Instagram is a free, online, mobile, photo- and video-sharing, social networking app. It allows users to share pictures and videos with their followers and other social networking platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Flickr.
Many high profile people, such as actors, artists, and athletes love to use Instagram because it allows them to directly communicate with their fans, just like Twitter, except with pictures and videos. And besides, a picture is worth a thousand words… way more than what Twitter allows. It does not mean Twitter is not that good! Both Instagram and Twitter have their strengths and are used quite differently.
Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger launched Instagram on October 6, 2010. Since then, it has grown in popularity at an exponential rate and is currently Instagram is the fastest growing social networking app in the world. As of March 2015, Instagram had approximately 300 million active monthly users. In April 2012, Facebook purchased Instagram and integrated Instagram’s features with Facebook’s features so that people who have accounts on both social media platforms can more easily share and connect with others.
If you have already connected your Instagram account with your Face book account, you probably have seen photos in your Facebook timeline with the words “Instagram” in small, light grey text to the right of the date and time like the image below:
Now that you have seen the growth and benefits of the Instagram, let’s go over the steps below on how to create an Instagram account.
Since Instagram is majorly a mobile app, you need to download the app on your smartphone in order to create an account. You cannot create an account on http://instagram.com/, and even if you login, you cannot upload pictures so a smartphone is necessary to participate in the Instagram community.
For this demonstration we will use iOS in the Instagram tutorial. Although the Android version may look a bit different than the iOS one, their functions are pretty much the same.
Here you can connect your Instagram account with your Facebook account or you can create your own account.
Creating Instagram Account using your email id:
Connecting your Facebook account with your Instagram account is a great way to save time because Instagram will automatically go through all of your friends and present you with matching Instagram account, from which you can choose who to follow. However, if you are using your Instagram account for other purposes, such as to build a brand, it is best not to use your personal Facebook or account.
Entering your full name or your mobile phone number will also save you time. Instagram does not allow posting non-public phone numbers and non-public emails. So you can rest knowing that your information will be kept private.
Once you’ve entered your information, click “Next” and voila! You have your Instagram account. Keep scrolling below to learn five different ways to find your friends on Instagram.
If you did not connect your Facebook account or phone number, use these five techniques to help you find friends and discover new ones on Instagram
The “hashtag”, formerly known as “pound” (#), is used mainly by Twitter and Instagram to identify messages and posts about a specific topic. People use hashtags to add character, background, and additional information to their photos, but it does so much more than that. All hashtags are grouped together on a particular page on Instagram so that users can search topics varying from “#sports” to “#puddlegram”, which are photos of puddles in various places around the world.
Not only are hashtags used in social media such as instagram, but they are also used in sports, politics, and media. Depending on the popularity of an event, occasion, or situation, there are popular trending hashtags that you can use to participate in discussions on twitter or share pictures of that event on instagram. Using these trending hashtags will increase the exposure your photo gets on Instagram and other social networks because it will show up when people search for that specific hashtag.
Instagram is a photo-sharing app. So at the end of the day, it’s all about lighting, angles, focus, etc. You don’t have to use all the tips below to take better photos but utilizing just a couple of these tips can make a big difference in your photos that you can post on Instagram
According to Cambridge in Colour, “the Rule of Thirds states that an image is most pleasing when its subjects or regions are composed along imaginary lines which divide the image into thirds – both vertically and horizontally.”
For large objects, such as a building, try to center the building on either of the vertical lines. For smaller objects, try to center it in one of the nine grids on the Instagram app other than the center one. See examples of the Rule of Thirds.
You are well-prepared to start the Insta-life now that you know what is Instagram, how to create an Instagram profile, how to find friends on Instagram, how to use hashtags and keywords, and how to take better Instagram pictures. If you want to learn more about Twitter click here, if you want to learn more about Facebook click here.
Kash Data Consulting LLC is a Digital and a Search Marketing firm specializing in providing exceptional SEO site and social media marketing services in Dallas, TX. In addition, we also provide IT consulting services for small to medium sized companies in DFW Metroplex area. Our SEO experts have significant years of practical experience in Dallas Search Engine Optimization implementations.
For more information on Instagram, check out the related links below.
How to Take Better Photos on Instagram
50 Free Ways to Increase Your Instagram Followers
The Science of Instagram – How to Get More Followers and Likes