The holidays are a great time of year to use Instagram to promote your brand and connect with your audience. By creating Instagram content that includes holiday-themed ideas, you can get people excited about the season—and maybe even get some repeat customers!
Here’s what you need for an awesome InstaHolidays campaign.
Holiday content ideas
Holiday content ideas:
- Checklists. Create a holiday checklist that your followers can fill out and share with their friends. This will help you see what your audience is looking for from you, and encourage them to share your post with others.
- Gift guides. If you have products that are related to the holidays, create a gift guide full of ideas for everyone on your list—or just yourself! Your followers will love seeing all of the things you recommend or would like to buy for themselves (and so will their friends).
- Giveaway ideas. Create an online giveaway where fans can enter by sharing posts about their favorite holiday traditions, or by posting pictures of themselves posing with a product from your store/website/whatever other related area fits into this category (you should probably include some kind of prize if possible). This is one way we’ve seen bloggers build up their audience quickly—and even more importantly, it’s fun!
Make holiday checklists
The holidays are a great time to make your Instagram account feel like a personal diary, but they can also be an opportunity to share information with others. If you’re planning something special over the next few months, now is the time to create lists of tasks that will help make your holiday season go smoothly. Your followers will appreciate having this tip from you, and it will give them something more interesting than just photos of presents or parties to look forward to.
Your checklist might include things like “buy gifts for friends and family,” “make Christmas cookies,” or even “clean out closets in preparation for the new year.” Share this list with your followers by posting an image containing only text—no images should appear on screen during creation or sharing! They’ll love knowing what’s going on behind-the-scenes at your house so much that they may even want their own customized versions made up specifically for them (just remember: always ask permission before publishing someone else’s content). You could even ask others what type of checklists they’d find helpful during holiday time periods—this way everyone wins!
Share gift guides
You can also use your gift guide to highlight your business! The most important thing is that you include links to purchase the items in the guide — even if someone isn’t planning on buying a gift right away, they may come back later and make a purchase. If you don’t have any products of your own yet, it’s still worthwhile to do some research and create an honest list of recommendations with links so people know where they can get their hands on them.
You’ll want to lay out the information in a clear way: write down everything that comes into play when making decisions about what gifts are best for others (price point, shipping costs, etc.). This will help keep things organized and easy for readers who want to make purchases themselves. Remember: these guides aren’t just meant for giving ideas; they also serve as advertisements for other businesses’ products or services!
Giveaway ideas
Giveaways are a great way to grow your Instagram following. If you’re hosting a giveaway, be sure to post about it in advance so people know they have the chance to win something. You can also use an app like Wishpond to run an easy giveaway that anyone can enter.
The prize: The best prize is something related directly to your brand and business that people will actually want. Try offering discounts, free products or services, gift cards, and more!
How do I run a giveaway? Follow these steps:
- Create an account on Wishpond (or another app like Rafflecopter) if necessary
- Add photos of your product or service as entries (you can upload them from Instagram)
- Choose the number of winners/how many times one person can enter (ideally 1 winner!)
- Write up some short rules for entering/prizing/etc., then share it with all your followers!
Host an Instagram Live segment
Hosting an Instagram Live segment is a great way to engage with your audience. You can use it to show customers how to use a product or service, answer questions from followers, or promote new products and services.
To get started, create an Instagram Live post and set the date and time in advance so that you’re ready when you go live. Then simply open the app at your scheduled time (be sure to have Wi-Fi available), tap “Start Live Video,” choose who can see the stream (everyone, friends only), enter some optional information about yourself for people who don’t follow you yet (your location or where you work), and start filming!
Share holiday how-to tips and tricks.
If you’re a crafty person, Instagram is a great place to share your DIY holiday tips and tricks. Taking on a new project? Snap it and tag the brand of materials you used (if they’re not already tagged). If you have kids, create an “instagram only” account for them so that everyone can enjoy their creations. It’s also fun to see what other people have done with the same materials!
What about hosting? Share your recipes and cooking tips with followers by posting photos of holiday food they can make at home. Let them know if it’s easy to put together or if there are any special ingredients involved in making it look so festive! If hosting parties isn’t your thing then maybe consider giving tips for traveling during the holidays…or whether there are any good deals on last-minute shopping before Christmas Day arrives!
Countdown to the holidays
You can use the hashtag #CountdownToTheHolidays to show your followers that you’re getting ready for Christmas and they should start getting excited, too!
You can also use the hashtag #HolidayCountdown, since this is a great way to get people excited about the holidays. You can even add a photo of your Elf on the Shelf or something else festive in your caption if it applies.
If you want something more specific than just an overall countdown or holiday excitement post, you could use:
Caption ideas
- Don’t just tell people what to do.
- Don’t just tell people what to buy.
- Don’t just tell people what to think.
- Don’t just tell people what to feel.
- Don’t just tell people what to wear.
Share a funny story about the holidays.
Share a funny story about the holidays.
- For example, you can share a funny memory of Christmas past with the caption: “When I was younger, I thought my parents had bought me an Xbox 360 because they were feeling bad for me.”
- Or you can share a comical holiday joke with your followers: “Why did Santa Claus bring all those gifts on Christmas Eve? Because he couldn’t find his reindeer!”
Share your favorite holiday memory.
This is an easy one. You can share a story about your favorite holiday memory, or you can share a story about your least favorite holiday memory. You could also tell us why you love the holidays, or why they drive you crazy (or both).
Ask your audience a question.
Using questions in your post is a great way to engage with your audience. They’re easy to answer, and if done correctly, they can help you drive home a message or promote an idea or product.
- Ask questions that are easy to answer. The best questions are those that people can easily respond to on Instagram itself, such as “What do you want for Christmas?” or “Who’s getting this gift?” They’re also good if they can be answered in a comment or reply (i.e., “I’ll send it tomorrow!”), because this lets users stay within the app instead of leaving it altogether—which means more time spent with their friends and less time spent scrolling through unrelated posts from strangers who don’t care about them!
- Make sure the question relates closely enough to what you’re offering or selling so people will want to buy it off of them
Start with a joke, riddle, or trivia.
You could start with a joke, riddle or trivia. We’re sure your followers will appreciate it and love it!
Whether you are posting photos of the season or just want to spread some holiday cheer, take some time to consider how you can make each post special for your audience.
Takeaway
- Takeaway: Remember to include hashtags, post consistently, and use a variety of content types.
- How you can implement this strategy: Instagram is a visual platform, so make sure you’re posting high-quality photos that are unique and engaging. Also remember to have a call to action for your followers!
Conclusion
Hopefully, this has given you some ideas for how to use Instagram to share your holiday spirit with the world. Remember that it doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive—all you need is a little creativity, some holiday cheer and good old-fashioned fun! With these tips at hand, we guarantee that your holiday season will be the best one yet.
