I’m a strong believer in “every brand needs an Instagram account.” Even if you don’t think you do.
B2B brands do. Small local service-based businesses with limited audience reach also do. Nonprofits, medical organizations, and even freelancers should strongly consider having an Instagram.
It’s an incredibly high-engaging platform with great discoverability potential, and we know that users are actively excited to connect with brands they like. The organic reach is also phenomenal when you’re able to create high-engaging content that your audience loves.
That’s always the snag, isn’t it? Knowing how to create that high-engaging content.
To make things easier, in this post we’re going to look at 10 different types of Instagram post ideas that typically perform exceptionally well on the platform so you can increase engagement, organic reach, and your results all in one.
Why It’s So Important to Use Diverse Instagram Post Types
One thing that’s absolutely crucial to note is that you shouldn’t just find a single post type that you like and stick to it, even if it gets solid results.
People don’t want to only hear about promotions or only see UGC (User-Generated Content) or only watch long-form videos. It’s essential that you mix it up.
Having diverse content in your Instagram gallery will help keep things interesting and offer different types of value to your audience. It also helps you appeal to different segments of your audience; some may love long videos or Reels, while other users only want to scroll through images.
A great example of how to do this is Grove Collaborative’s Instagram. Below, you can see a variety of different post types that we’re going to talk about, including educational content, product highlights, tutorials, and seasonal content.
Cover your bases with different types of Instagram post ideas and structures, and you’ll see your engagement and follower count increase quickly.
10 Instagram Post Types to Test
Ready to shake up your social media content calendar with new Instagram post ideas? These are a few types of Instagram content that you’ll want to test on your account.
1. Educational Content
Offering valuable, useful information to your audience on Instagram is one of the best moves you can make. It takes the principles of content marketing and makes them hyper-visual and social media-friendly.
And the best news is, we know that almost every business has a seemingly endless supply of tips that can benefit their audience, even if it’s simple.
Here’s an example from Misfits Market. They have a basic “Squash Guide” that showcases different types of squash next to their name for easier identification. It was right before American Thanksgiving, making it seasonally appropriate and helpful. They capped it off with an engagement-boosting tactic (“tell us your favorite in the comments”) for great results.
In many cases, using infographic images with text and graphic designs are excellent choices for educational content. We can help with that here at Snappa, with plenty of templates that can speed up the process.
Multi-image posts are also a good choice for educational content.
Different examples of how to adapt this post type may be:
- Gardening company that shares infographics about what vegetables should be planted in each season
- A photographer who shares different poses couples should ask for at their wedding
- A pet groomer who explains why it’s so important to trim your dog’s nails regularly
2. Product Highlights
If someone is following your brand, there’s a good chance that they love your products and/or services.
And while inherently promotional content shouldn’t be the only thing you’re sharing, it can make up a solid chunk of your content, especially if you’re going about it from a product education angle.
Check out this post from Under the Canopy. They feature an organic cotton towel with a smiling user, and they explain why organic cotton is so beneficial.
You can get creative with this. You can feature only the products, products in use, the products being made, or UGC.
Creative examples of this Instagram post idea might include:
- A restaurant showing an empty bowl of soup with “it’s so good we forgot to take a picture”
- A framing company showing UGC of how a customer placed their framed art in their home
- A screenshot of a financial mobile app that’s announcing a new feature for budget-friendly saving
3. Image Quotes
You can’t go wrong with a relevant-to-your-business educational or inspirational quote. You just can’t.
And bonus: Image quotes are fast and easy to create (especially with Snappa), making them a great choice to fill up your content calendar when you’re struggling to generate more content to keep that calendar full.
This is an example from ThirdLove, who quoted their own Co-Founder. This is great for brand building by promoting her while also sharing motivational content with their audience.
You can share quotes that offer industry-relevant advice from experts, motivational quotes, or something somewhere in between. They’re a great way to show what your brand is all about.
We’ve got plenty of templates to make image quote creation easy. Check out a few of our favorites here that are sure to jump out at users in their feed (and in your Instagram gallery, too!).
4. Instagram Reels Videos
Instagram Reels is currently the hottest feature on Instagram (even more so than Stories). The TikTok-inspired content shared through the Reels tab will also show up in your post gallery, users in-feed content, and a dedicated Reels section of your gallery. And, it has high discoverability potential in the Reels tab, which shows users content from accounts they don’t follow.
Reels are set to soundtracks, voiceovers, and/or music. Like TikTok, there are trends and challenges that go around—adapt to those for a great chance of potential success on the platform.
There are so many different ways to use Reels to show your products in use, your happy customers, and how items are made. Remember to just see what’s trending at the time and start there.
5. Long-form Video
IGTV isn’t quite as popular as Stories or Reels, but its integration with Instagram allows for long-form video to appear in feeds… even if it’s just a teaser that shows up. And long-form counts as anything over two minutes long.
