10 common mistakes authors make on Instagram
Are you an author trying to build a following on bookstagram? There is a huge reading community on Instagram, and readers love connecting with authors! But how do you get them to follow you and engage with you? What should you be posting? How does any of this work?
If you’re just getting started on Instagram, click here to read the basics. But if you’ve been at it for a while and you’re not seeing the results you want, make sure you’re not committing these 10 common mistakes I see authors making on Instagram. There are others we could talk about – like lacking a strategy, not using a business account, or not paying attention to analytics – but today I’m focusing on mistakes that relate to your actual content, and how your posts appear in your feed.
1. Using images that aren’t sized correctly
If you’re an Instagram user, you probably already know that posts appear in your feed as squares. That doesn’t mean you can’t post images in other sizes – you can, and probably should. Data actually shows that 9:16 and 4:5 content performs the best! What does that mean? These numbers refer to the aspect ratio, which is the ratio of the image width to height. Reels and stories are 9:16 (tall videos and images). A 4:5 aspect ratio would be a vertical portrait.
So yes, you can post vertical images on Instagram, but be careful when doing so, because these images will still be cropped to squares on your feed (users will see the full image if they click on it). So you want to make sure your images still look good when cropped. Typically, if you post a book cover, it’s not going to look good in your feed, because the top and bottom will get cut off. I’ve seen posts of book covers where the title was completely cropped off. So if you choose to post aspect ratios other than 1:1 (square), make sure they still look okay when cropped. Rather than just posting the book cover, it’s usually better to put the cover on a background so you can size it appropriately. I will soon be releasing Canva templates for book marketing that will let you do exactly that! Sign up here to be notified when they’re available.
2. Posting only images
Instagram started as a photo sharing app, but has since evolved to offer different content formats. And if you’ve been on Instagram at all in the past year or so, you know it’s all about Reels now. Reels (short videos) were Instagram’s answer to response to the popularity of TikTok, and Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, has said that while Instagram will continue to support photos, the platform is shifting more and more to videos.
What does that mean for authors (and everyone else)? If you want to grow your account, you need to be posting Reels. Don’t ignore other forms of content, but definitely work on making most of your content Reels.
I know this makes a lot of people uncomfortable, but don’t worry. Posting Reels does NOT mean you have to dance or point at words on the screen, unless you want to! You don’t even have to film yourself in front of the camera, although I would encourage you to give it a try.
So if you’re not filming yourself, what can you post in your Reels? Pretty much anything! Show us your favorite books, new book hauls, your TBR, etc. But here’s another important tip: to post a reel, you don’t have to film a video at all. Canva offers lots of video templates, which you can customize to show your new book cover or whatever other graphic elements you want to add. (Sign up here if you’re interested in getting your hands on my book marketing Reels templates.) And the simplest, easiest way to create a reel is to simply upload an image and let it play for a few seconds. Add some trending audio and you’re all set!
Tip: the best length for Reels is 7 seconds. You want people to watch your Reels all the way through (this will give you a good view-through rate), so keep them short if possible (although they can be up to 90 seconds if the topic warrants it).
3. Posting links in captions
I often see authors trying to post links to their books in the caption. But links don’t work in Instagram captions; they are simply posted as plain text. You have one place to post a link, and that’s in your bio. So, if you have a special offer or a new book release or anything else you want to link to, you have to put it in your bio.
Something I like to do is create a “links” page on my clients’ websites, and use that link in the bio. That way, you never have to change the link. The links page is simply a page with a few different buttons on it. You could have a button for a lead magnet, a button for your blog, and a button for a new book release. Don’t overdo it; you don’t want to overwhelm the reader with 10 different buttons to choose from. Choose the most important 3 or 4.
4. Posting with no captions
Something else I see a lot is photos with no captions. You absolutely have to provide captions for context. Even if you think a photo speaks for itself, your audience may not agree. And don’t forget that people with visual impairments do use Instagram. They might not be able to read the text in your image (for example if you post a graphic advertising that your book is on sale for $2.99), but they may use a screen reader that can read the caption.
Captions can also encourage engagement and get people to stay on your post longer, which is what you want.
