gets people tosee, read, and take action from that post.
So while certain formats can helpwith certain posts, depending on what
the goal of that post is, like how acouple episodes back, I was talking
about trial reels and strategizingthose specifically for growth.
(03:00):
You absolutely can do that.
But that's not to say youcan't share a carousel and get
followers from that, you know?
But yes, if growth is your goal, trialreels are a really great starting point.
Because when I talk about growth,growth being the first step in the
five steps to sales on Instagramstrategy that I teach, I don't mean
just having a whole bunch of followers.
(03:21):
I mean, having targeted followers andbecause we know trial reels are shown.
To people that alreadyfollow accounts like yours.
So they're already in your targetaudience, but it specifically targets
people that don't already follow you isa great way to strategize your growth.
(03:41):
But again, if you don't have the structureto the real, if you don't have the strong
hook, if you don't have the messagingyou're still not gonna reach that goal
of growth in getting those targetedfollowers that actually turn into buyers.
So that growth only matters ifthere's something to grow into.
If those new people land on youraccount and there's nothing else
(04:02):
there for them to engage with,connect, build, trust, all that
stuff, they're not gonna stick around.
You're not gonna get the engagementyou're not gonna get the sales.
And that is where I reallylove using carousels because.
You can put so much information in them.
I think reels are great for trial.
Reels are great for growth.
They're great for engagement, whichis step two of the five step to sales.
(04:28):
And then for the more in-depth steps ofthe strategy, I teach, I love care sales
because you can put more informationin there and break it down in a way
people are more likely to actually read.
Like a paragraph of text on a reelor in a caption is not as consumable
as a longer carousel with curiositygaps, so people keep swiping and a
(04:53):
limited amount of text on each slide.
But again, having that structurebehind the post really helps knowing
you have a strong hook or a strongdouble hook for your carousels.
Since Instagram shows the secondslide in people's feeds as well,
if they missed it the first time.
(05:13):
Or if there's no visual hook inyour reel, people might not stop
and watch it, and then Instagramwon't show it to other people.
So having that kind of structurebehind it while knowing the
purpose is really powerful.
I actually created a whole trainingon this inside of my membership
last month that walks the membersthrough how to structure those
(05:34):
posts as well as their captions.
So their posts actually get seen and reador watched and people follow through on
whatever call to action you are usingbecause format is only part of the puzzle.
The formula is behind your contentand the purpose behind your
content is what help it convert.
But as a general rule of thumb,I mean, you can do any that
(05:55):
you are most comfortable with.
If you are constantly rockingthe mom goblin, look like me.
Reels might not be somethingyou film all the time, or
maybe you just use more B roll.
If you just don't like makingcarousels, use more reels.
Just make sure that you have the purposebehind it and the structure so that
(06:17):
people are actually going to consume thecontent and take action afterwards so
you can reach all of those five steps youneed before you get sales on Instagram.
The second question I got was.
Can I keep my business faceless?
Sure you can have a faceless business.
Who am I to tell you?
You can't?
But you cannot have aconnectionless business.
(06:39):
Instagram is all about being social.
The best way to do that isby having connections and
being a more personal brand.
Those are the ones that aregonna have a lot of success on
like any social media platform.
So.
The strategy that leads tosales isn't about visuals.
It's more emotional.
That connection and trust piece insidemy five step framework I mentioned,
(07:04):
connection and trust are the middlesteps that move people from this looks
interesting to I am ready to buy.
Give me that.
So when you take your face outta yourcontent, you're removing one of the
fastest ways that people connect with you.
So because of that, it justmeans you need to lean a little
harder on your brand voice.
Consistency and those connectionthings like storytelling and emotion.
(07:29):
So you can build that connectionand foster that trust in
your brand and your offers.
So people feel compelled to engagewith you and you get more touch points
with them and they will eventuallyconvert into buyers or clients depending
on what it is that you're selling.
So yes, you can absolutely go faceless.
Just make sure you know, you're gonnahave to lean more into the connection
(07:50):
building and trust building phase.
'cause it's just a little harderfor our brains to do that.
When we don't have a face to a brand.
And question three was, can I leave mygrid alone and just use reels in stories?
Yes.
I have seen people do this,have a nine grid or a 12 grade
and like, yes, you can.
But only if your grid isalready doing its job.
(08:14):
The question is really more about likeautomation and wanting to simplify
and streamline and reduce how oftenyou have to create new content.
And I'm all for that absolutely.
All day, every day.
