Tag: marketing

Three Things To Know About the Instagram Algorithm

Craft savvy Market - IG

If you are an IG user who has blamed the changes to the algorithm for the decline in your content engagement, you are not alone. It seems as if every time Instagram makes changes to the algorithm, our content and businesses take a hit.  Many of us have heard rumors about the algorithm and earlier this year, Instagram spoke up to clarify and help users to understand how things work.   

Today, we wanted to take a few minutes to clarify three misconceptions about the IG Algorithm.  This information will be helpful as you plan and promote your brand via Instagram.

  1. The first 30 minutes of posting does not determine your ranking. 

According to IG, your post visibility is not determined by how many likes or comments your content receives in the first 30 minutes. Despite this, it is wise to keep in mind when your audience is most engaged and post during those times.

2. All comments, regardless of length help count as engagement.

For a while, many people believed that unless comments were longer than 3 words, it did not count as engagement. Instagram states that this is not the case and that all comments (and emojis)  count toward engagement. So keep encouraging your followers to engage with your account via words or emojis and keep supporting makers by engaging on their posts beyond double tapping.

3. Photos and Videos are treated equally.

There is still a buzz that videos are favored by photos on the Instagram feed. According to Instagram, your feed is customized based on what you seem to engage with. If you watch a lot of videos, more videos will appear on your feed. But just for some variety, we say it’s worth it to try producing more video content and see how it changes your engagement level. 

By Jandi H.

Source: Source: IG’s  account – @Creator on Instagram and Later.com

What Everybody Ought to Know About Marketing Pt. 1

What Everybody Ought to Know About Marketing Pt. 1

By: Charlene Dunbar

I am an artist/maker to my core. I love working with my hands, drawing, researching new ideas…making STUFF. When I started my journey as a fashion designer, I entered a wonderland of selecting fabrics, sketching style ideas and making dress samples. I even drove solo from Atlanta to Memphis for the Africa in April Festival to sell a trunk full of my new dresses and to get feedback on my new brainchild. Three months later, I did a bigger market, the National Black Arts Festival, and received great reviews, made more sales and got really excited.

I did a photoshoot with models, made a lovely website featuring my gorgeous African print dresses clothing and waited for the orders to roll in. And guess what? They never did. What was wrong? Was it the cut of my skirt? Maybe my price was too high? Maybe I needed to add jumpsuits to my collection? After many years and fits and starts, I learned the hard way, it was my marketing. My marketing or lack thereof was the main thing standing between me and the growth of my creative business.

Marketing is a word that means different things to different people. Advertising, a brand logo and website colors, working with influencers or a good sales pitch are a few things that come to mind. Sometimes it’s also seen as a complex activity reserved for big companies with big budgets. The first statement is true, but marketing is so much more and the second statement is not true! Read Pt. 2 to hear the official definition of marketing and what I did next.