5. Posting with no hashtags
While hashtags might not be as important as they used to be for growth (again, it’s all about Reels), they are still important. Hashtags help label and categorize your content, so Instagram can learn what your content is all about, and will show it to readers who are interested in those topics. And, some users follow specific hashtags, so you want your content to appear to those users as well.
However, don’t flood your posts with 20 or 30 hashtags like everyone used to do. Pick a few that are most relevant.
6. Reposting TikTok videos on IG
People who use both Instagram and TikTok often cross-post the same video in both places. It can be a big time-saver to repost your TikTok video on Instagram, especially if you’ve carefully edited it and added audio. But videos from TikTok will have the TikTok watermark on them, and Instagram has said their algorithm will not promote videos with third-party watermarks on them, and that’s going to severely limit your reach.
If your video needs a lot of editing, edit it in a separate app that won’t leave a watermark (I use Canva), and then upload the original video to each platform.
7. Using the same image repeatedly
I often see authors posting the same image to their feed over and over. It may be a new book cover, or a sale promo, or simply an image inviting users to visit their blog. So when you go to their feed, you see the same image multiple times. This will make your feed look very repetitive and boring. And even if you use a different caption every time, people won’t be enticed to click on the images to read the captions if they all look the same. So, even if you want to post the same or similar content more than once (see below), mix it up and use different images.
8. Not repurposing content
Don’t assume that just because someone follows you, they’re going to see all of your posts. They won’t. So you should be repurposing your content. Again, repurposing doesn’t mean posting the same thing over and over, but it does mean posting the same content in different formats.
For example, you could make a reel that introduces a topic, and then make a carousel post where each slide goes into a little more depth. (A carousel is when you have multiple images in one post, and you can swipe through them. These are often used to convey a lot of information in one post.)
9. Making your content too promotional
This is probably the #1 thing that will prevent me from following an author. If I go to their feed and see nothing but images of their own books and quotes from their own books, I simply will not follow them.
Social media is about building relationships, not about promoting yourself. Think of it like a cocktail party. If you went to a cocktail party with a bunch of new people and simply talked about yourself the whole time, you aren’t likely to win anyone over. But if you ask questions, learn what other people are interested in, and make thoughtful contributions to conversations, you’ll make a lot of new connections. Social media works the same way. I usually say that 80% of your content should be informational or educational, and only 20% should be promotional.
This can confuse people. If you aren’t promoting your books, what can you post about? This may depend on your area of expertise. If you’re a non-fiction author, coming up with content is usually easier, because presumably you’re a subject matter expert in your field. For example, I have a client who is a real estate attorney who wrote a book about real estate investing. So, he is constantly posting tips on how to buy your first investment property or start your first Airbnb. And while this isn’t directly promotional, it does a lot of things: it provides value to his audience, it demonstrates his credibility and authority in his field, and hopefully it makes people want to buy his book or download a lead magnet to learn more.
If you’re a fiction author, this can be a little trickier. I recommend posting about different books in your genre, your favorite authors, new releases by other authors, etc. Network with and promote other authors, and hopefully they will do the same for you! (I’ll post more about content strategy later.)
10. Not making social media a regular part of your marketing plan
Finally, let’s talk about posting frequency. How often do you need to post? This depends. If you’re starting a new account and your goal is growth, then I recommend posting at least once a day – and again, most of those posts should be Reels. Yes, this can be a lot of work. But remember, social media is part of your marketing strategy, and should be treated as seriously as any other marketing effort. A lot of people make the mistake of thinking they can throw up a post every couple of weeks or so, and then they wonder why they don’t have any followers. You have to be consistent, and you have to be strategic.
If posting every day sounds daunting, work on planning ahead and batching your content, so you aren’t struggling with figuring out what to post every day. Write down all the topics you can think of that fall into your different content pillars. Then, pick a day to film or create all your Reels. On the next day, do your video editing or create your graphics. The next day, upload them all to Instagram, add your captions, and save them as drafts so they’re ready to go. Batching your content in this manner will make things go a lot smoother.
Need help with your social media or other aspects of your marketing? Contact me to learn about my digital marketing services.