I love
doing less without sacrificing results.
That's my whole life, honestly.
But the thing is, you gottahave the strategy behind it.
So you wanna think of your grid aslike your website at that point.
(08:34):
If someone lands there from a reelthat you're sharing and just not
having it upload to your grid ora story they need to instantly
understand what you do, who you help,how you can help them in particular.
So if your last few posts areoutdated or vague or the messaging
isn't right there or if they're justfor engagement, people aren't gonna
(08:55):
stick around enough to figure it out.
So you need to make sure yourgrid has trust and clarity.
You need to make sure your storiesand reels are building connection
and getting that growth and doing allthe other work that the other five
steps you need for sales on Instagram.
Utilizing the highlightsfeature of Instagram here
would also be really helpful
(09:18):
to be able to share more informationwithout adding more to your grid.
Another thing to consider here withthe updated grid sizes on Instagram and
how Instagram is cropping the posts.
Only on your grid creating that kind ofseamless nine grid or 12 grid look is.
Going to be a little tricky.
(09:39):
I'm actually working on recording,a training to show you how I
manage to set it up on my account.
I don't have a full ninth grid, butjust the top three pinned posts for
me are a seamless, like banner type ofpost that have a similar effect while
still updating the rest of my grid.
But yes, so stay tuned andI will be sharing that soon.
(10:02):
Question four is one I get all the time.
All the time.
And that is why is my Instagramnot getting sales or leads?
And this question normally comeswith like a big heavy sigh because
you're showing up, you're posting atleast somewhat consistently, but like
honestly, life happens and that's fine.
You're doing some reels, you'resharing stories, and still nothing.
(10:24):
No comments, no dms, no sales.
It feels like Instagram is just a boxyou check because you're supposed to.
And here is what happens.
Most people are stuck creatingcontent that lives only in
one part of the strategy.
It's usually growth or engagement.
Maybe sometimes just sales andthose alone don't get people to buy.
Okay?
So you need all five steps to worktogether, and I really want you to
(10:46):
think of these steps as a staircase.
'cause having them in the right order.
Helps people have to hit each of thesesteps before they can get to The last
one, which is ultimately sales, right?
So you have to have the rightfollowers, you have to have engagement.
So they're, you get those touchpoints you need to get to the
next step, which is connection.
Helping them feel like you get them.
(11:06):
And you probably, I mean, youshould considering your work,
but also it's a lot easier.
When you are them, which I feel likemost of the people I talk to are, we are
our own ideal clients in a lot of cases.
Maybe like a couple steps aheadof them in whatever struggles.
But usually we have been wherethey are, so we do get it.
(11:27):
After that you need tobuild trust in your offers.
Show them how you can help and whyyou are the person to help them.
And then.
Is the sale part whereyou're inviting them to buy.
If you skip steps three andfour people might be engaging,
but they're still not buying.
It's because they don't quitetrust you yet, or they don't fully
(11:48):
understand the value of your offer.
So you would need to create contentthat works on those two things.
It could also be, you know, messagingthat's just missing the mark.
Maybe your content is good, butit's not getting into the specifics.
It is just a little too generic for themto really think, oh, yes, I need this.
(12:08):
Maybe there's no real clearcontent path leading to your offer.
When you're getting ready to sellsomething, you need to make sure the
posts leading up to that sale are aroundtopics that relate to your offer, so
they're already informed and ready to buy.
Maybe you're using call to actionsthat are too soft or too soon.
And this is why just post somethingdoesn't really work for long term.
(12:31):
It can help, like it can work, it canabsolutely get you sales, but if you
want consistent sales and be able tohave a sale or a launch or something
and know you're going to get moneyfrom it, having this clear content path
with the strategy behind it is the key.
So if you're stuck in that spot,I actually have a free quiz to
help you figure out exactly whichpart of your Instagram strategy
(12:52):
is missing and what to fix first.
It gives you very actionable thingsto work on to make sure you're
reaching each of those five steps.
I'll put the link in the show notes.
It takes about two minutes.
Honestly, it's super helpful.
It is called the find and fix thegaps in your Instagram strategy quiz.
And again, I'll put it in the show notes.
It's a long name.
But definitely check it out.
It's super helpful.
(13:15):
Now question five is, what shouldI post when I'm not launching?
What of the five stepsshould I be working on?
And this is such a good questionbecause honestly, we're not
launching all of the time.
Most of your time on Instagramis not spent in launch mode.
