How Instagram helped my product grow in the early days
I don't want to be another designer who showcases templates in the marketplace. I created Zlides in August 2019. I sell presentation templates and services. I usually dedicated roughly two hours a week to this side project.
Apart from getting traction on Quora (we discussed earlier), I also use Instagram to maintain close relationships with other designers, and entrepreneurs.
Why I pick Instagram?
I have been a lifestyle user for many years. I have seen many startups and designers successfully leverage the platform to achieve growth and engagement. I particularly like the momentum of mobile-driven and fast pace content delivery.
The entry barrier is very low. You can create a profile and start publishing content within an hour. But if you want to grow a sustainable profile, attract the right audience, and ultimately bring traction to your product - You need a systematic strategy.
This is my Instagram routine in the early days
- Publish weekly: Since I started the Instagram profile for Zlides, I have been posting 3 posts a week non-stop. It's all about my design work. I will create random presentation slides from a company I know
- Interact with relevant profiles on a daily basis: My audience is usually designers and entrepreneurs who often seek collaboration or services. I have followed 3-4 hashtags to help me stay on top of the game
- Instagram story: I will create a story once a month to show some quick tips and a new template
- Optimize bio link: I used LinkTree to display major links, namely homepage, download, custom service
- Scheduling: I love Buffer. I have been re-posting automatically on Linkedin and Twitter alongside my Instagram post as well
- Ads? No, I don't. Never have a marketing budget for side projects
If you are also building an Instagram profile for your brand, please avoid the following:
- Over hashtags: Only use relevant hashtags, align the tags with your goal and audience demographic. Irrelevant hashtags will damage your profile relevance and bring you bad traffic
- Spam other profiles: Be a nice person. Use comment and DM wisely. Don't oversell your services. Contribute comments, ask questions and appreciate the work of others
You said early days, what about now?
I used Instagram heavily in the first 6 months of my project, which contributed around 10% of my total downloads. Now I changed my focus to other channels like Twitter, Substack, and partnership.
I have documented my journey on Indie Hackers about how I generate revenue from scratch. If you like Zlides and need to create a presentation. Go get a presentation kit now!
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