When I consider what’s not only working for me on Instagram, but also accounts I follow, there is one thing in common. And that’s authenticity.

This is Part 2 of a 10-Part series. Find all the links here.

I follow many different types of accounts on Instagram. It doesn’t matter to me if your account is funny or serious, photos or videos, flowers or food. What I love are genuine folks and brands, sharing in their own authentic way. Some great accounts where you can see this in action: alysonsimplygrows, atoniovalenteflowers, barefootfive, bloomchickflowercompany, burchacres, evakosmasflores, nobodycaresanthony, rubyandrevolver (and yes, that’s Kelly Reilly wearing her jewelry, bad@ss), thenewsmallhouse, thevaglefamily. They are all different, but so in their element.

When it comes to authenticity on Instagram, what’s working here is two-fold: Sharing authentic content, but also having authentic engagement!

Authentic Engagement

By authentically sharing you attract authentic engagement, and this is of the utmost importance to me. In fact, without Part One and Part Two, the rest of this list doesn’t even matter in my book.

Here’s a practical example. Has anyone ever messaged you to be a part of a follow-for-follow pyramid? Like, “Hi, we are growing a community and if you follow these 10 people and then get 10 people to follow the next 10 . . . “. Or it goes something like that, I don’t really know, because I stay clear of these. It’s not because there’s anything wrong with it or the intentions are not in the right place. It’s because doing this would mean spending my time on people who are not organically choosing to follow and engage with my content. And why would I want that?

I want people who genuinely want to be here that I can actually serve. I’d rather spend my time creating content that people truly want to consume than build a following of people who don’t care. Follow-for-follow is not inherently wrong, it’s just more focused on numbers than truly-engaged real humans.

When we’re focused on serving, whether we’re selling, entertaining or adding value, we’re organically attracting the right people.

Authentic Content: YOU!

And I want that content to be authentic and true to me. When you are authentically being you, you attract the right audience for you! I believe these things all happen at an energetic and frequency level.

While there are strategies like creating controversial content to create engagement, I’m not looking for that energy in our business. I’m looking to attract people who actually want what we’re offering!

So, how do you do that? One of my favorite strategies is through copywriting. And one of the best tips I ever learned with copywriting is that your copy should actually sound like you!

Authentically Write Like You on Instagram (and in your marketing)

You can have a content strategy that is both strategic AND heart led. It’s not about sleazy marketing or manipulation, it’s about being intentional with your words, so you are communicating to others on how you can serve THEM. And this can and should all be in alignment with your values and business. With so many options, people want to feel more connected to what they consume.

People feel connected through storytelling and empathy. Introducing that into your copy can feel vulnerable, so go at your own pace.  At it’s core, vulnerability is authenticity, and that speaks to people! Your intentions and energy in your content impact the end result.

So how do we write copy so that it actually sounds like us? Write like you are talking to a friend! Why? Because it actually sounds like YOU! It’s usually more clear, direct, and to the point. It makes people feel more connected. When I started sharing publicly, I was insecure and used generic, professional language. But corporate language lacks warmth. When I started talking in my own voice, people started responding. We want to do business with people we know, trust, and like.

I like to even think of specific friends. One of my best friends often tells me that she feels like I am writing my posts to her, and I tell her that’s because I am, HA! You can see by the reviews on our website that other folks feel the same way. And don’t worry about being too specific. We all have more in common than we think. In marketing, it’s often said that when you target everyone, you appeal to no one. I also love this quote by Mike Nappa:

“If you want to appeal to the masses, make sure you appeal to the one. If you try to write with everybody in mind, you’ll appeal to no one because everyone will think your book is for someone else.”

Bonus: when writing in your own voice, the process is usually much faster. Try writing this way without overthinking it. Just let it rip and then refine the message for public consumption from there.