A lot of it is in that in-between spaceand how do you use that time so you're
still posting with purpose and notwasting it on stuff that isn't helping.
(13:36):
That is what determines whether yournext launch feels smooth or like
you're just shouting into the void.
'cause we definitely don't want that.
When I am not actively selling somethingor like leading up to a sale, I'm
not on that launch runway at all.
I'm not just coasting either.
I'm just shifting my content focus.
Okay?
So that means when I look at thosefive steps to sales that I teach,
(13:58):
that means I'm rotating through posts fromsteps one through three in my strategy.
So growth, bringing new peopleinto my world, people that are
actually in my target audience.
I'm working on engagement, so I'mkeeping visible, keeping relevance high.
I am keeping top of mind and I'm stillhaving conversations with people in my
audience and I'm building connection.
(14:18):
But instead of focusing it onmy actual offers, it's gonna
be more personal story, tell.
Personal brand related, likestorytelling, building that emotional
trust there in my brand as awhole instead of specific offers.
So these posts might not leaddirectly to a sale today.
But they're laying the foundationfor someone to say yes later.
(14:40):
And they also help get marketresearch, which is always helpful.
Because people don't just buy whenyou post a reel or write a good call
to action, they buy because yourcontent over time made them feel
seen or understood and supported.
So if you skip this and you only showup when you're selling, what happens is
your audience isn't primed yet to hearyour pitch they're not a warm lead.
(15:02):
So they might not know what your offer is,what you're offering, how it helps them.
And they just, they won't have thattrust needed to buy and invest in
your services or your products.
It's not that your offer is bad, it's justthat there's no context for it, right?
It's like showing up to a firstday asking someone to marry you.
That's weird.
(15:22):
No, we're not doing it.
You gotta build the relationship first.
But when you do use your nonlaunch content intentionally,
you can build a warm audiencethat's engaged and responsive.
So even when you do have likea flash sale, you know those
things with very little planning.
You can still get sales thenbecause your audience is warm
and engaged and responsive.
(15:44):
And when you're not selling, you cancollect data on what's resonating
so you can sharpen your messaging.
You don't have to start from zeroevery time you promote something.
It's also the perfect time to testcontent topics or new formats.
Shift beliefs.
Listen to what people are responding to.
I'll often use these posts to collectmarket research, what dms people
(16:05):
said, and what comments they'releaving, what topics, get more
comments on them what they're saving.
All of that information shapes futurepromos and even offer positioning.
So if you are not launchinganything right now, that's great.
It means you've got some time to build.
Build that trust, build that awareness,build that connection, build that clarity
(16:25):
that makes it a very easy yes later
because the sale doesn'tstart when the cart opens.
It starts with every post youshare between now and then.
Now remember, you don'thave to post daily.
I'm not trying to makethis harder for you.
You don't have to be on camera 24 7.
You don't have to reinventyour strategy every month.
But if Instagram isn't working for yourbusiness right now, I really want you
(16:47):
to know it's not because you're lazy.
It's not because you're behind.
It's probably just because noone ever showed you the strategy
behind your posts, and that iswhat really makes the difference.
So if this episode helped, I would loveto keep this conversation going and I
really want this podcast to be helpful.
So DM me any other Instagram questionsyou have and I'll do another FAQ episode.
I would love to make this a morerecurring series and I wanna answer
(17:10):
your specific struggles so wecan untangle Instagram together.
Alright, so find me on Instagram.
I am at socially do yours strategist,and let me know what other
Instagram questions I can help with.
Until then, I hope your coffee isstronger than your kids' tantrums.
Do you ever open Instagram, stare at your screen and think,
(00:03):
what am I even doing here?
You've got a product or a servicethat helps people and you wanna
get it out there and you wanna makethe sales, but Instagram just feels
like a time suck and you're noteven sure if it's doing anything.
Today I am answering real questions,the ones that have been floating
around in your head and have beensent to me on Facebook and Instagram.
But the ones you have beentoo burned out to even Google.
(00:25):
Let's fix that.
(01:06):
Hello and welcome back to MompreneurMastery, where we don't just
talk Instagram, we talk about howto actually use it when you're
juggling a million other things.
Half a cup of cold coffee and a kid whorefuses to eat anything but Dino nuggets.
That is literally my youngest.
Today I am answering real questionsI've gotten from you, questions that
come up when Instagram stops feelinglike a tool for your business and
(01:27):
starts feeling like an energy suckingblack hole that gives nothing back.
