There's no shortage of photo editing and logo maker apps and 3rd party tools for Instagram, but which ones are actually worth using?
In this article I'll show you the 10 apps that will help you create killer content and better manage your account.
Word Swag is mentioned first for a reason. It is far and beyond my favorite photo editing tool.
It allows me to add tons of different styles of text to my images or create neat looking images with text overlays from scratch thanks to an integration with the free stock photography site Pixabay.
I can also add my own custom branding (logo, taglines, etc) so if my pictures are reposted, I'll get a little recognition by default.
Clips (iOS Only)
Instagram's new video platform IG TV is shaking up how we consume video on our smartphones.
I recommend all Instagram marketers consider getting on IG TV but they need to be prepared to start filming and editing video in a new way: vertically.
The Clips app helps you edit videos in a way that makes them perfect for IG TV.
Some of the coolest features:
- Speech to text captions
- Awesome filters (the comic book design is my favorite)
- Easily add emojis and text overlays
The only bad news is that it is currently only available on iOS and has some features like “Selfie Scenes” which a background behind you (think green screen) will only work with the TrueDepth camera on the iPhone X.
Write Behind (which is a killer play on words, I might add) allows you to add text that appears to be inside the picture rather than on top of it.
This makes your images pop out and grab the attention of the average Instagram feed scroller.
The end results are cool but I'd be lying if I didn't say that working the app requires a bit of finesse.
You'll have to manually brush the foreground and backgrounds to get the right effect but after some practice, you should get the hang of it.
Consistency is key on Instagram so I recommend posting at least twice per day, 7 days a week. That is of course assuming that the content is all very good and not just filler garbage.
Preview is a content scheduling app that will help you stay consistent, even on days that you don't want to make a post.
“Consistency is key on Instagram so I recommend posting at least twice per day, every day.”
I find that my content inspiration often comes in bursts so I can create multiple posts and space them out over the coming days for maximum effectiveness.
Preview offers free and paid plans. I happily pay the $7.99/month.
There are similar solutions like Buffer and Hootsuite but I find the mobile experience is much better with Preview.
Preview is also much more than just a content scheduling tool. It includes a hashtag generator, offers rich analytics, repost functionality and it also has a number of themes and filters.
Too many marketers focus all their energy on their feeds and ignore their stories!
Don't do this. Your Instagram story is a fantastic place to share an even deeper look inside of your brand.
One of the drawbacks of the Instagram story is that your videos are limited to 15 seconds each. Storeo solves this problem by converting longer videos into 15 second segments for easy upload.
RePost
Reposting the other people's content is a great way to grow your own reach. Instagram doesn't currently have a native option for easily reposting content (which is really odd to me) but RePost solves this problem.
Lumyer is a video editing app on steroids. There aren't many editing apps that allow you to do the things that Lumyer does.
You'll have to try it to really understand 🙂
Make sure that your images and videos are sized properly for Instagram. Don't be that person who clearly doesn't realize what their posts look like once they share them and they are either too big or too small.
The Square Fit app is a lifesaver if you do any content on IG TV.
Hashtag Expert for IG
Your hashtags on Instagram are super important to your growth. Using better hashtags will make sure that the right people see your posts organically. This means more engagement and more followers.
You shouldn't just guess which hashtags will fit best.
“Using better hashtags will make sure that the right people see your posts organically. This means more engagement and more followers.”
Not if you want to really grow your following.
You should consider an app like Hashtag Expert to make sure you're using the most effective hashtags for each post!
If you want to learn more about hashtags, check out A Quick and Dirty Guide to Instagram Hashtags.
Everyone loves a good meme!
Unless your business is stone cold serious and humor wouldn't make sense (I really can't think of an example off the top of my head) then the occasional clever meme can be a great way to generate some engagement and shares.
If you're struggling to build a loyal following on Instagram or to even keep up with all the new features Instagram seems to release daily, check out Instagram IQ Academy.
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Great stuff Nate! Thank you!