#AmplifiedMelanatedVoices

06/03/20 • 1 min

Darla and Natalie are pushing their regularly scheduled programming to stand in unity with #AmplifiedMelanatedVoices. They are devastated by George Floyd's death. Darla is a retired cop, Natalie is a firefighter—but George Floyd should still be alive. Not all cops are bad, but this is NOT okay. So they are muting today in solidarity for George.

Previous Episode

Sharing Inspiration Posts [The Pros and Cons]

Do you share inspiration posts on Instagram? Or are you against the practice entirely? Perhaps you just don’t know HOW to do it properly. In this Monday Marketing Minisode, Darla and Natalie dissect the pros and cons of sharing inspiration posts. They also share how to do it the right way—giving proper kudos to the designers. Don’t miss it!

What You’ll Hear On This Episode of Wingnut Social

[0:40] Inspiration posts: to share or not to share?
[1:44] The cons of sharing inspirational posts
[3:40] What’s a newbie designer to do?
[5:49] Top reasons to share inspirational posts
[8:20] The proper way to share inspirational posts
[9:40] Darla’s promised ‘shocker’
[11:15] Wingnut Social Webinar coming up!
[12:13] Blooper Reel!

Resources & People Mentioned

Wingnut Social Webinar: June 25th 2020 at 1pm
Kelly Wearstler
Emily Henderson
Amber Lewis

The pros and cons of sharing inspiration posts

There are a few notable cons to sharing posts on Instagram that aren’t yours—and they’re the biggest reason why those who are adamantly against it don’t do it:

You’re not showcasing YOUR work and what YOU bring to the table. In some cases, it seems as though you’re giving the other designer more credit than you.
People might mistakenly believe inspiration posts are your work. Natalie points out that you don’t want to share something that doesn’t align with your design aesthetic + you have to give credit where credit is due.
Viewers may like the inspiration post so much that they seek out and hire the other designer—not you.

Keep listening to hear some of Darla and Natalie’s tips to mitigate some of the cons of inspirational posts. But some pros just may outweigh the cons:

Inspiration posts perform MUCH better than organic posts—sometimes up to 3x better. If you need more traffic and interaction on your posts it can help boost your account.
99% of the time designers LOVE it when you share their work with proper credit. Darla refers to it as a “mutually parasitic relationship”—hilarious but true.
It allows you to showcase your design aesthetic and what inspires you while still representing your brand identity.

YOU get to weigh the pros and cons, but Darla and Natalie are all for sharing inspiration posts.

How to share inspiration posts the RIGHT way

One of the reasons Darla and Natalie launched their #WowWingnut hashtag was to share inspiration posts with the proper permission already built-in. It’s a great way to motivate your followers and grow your following.

Here are the round rules Darla and Natalie follow when sharing inspiration posts:

If you’re uncomfortable sharing a designer's image, you can DM them for permission
Write about the designer in your caption and how their work inspires you
Give proper credit to the designer AND the photographer (when possible)
Established designers: Keep inspiration posts a maximum of 15–20% of your posts
Newbie designers: inspiration posts can be up to 50–60% of your posts until you have a larger portfolio

Darla shares a ‘shocker’ at the end of this episode. Listen to the end to hear what it is!

Connect With Darla & Wingnut Social

www.WingnutSocial.com
On Facebook
On Twitter: @WingnutSocial
On Instagram: @WingnutSocial
Darla’s Interior Design Website
Check out the Wingnut Social Media Lab Facebook Group!
1-877-WINGNUT (connect with us for your social media marketing needs)

Subscribe to The Wingnut Social Podcast on iTunes, Google Podcasts, or TuneIn

Audio Production and Show notes by
PODCAST FAST TRACK
https://www.podcastfasttrack.com

Next Episode

Instagram Launches ‘Guides’ Feature: What Does it Mean for Designers?

Instagram is launching yet another brand new feature: Instagram Guides. Instagram guides will live on your profile nestled between your posts, IGTV, and mentions. So what are Instagram Guides? How is the feature being used right now? Will it be useful for designers in the future? Listen to this Monday Marketing Minisode to find out!

What You’ll Hear On This Episode of Wingnut Social

[0:36] Darla LOVES her new Peloton Bike
[1:40] Wingnut Social’s very first webinar
[2:41] Instagram’s new Guides option
[7:13] Where to find current examples
[8:01] What do ‘Guides’ mean for designers?
[9:12] The ONE caveat Darla identified
[11:33] Blooper Reel!

Resources & People Mentioned

Register for the Wingnut Social Webinar!
Instagram Guides
Emilie Kyle

Instagram Guides 101

Instagram launched its newest feature that will initially focus on mental health and well-being. At this time Guides are only available for specific creators that Instagram has teamed up with to produce wellness-inspired content. To see a few examples head to the profiles of @heads_together and @Klicksafe on Instagram (mobile). Click on the little ‘open book’ icon to see their curated feeds.

Currently, these creators will feature scrollable curated content regarding managing anxiety and depression, well-being, and staying healthy amidst the Coronavirus pandemic. It’s quite similar to Pinterest—but the content lives on Instagram. It’s a sneaky way for them to keep traffic in their app while also providing immense value to users.

They even announced it will be available in the ‘explore tab’ soon!

How a designer can benefit from Instagram Guides

According to Instagram, Guides will be available to “creators, public figures, organizations, and publishers.” As a business owner, designers WILL be able to use and leverage Instagram Guides. So what could that look like?

Darla and Natalie recommend curating specific content such as a short blog post or infographic. It can be regular text OR a video. You could feature the latest trends or a completed project. Highlight your blog with a snippet of a post. You could even feature collections from your favorite designers—and maybe even land a sponsorship deal in the process.

Using Instagram Guides can position YOU as an influencer in your space. It will be on the explore page soon, which means it can expand your reach and lead to more active followers.

Darla identified ONE caveat to Instagram Guides. What is it? Listen to the minisode to find out!

Connect With Darla & Wingnut Social