While the aesthetics of every individual social media post matters, so does planning out how all of your content looks together in the Instagram grid.
Even though most content on Instagram is consumed in the main feed, it’s important to have an attention-grabbing grid that works well together and leads new audience members to relevant content that will motivate them to subscribe!
As soon as a new visitor lands on your Instagram profile, your goal is to motivate them to continue scrolling and consuming your content.
With that in mind, while Loomly already provided you with the ability to preview posts before being published as well as previewing images and videos in your Instagram grid, we are thrilled to announce that you can now preview Instagram Reels in the Instagram Reels tab in Loomly!
Video should be a part of everyone’s strategy in 2024 and beyond, so we released this feature to help support your goals.
Moving right along, let’s dive into some strategies for how to elevate your grid.
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Why is the Instagram Grid Important?
Your Instagram grid is the place to showcase your brand, your personality, and everything that you offer.
The main feed is where people can discover your content and then your feed is where you hook them and capture their interest. Each square tile of the grid is a piece of content that both stands alone and should work together for a cohesive narrative.
This example from Taylor Swift shows how each post is very distinct, but all work together in a similar vibe.
The main Instagram post grid showcases a combination of content like Reels, images, and carousels. The Reels tab only shows the Reels videos you’ve posted so it’s important to keep in mind how the variety of your content shows together as well as the video-only posts.
One of the benefits of using a social media posting tool like Loomly is that you can plan out and schedule an entire week or month’s worth of content. This gives you clear visibility into how your existing and upcoming content work together so you can easily course correct or modify the post order.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you think about your social media strategy and how you plan content ahead.
Use brand colors in your Instagram Grid
Loomly’s Instagram plays with our brand colors and shows different combinations to visually break up the content. This is a great way to really keep your brand front and center while allowing your audience to really pay attention to each post.
Make sure to break up your grid with complementary colors that work well together but are visually distinct.
Upload a Cover Image or Thumbnail for Instagram Reels
When you publish a Reel on Instagram, you have the option to upload a cover image to keep your grid looking clean.
Pro tip: Loomly lets you choose a frame from your Reel or upload a custom cover when you’re drafting and scheduling content through our Post Builder.
Instagram Grid Inspiration
If you haven’t really paid attention to your Instagram grid previously and aren’t sure how to get started, we’ve got some tips to help you along!
Countdown reminders
If you have an event or there’s an upcoming sale, then one easy way to organize your upcoming content in the grid is by staggering reminders.
This example from Shopify shows how they had a few different visuals, examples, and approaches for reminding their target audience of the upcoming Black Friday weekend.
We recommend mixing up your visuals with different colors, textures, and styles to keep the content fresh while staying top of mind for whatever event you’re counting down to.
Showcase your products in different ways
This example from Men with the Pot demonstrates how to market a product in creative ways. While they showcase the knives they’re selling directly in the grid, they intersperse that content with food posts to showcase practical instances where they’re clearly using the knives.
Try to stick with a certain image and video treatment, and then break it up with an unexpected post to draw attention.
Promote your impact and results
Create a narrative in your grid where you start by promoting an event or a product, and then end it by sharing a post that provides results such as in this example from Plant with Purpose. This is a great way non-profits and education institutions to make your grid scrollable and engaging
Previewing Posts in the Instagram Grid with Loomly
Now that we’ve covered the value of organizing your Instagram grid, here’s how to use Loomly to make this plan come to life.
There are two ways to preview how your Reel will look in your grid.
The first is in the fine-tuning stage of Post Builder after you’ve added all the generic details for your post. While you’re defaulted to viewing the Post Preview, you can toggle over to Grid Preview and you’ll see how the Reel you’re drafting will look in the post grid or the Reels tab.
In the Grid Preview, if you hover over a Reel and see the Loomly cat icon, this denotes any content that has been drafted or scheduled through Loomly but not yet published.
If you have any Reels drafted or scheduled ahead of the current post you’re working on, you can toggle this on to show future Loomly posts.
You can also access Instagram Reels Grid Preview in the Post View as long as the post you’re working on is still in the draft or scheduled state and has not yet been published.
Ready to Level Up Your Instagram Grid?
Now you have all the tools you need to start experimenting with creating a narrative through your Instagram Grid! If you are already a Loomly customer, take previewing Instagram Reels in the grid for a test run and let us know what you think.
Not using Loomly yet? Start a free 15-day trial and see the magic for yourself!