IGTV is a great way to offer extended video resources that your audience will love.
Examples include:
- Brands using video to show how to style a different item, or different fashion tips for certain times of the year
- Extended Q&As with industry experts around a specific topic
- Showcasing in-depth product tutorials to increase product value and attract new users’ attention
When you’re creating IGTV videos, remember to give the video a strong title, to add hashtags to the video description for increased reach, and to start with the value proposition of why users should watch at the very beginning so their interest goes up when they see the “trailer” in their feed.
6. User-Generated Content
User-generated content is and always will be powerful. It’s the most trusted form of media that you can have, and there’s a bonus: Your social media team doesn’t even need to spend time creating it!
You should always ask permission before using content that a user has created, but if they’ve tagged you in it and/or used your branded hashtag and it’s public, there’s a great chance they’ll say yes when you ask! Share the pictures in your Instagram post, upload a great caption, and tag the user where it came from.
In order to incentivize UGC that you can share on Instagram, try the following tactics:
- Host a UGC-focused content on Instagram asking users to submit pictures, with the winner getting a prize from your brand
- Place instructions in your bio telling users what you want to see and to either tag you or to use a branded hashtag (or both!)
- Share call-outs in UGC posts reminding users to create content of their own so you can promote it on your feed
7. Behind the Scenes Posts
Behind-the-scenes shots are a great option for Instagram post ideas because they practically scream authenticity.
It’s that kind of “we want to know who is behind the business” attitude that so many social media users have that makes this so powerful: You get to show them curated glimpses of who you are and how you operate in a way that builds trust and can even increase loyalty.
Behind-the-scenes posts can be anything that feels a little exclusive. The post above from UncommonCatering shares a look at the owners’ family in their Halloween costume (and one of the cutest kids ever). It’s accompanied by a post explaining why the restaurant would be closed so that they could spend time with their family.
Other examples of great behind-the-scenes Instagram post ideas could include:
- A picture or video of your employees at work, or at an employee retreat
- Videos of how your products are made
- Walkthrough of a new facility that hasn’t opened to the public yet
8. Employee-Centered Posts
Posts that feature and celebrate your employees are a great choice for Instagram. Share a picture of the employee (ideally that they chose) along with some information about them and what makes them great.
This is smart for a few reasons. It helps your employees to feel celebrated and appreciated, to start. It also shows others that you value your team members, which is important to a large number of consumers today.
Check out this great example from Willow’s Groomer:
There are plenty of ways to work this into your strategy:
- Take turns featuring an employee of the month (or a new employee every month/week)
- Give shoutouts to employees who went above and beyond
- Share happy birthday messages if the team is small on employee birthdays
- Share employee pictures when they join the team
9. Tutorials
Tutorials are high-value, high-engaging Instagram post options, and they help customers get more out of your products.
You can see an example below from Farmgirl Flowers, which shows users how to arrange a specific bouquet that they offer. This is likely to increase the customer’s satisfaction with how it looks, making them more likely to purchase again.
Here are a few specific theoretical examples of types of tutorials brands could use:
- A SaaS tool could show a video walkthrough of how to use a specific feature or accomplish a certain task
- A food company should share recipes for how to use the product in different dishes
- A company selling grills could share a tutorial for how to properly clean and maintain the grill over time
10. Seasonal Posts
Last but definitely not least, we’ve got seasonal and timely posts!
Without fail, Instagram will be full of seasonal content year-round, and it’s best to jump on the trend. It keeps your content feeling fresh, even if it’s repurposed with a new seasonal tweak.
“Seasonal” can mean busting out pumpkin and sweater references for fall. It can also mean finding “National Secretary’s Day” to promote your “Best Secretary” coffee mug that you’re selling. And while it can promote products, you can also just wish your customers a happy holidays— it can go a long way!
Instagram Post Ideas from Snappa
Infographic Posts
Seasonal Sale Posts
Image Quote Posts
Hiring Posts
Testimonial Posts
Educational Posts
Review Posts
Product Launch Posts
Final Thoughts: How to Find What Works for You
The only way to find out what really works for you on Instagram is to try out different types of Instagram posts ideas to see what resonates with your audience.
Keep a close eye on your analytics (Instagram business and creator accounts all have access to native analytics for free) so you can see which posts get the most engagement, reach, and new followers signing up.
While you should always continue creating diverse content, optimizing for more high-performing post types will always be a good strategy.
And don’t forget that while creating plenty of images can be draining, our graphic design software can help. Snappa has plenty of templates that you can use to create a number of different post types, including infographic educational content, enhanced product highlight images, and image quotes. You can sign up for free here.
What do you think? Which Instagram post types are most effective for your business? What Instagram post ideas are you most excited to try? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