So I put out a request onto the internetinside my membership, and I asked
people what Instagram questions theyhad that I could answer in this podcast.
And if you have more,
feel free to DM them to me on Instagramat socially dot your strategist
and I'll answer themin an upcoming episode.
(01:49):
So today we're gonna goover reels versus carousels.
Faceless marketing onInstagram, doing a nine grid.
And why you're not getting anyleads or sales from Instagram, and
what the heck to post when you'renot actually selling something.
And as always, I am digging intothe strategy side of things so
we're not wasting time on fluff thatdoesn't actually help our business.
(02:12):
And let's get into it.
So the first questionwas reels or carousels.
What should I focus on?
If you're asking this,you're being strategic.
So great work, you're notoverthinking or anything.
You want to use your limitedtime on what actually works.
But here's the thing.
This question assumes that the formatis what makes a post work and it's not.
(02:35):
What makes a post work is having a cleargoal, a message that fits that goal, and a
structure to the post that gets people tosee, read, and take action from that post.
So while certain formats can helpwith certain posts, depending on what
the goal of that post is, like how acouple episodes back, I was talking
about trial reels and strategizingthose specifically for growth.
(03:00):
You absolutely can do that.
But that's not to say youcan't share a carousel and get
followers from that, you know?
But yes, if growth is your goal, trialreels are a really great starting point.
Because when I talk about growth,growth being the first step in the
five steps to sales on Instagramstrategy that I teach, I don't mean
just having a whole bunch of followers.
(03:21):
I mean, having targeted followers andbecause we know trial reels are shown.
To people that alreadyfollow accounts like yours.
So they're already in your targetaudience, but it specifically targets
people that don't already follow you isa great way to strategize your growth.
(03:41):
But again, if you don't have the structureto the real, if you don't have the strong
hook, if you don't have the messagingyou're still not gonna reach that goal
of growth in getting those targetedfollowers that actually turn into buyers.
So that growth only matters ifthere's something to grow into.
If those new people land on youraccount and there's nothing else
(04:02):
there for them to engage with,connect, build, trust, all that
stuff, they're not gonna stick around.
You're not gonna get the engagementyou're not gonna get the sales.
And that is where I reallylove using carousels because.
You can put so much information in them.
I think reels are great for trial.
Reels are great for growth.
They're great for engagement, whichis step two of the five step to sales.
(04:28):
And then for the more in-depth steps ofthe strategy, I teach, I love care sales
because you can put more informationin there and break it down in a way
people are more likely to actually read.
Like a paragraph of text on a reelor in a caption is not as consumable
as a longer carousel with curiositygaps, so people keep swiping and a
(04:53):
limited amount of text on each slide.
But again, having that structurebehind the post really helps knowing
you have a strong hook or a strongdouble hook for your carousels.
Since Instagram shows the secondslide in people's feeds as well,
if they missed it the first time.
(05:13):
Or if there's no visual hook inyour reel, people might not stop
and watch it, and then Instagramwon't show it to other people.
So having that kind of structurebehind it while knowing the
purpose is really powerful.
I actually created a whole trainingon this inside of my membership
last month that walks the membersthrough how to structure those
(05:34):
posts as well as their captions.
So their posts actually get seen and reador watched and people follow through on
whatever call to action you are usingbecause format is only part of the puzzle.
The formula is behind your contentand the purpose behind your
content is what help it convert.
But as a general rule of thumb,I mean, you can do any that
(05:55):
you are most comfortable with.
If you are constantly rockingthe mom goblin, look like me.
Reels might not be somethingyou film all the time, or
maybe you just use more B roll.
If you just don't like makingcarousels, use more reels.
Just make sure that you have the purposebehind it and the structure so that
(06:17):
people are actually going to consume thecontent and take action afterwards so
you can reach all of those five steps youneed before you get sales on Instagram.
The second question I got was.
Can I keep my business faceless?
Sure you can have a faceless business.
Who am I to tell you?
You can't?
But you cannot have aconnectionless business.
(06:39):
Instagram is all about being social.
The best way to do that isby having connections and
being a more personal brand.
Those are the ones that aregonna have a lot of success on
like any social media platform.
So.
The strategy that leads tosales isn't about visuals.
It's more emotional.
That connection and trust piece insidemy five step framework I mentioned,
(07:04):
connection and trust are the middlesteps that move people from this looks
interesting to I am ready to buy.
Give me that.
So when you take your face outta yourcontent, you're removing one of the
fastest ways that people connect with you.
