Ep 42: What to include in highlights

Did you realize that knowing what to include in highlights are one of the best ways to feature your work?  Recently, I talked about this in my weekly newsletter, the IG Insider, and how to introduce yourself to your audience through highlights, and by the way if you’re not subscribed to my newsletter, you need […]

The post Ep 42: What to include in highlights appeared first on Authentic Online Marketing.

Did you realize that knowing what to include in highlights are one of the best ways to feature your work?  Recently, I talked about this in my weekly newsletter, the IG Insider, and how to introduce yourself to your audience through highlights, and by the way if you’re not subscribed to my newsletter, you need to, because I always share targeted ways to reach your audience and stay on the pulse of Instagram strategies, newsletter marketing, and entrepreneurial mindset from a Biblical perspective.  You can join my newsletter several ways, simply by visiting my site, authentic online marketing {dot} com, and I’ll share more about one of our handy resources that come with newsletter signup at the end. 

This episode is taken from a mentorship zoom training and you’ll hear member Melissa Pickens of @melissagpickens ask what she should be featuring.  You’ll come away with a good sense of what to leave in (and what to remove) for your Instagram highlights so others can learn more about your offerings.  And now, listen in.

*This episode contains either affiliate links or links to my products. Should you choose to purchase, the show will go on! Woo hoo!

Resources

Download your Follower Growth Kit

Listen to Ep. 80: Top 5 Episodes of 2022

Listen to Ep. 64: Building a YouTube channel from Repurposed Content

Listen to Ep. 30: 2 Easy ways to repurpose stories to Reels

Listen to Ep. 82:  Maximizing Your Online Presence: Strategies to Fit Instagram into Your Busy Schedule

Ep 42: What to include in highlights

Ruthie: One thing I need to completely redo is highlights. Any helps, suggestions, tips, et cetera, for setting them up previously, mine, I haven’t had any real purpose. So what you want to do, Melissa is look at your categories or buckets, whatever your topics are, that’s what you can rearrange them as. So for instance, you talk about suffering.

I know that there are all kinds of sub topics to that, maybe it’s encouragement, or maybe you have a freebie that is connected to that for your newsletter. You name that as one of them, maybe there are a couple of book recommendations that you have. You know all of your content better than I do.

Different topics to include in highlights

But if you could break it down into different topics that is how you want to arrange your highlights. If you want to see an example, you can look at mine. I just recently cut a bunch of mine and we redid them. Basically for mine, it’s, you know, Instagram tips, podcast, newsletter, growth kit, things like that.

Melissa: I’ve been checking out some other authors and writers who are along the same lines and you’re right. Suffering is so general, but even that can be broken down. For example one author has a section that’s just for sexual abuse and she pops in all sorts of things there.

And then she has a similar message to just kind of see what the differences are out there. I like the idea of jump-starting my ideas and kind of how I need to shape my content.

I didn’t even think about adding freebies and book recommendations and that does definitely help me get thinking! It gets the thoughts rolling and you can look at what you’ve already written on your blog.

Ruthie: Exactly. Especially– and this is something I tell everybody — wherever your content is, go there and break it down! Just take one section and break it in two. So you could make a carousel and do points A through D for example. Then you’d take that and put it into different kinds of posts.

Breaking it down

Maybe you take one point and make it into a Reel then maybe take point number two and you just expand on that and make that just a static post or a video or something like that. You can take one piece of content and repurpose it in many different ways. So you don’t have to think hard, but I would go through if I were you and look at everything that you’ve written and see, like, what are the categories?

What are the things that I’ve I have talked about that just came naturally that may help you to create?

When considering what to put in highlights, think about your overarching topics or content pillars.  Here are some examples of Highlight cover titles you could use in your profile:

Tips

Topics

Podcast

Courses

Start here

Memberships

Other offerings

Testimonies

Cycle through these every so often and clean them up, spruce up the highlight covers. Also make the content within fresh and relevant.  If you’ve got content that’s 25 frames back and 134 weeks old, it’s probably time to cut that because most people will not watch all 25 frames.  5-10 frames each is plenty.

Remember that highlights come from your stories. Let’s say you have a feed post you want to feature in highlights. Send it to your stories first and then over to that highlight!

One of the most effective highlights I’ve done featured me holding a phone for a discover call.  I’ve gotten several bookings from that one.  

But something we often overlook that was mentioned in this zoom call is your newsletter freebie.  You should be mentioning that freebie both in your feed and in stories. Otherwise how will people know about it?  I get newsletter signups every week simply by talking about my newsletter, and honestly, the newsletter is where the conversions happen.  Your time needs to be spent on your newsletter over Instagram.  

If you go to my highlights at @authenticonlinemarketingpod, you’ll see my newsletter mentioned.  And if you tap into that newsletter, you’ll see the different ways I talk about not only my freebie but the VALUE of my newsletter.  You can deliver a great freebie but have a not-so-great newsletter, so in upcoming episodes we’ll be discussing how to do that better.  

In just a moment you’ll hear more about my newsletter freebie, the Follower Growth Kit, and how you can get it.

 And here’s a tip – next week we’re talking about ideas for newsletter freebies!

A clean highlight look accents your Instagram platform without confusing followers.  So go take a look at your highlights now and see what you may need to tweak!  Thanks for listening this week and remember to share your message, your way, in your own authentic voice.  

The post Ep 42: What to include in highlights appeared first on Authentic Online Marketing.