So because of that, it justmeans you need to lean a little
harder on your brand voice.
Consistency and those connectionthings like storytelling and emotion.
(07:29):
So you can build that connectionand foster that trust in
your brand and your offers.
So people feel compelled to engagewith you and you get more touch points
with them and they will eventuallyconvert into buyers or clients depending
on what it is that you're selling.
So yes, you can absolutely go faceless.
Just make sure you know, you're gonnahave to lean more into the connection
(07:50):
building and trust building phase.
'cause it's just a little harderfor our brains to do that.
When we don't have a face to a brand.
And question three was, can I leave mygrid alone and just use reels in stories?
Yes.
I have seen people do this,have a nine grid or a 12 grade
and like, yes, you can.
But only if your grid isalready doing its job.
(08:14):
The question is really more about likeautomation and wanting to simplify
and streamline and reduce how oftenyou have to create new content.
And I'm all for that absolutely.
All day, every day.
I love
doing less without sacrificing results.
That's my whole life, honestly.
But the thing is, you gottahave the strategy behind it.
So you wanna think of your grid aslike your website at that point.
(08:34):
If someone lands there from a reelthat you're sharing and just not
having it upload to your grid ora story they need to instantly
understand what you do, who you help,how you can help them in particular.
So if your last few posts areoutdated or vague or the messaging
isn't right there or if they're justfor engagement, people aren't gonna
(08:55):
stick around enough to figure it out.
So you need to make sure yourgrid has trust and clarity.
You need to make sure your storiesand reels are building connection
and getting that growth and doing allthe other work that the other five
steps you need for sales on Instagram.
Utilizing the highlightsfeature of Instagram here
would also be really helpful
(09:18):
to be able to share more informationwithout adding more to your grid.
Another thing to consider here withthe updated grid sizes on Instagram and
how Instagram is cropping the posts.
Only on your grid creating that kind ofseamless nine grid or 12 grid look is.
Going to be a little tricky.
(09:39):
I'm actually working on recording,a training to show you how I
manage to set it up on my account.
I don't have a full ninth grid, butjust the top three pinned posts for
me are a seamless, like banner type ofpost that have a similar effect while
still updating the rest of my grid.
But yes, so stay tuned andI will be sharing that soon.
(10:02):
Question four is one I get all the time.
All the time.
And that is why is my Instagramnot getting sales or leads?
And this question normally comeswith like a big heavy sigh because
you're showing up, you're posting atleast somewhat consistently, but like
honestly, life happens and that's fine.
You're doing some reels, you'resharing stories, and still nothing.
(10:24):
No comments, no dms, no sales.
It feels like Instagram is just a boxyou check because you're supposed to.
And here is what happens.
Most people are stuck creatingcontent that lives only in
one part of the strategy.
It's usually growth or engagement.
Maybe sometimes just sales andthose alone don't get people to buy.
Okay?
So you need all five steps to worktogether, and I really want you to
(10:46):
think of these steps as a staircase.
'cause having them in the right order.
Helps people have to hit each of thesesteps before they can get to The last
one, which is ultimately sales, right?
So you have to have the rightfollowers, you have to have engagement.
So they're, you get those touchpoints you need to get to the
next step, which is connection.
Helping them feel like you get them.
(11:06):
And you probably, I mean, youshould considering your work,
but also it's a lot easier.
When you are them, which I feel likemost of the people I talk to are, we are
our own ideal clients in a lot of cases.
Maybe like a couple steps aheadof them in whatever struggles.
But usually we have been wherethey are, so we do get it.
(11:27):
After that you need tobuild trust in your offers.
Show them how you can help and whyyou are the person to help them.
And then.
Is the sale part whereyou're inviting them to buy.
If you skip steps three andfour people might be engaging,
but they're still not buying.
It's because they don't quitetrust you yet, or they don't fully
(11:48):
understand the value of your offer.
So you would need to create contentthat works on those two things.
It could also be, you know, messagingthat's just missing the mark.
Maybe your content is good, butit's not getting into the specifics.
It is just a little too generic for themto really think, oh, yes, I need this.
(12:08):
Maybe there's no real clearcontent path leading to your offer.
When you're getting ready to sellsomething, you need to make sure the
posts leading up to that sale are aroundtopics that relate to your offer, so
they're already informed and ready to buy.
Maybe you're using call to actionsthat are too soft or too soon.
And this is why just post somethingdoesn't really work for long term.
(12:31):
It can help, like it can work, it canabsolutely get you sales, but if you
want consistent sales and be able tohave a sale or a launch or something
and know you're going to get moneyfrom it, having this clear content path
with the strategy behind it is the key.
So if you're stuck in that spot,I actually have a free quiz to
help you figure out exactly whichpart of your Instagram strategy
(12:52):
is missing and what to fix first.
It gives you very actionable thingsto work on to make sure you're
reaching each of those five steps.
I'll put the link in the show notes.
It takes about two minutes.
Honestly, it's super helpful.
It is called the find and fix thegaps in your Instagram strategy quiz.
And again, I'll put it in the show notes.
It's a long name.
But definitely check it out.
It's super helpful.
(13:15):
Now question five is, what shouldI post when I'm not launching?
What of the five stepsshould I be working on?
And this is such a good questionbecause honestly, we're not
launching all of the time.
Most of your time on Instagramis not spent in launch mode.
A lot of it is in that in-between spaceand how do you use that time so you're
still posting with purpose and notwasting it on stuff that isn't helping.
(13:36):
That is what determines whether yournext launch feels smooth or like
you're just shouting into the void.
'cause we definitely don't want that.
When I am not actively selling somethingor like leading up to a sale, I'm
not on that launch runway at all.
I'm not just coasting either.
I'm just shifting my content focus.
Okay?
So that means when I look at thosefive steps to sales that I teach,
(13:58):
that means I'm rotating through posts fromsteps one through three in my strategy.
So growth, bringing new peopleinto my world, people that are
actually in my target audience.
I'm working on engagement, so I'mkeeping visible, keeping relevance high.
I am keeping top of mind and I'm stillhaving conversations with people in my
audience and I'm building connection.
(14:18):
But instead of focusing it onmy actual offers, it's gonna
be more personal story, tell.
Personal brand related, likestorytelling, building that emotional
trust there in my brand as awhole instead of specific offers.
So these posts might not leaddirectly to a sale today.
But they're laying the foundationfor someone to say yes later.
(14:40):
And they also help get marketresearch, which is always helpful.
Because people don't just buy whenyou post a reel or write a good call
to action, they buy because yourcontent over time made them feel
seen or understood and supported.
So if you skip this and you only showup when you're selling, what happens is
your audience isn't primed yet to hearyour pitch they're not a warm lead.
(15:02):
So they might not know what your offer is,what you're offering, how it helps them.
And they just, they won't have thattrust needed to buy and invest in
your services or your products.
It's not that your offer is bad, it's justthat there's no context for it, right?
It's like showing up to a firstday asking someone to marry you.
That's weird.
(15:22):
No, we're not doing it.
You gotta build the relationship first.
But when you do use your nonlaunch content intentionally,
you can build a warm audiencethat's engaged and responsive.
So even when you do have likea flash sale, you know those
things with very little planning.
You can still get sales thenbecause your audience is warm
and engaged and responsive.
(15:44):
And when you're not selling, you cancollect data on what's resonating
so you can sharpen your messaging.
You don't have to start from zeroevery time you promote something.
It's also the perfect time to testcontent topics or new formats.
Shift beliefs.
Listen to what people are responding to.
I'll often use these posts to collectmarket research, what dms people
(16:05):
said, and what comments they'releaving, what topics, get more
comments on them what they're saving.
All of that information shapes futurepromos and even offer positioning.
So if you are not launchinganything right now, that's great.
It means you've got some time to build.
Build that trust, build that awareness,build that connection, build that clarity
(16:25):
that makes it a very easy yes later
because the sale doesn'tstart when the cart opens.
It starts with every post youshare between now and then.
Now remember, you don'thave to post daily.
I'm not trying to makethis harder for you.
You don't have to be on camera 24 7.
You don't have to reinventyour strategy every month.
But if Instagram isn't working for yourbusiness right now, I really want you
(16:47):
to know it's not because you're lazy.
It's not because you're behind.
It's probably just because noone ever showed you the strategy
behind your posts, and that iswhat really makes the difference.
So if this episode helped, I would loveto keep this conversation going and I
really want this podcast to be helpful.
So DM me any other Instagram questionsyou have and I'll do another FAQ episode.
I would love to make this a morerecurring series and I wanna answer
(17:10):
your specific struggles so wecan untangle Instagram together.
Alright, so find me on Instagram.
I am at socially do yours strategist,and let me know what other
Instagram questions I can help with.
Until then, I hope your coffee isstronger than your kids' tantrums.
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