11 Instagram Content Ideas for July 4th

July 4th is upon us! We could all use an opportunity to think about fireworks, BBQs, and pool parties, right?

If your business isn’t based in the USA, it’s still a good idea to acknowledge Independence Day for your American followers.

Here are some content ideas to post on Instagram both feed and stories in honor of the 4th of July.

1. Deck out your workspace in red, white, and blue

Decorate your office, studio, or workspace with red, white, and blue streamers, banners, and wall hangings. Capture the festive atmosphere in a video or photo. For stories, try experimenting with Boomerang or Layout. Add some text and fun GIFs, and you’re good to go.

2. Showcase a specialized July 4th product or project

Create something special for the 4th of July. Decorate a cake with stars and stripes, craft some patriotic jewelry, make a red, white, and blue edition of your custom-made quilts — whatever it is. Then, showcase the product or project creatively to your feed and/or stories.

Some DIY inspiration from crafter @amandakingloff (Note that carousel posts are a great format for showcasing step-by-step projects):

https://www.instagram.com/p/BkwI5hBHVS2/

3. Post your favorite patriotic song

Use the music sticker for stories to post a segment of your favorite patriotic song. Don’t have access to the music sticker, or can’t find the song you want? No worries — you can use VideoBoost to create a video with the lyrics you want and add music to the background.

If you’re a musician, consider performing a cover, or even composing an original song in honor of Independence Day, and sharing the content to your feed and stories.

4. Poll your followers about their July 4th plans

One of the great things about Instagram Stories is how easy it is to encourage your followers to interact with you with very little effort. Use the poll, quiz, or question stickers to ask them about their plans for the 4th of July. Are they planning a BBQ? Watching fireworks? Spending the day with family and friends?

5. Share a historical tidbit

Find a historical fun fact about the 4th of July, the War of Independence, or the founding fathers — preferably one that ties into your business somehow.

Pro Tip: when sharing your selected fun fact to stories, summarize it succinctly. Keep in mind that your followers won’t have time to read too much text, so it shouldn’t be much longer than one sentence!

6. Make a 4th of July tutorial

Find a fun 4th of July craft or recipe, preferably one related to your business, and create a tutorial. Here’s a great Independence Day cooking tutorial from food brand @wildwayoflife:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bzf_1x4Himi/

Check out our post on How to Create a Tutorial with Instagram Stories to learn best practices for customizing your tutorial for Stories.

7. Launch a special 4th of July giveaway or sale

Offer a special discount or flash sale, or organize a contest or giveaway! Read our post on How to Run a Successful Instagram Giveaway to learn how and find some ideas.

8. Video your local fireworks show

Who doesn’t love fireworks? Take your smartphone with you to your local fireworks show and capture some good footage. Post your best video to your feed and share some 15-second clips to your Stories, wishing your followers a #happy4thofJuly.

9. Take a photo or slow-mo video of a flag

Is there a flag hanging somewhere near your office, studio, or home? Maybe you can hang one outside your door for this occasion. Get a good shot of it and share it to your feed and/or stories with a Happy Independence Day wish. If it’s blowing nicely in the wind, a slow-motion video of it waving will look particularly cool. Pro tip for stories: You can capture a great slow-mo video using SuperZoom!

10. Post a patriotic quote

Find a patriotic quote that speaks to you and share it with your audience — maybe alongside a photo of the author of the quote, or maybe simply using a red, white, and blue color scheme.

Quote inspiration from home decor small biz @hartandhess:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bk0MiQFAyLA/

11. Red, white, and blue selfie

You can always dress up in red, white, and blue and post a photo of yourself! If you have additional staff at your business, consider posting a team photo with all of you wearing those colors, or waving American flags.

Action Items:

  1. Pick one or more of these ideas that sound like a good fit for your business.
  2. Plan ahead: if you’re planning to issue a specialized product or craft, or to post a graphic or video, start working on it ahead of time so it’s ready for July 4th.
  3. Add your favorite 4th of July Stories to your Highlights so people visiting your profile can check them out!

Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.

5 Social Media Content Ideas for National Small Business Week

Happy National Small Business Week! This year, National Small Business Week takes place from May 2-8, 2021. NSBW celebrates the 31.7 million small businesses across the United States. Small business owners have hustled hard this past year to keep their businesses alive and deserve this week of recognition more than ever. 

Wondering how you can celebrate this occasion for your brand on social media? Here are 5 creative and engaging content ideas for NSBW.

1. Inspire your audience with actionable ways to support small businesses 

Share specific and actionable ideas with your audience as to how they can support their favorite local businesses during NSBW and beyond. For example, here are 5 ways to encourage your audience to support their neighborhood pizzeria: 

– Buy pizza from them once a week / once a month etc. instead of eating out at a bigger, national chain 

– Be sure to tip your server or deliveryperson  

– Purchase a gift card for a friend

– Give the pizzeria a shoutout on your Instagram Stories next time you visit 

– Leave a positive review on their Facebook page

No matter what industry you’re in, you can create a post or video on this topic. Here are some posts to help inspire your content:

2. Share your own small business journey 

How did you (and your business) get to where you are today? NSBW is a great time to reflect on your journey and celebrate your successes as a small business owner. Share a post or video detailing your story. Some questions and prompts to help get you started: 

– When did you start your business? What motivated you to initially start your business?

– What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced as a small business owner?

– What is your why what keeps you motivated as a biz owner day after day? 

– Share 3 things that your customers may not know about you.

– Be sure to thank the people who helped you along the way, whether that’s friends, family and/or customers.

Here are some great posts from small business owners sharing their own biz journeys:

3. Create a video in honor of National Small Business Week 

Spread your NSBW message across social media with an eye-catching video! People are twice as likely to share video content with their friends, compared to any other type of content. 

If you’re new to video content creation for social media, don’t worry! Boosted, the video creation app with professional, ready-to-go templates, has a unique template in honor of the occasion that you can customize for your own brand in only minutes: 

4. Create an Instagram Guide of your favorite small business products & services

Instagram Guides is a new Insta feature that enables users to share tips, insights & longer-form content. Consider creating a Guide of a roundup of products and / or services you love from various local businesses⁠. Within Guide Types, you can select either Products or Posts to create this type of Guide. 

Check out our post here for more insights on how to create your own Instagram Guide: 

5. Enter the #GrowWithBoosted Challenge 

We’re hosting a special-edition #GrowWithBoosted Challenge over on our Instagram (@boosted_by_lightricks) in honor of National Small Business Week. Enter the challenge this week for the chance to win a $500 Amazon Gift Card or lifetime access to Boosted Premium!

Here are all the details you’ll need to enter: 

We hope that these ideas help inspire your brand’s social media content in honor of National Small Business Week 2021! Be sure to check out our blog for more social media marketing insights for your small business.


Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.

13 Autumn Instagram Content Ideas for Small Businesses

Summer is coming to a close, and it’s time to start planning your social media calendar for the next season!

Seeking some autumn content ideas? From foliage and pumpkins to back to school season and beyond, fall offers a ton of fresh seasonal content you can create for your brand.

Here are 13 Instagram content ideas to give you some autumn inspiration.

1. Sprinkle everything with fall imagery

No matter what you post, you can’t go wrong with some classic autumn-related imagery. Here are some elements you can include in your fall-themed posts:

  • The colors orange, red, yellow, and brown
  • Leaves and foliage
  • Woody textures
  • Warm drinks: apple cider, pumpkin spice lattes, hot chocolate
  • Fireplaces
  • Sweaters and jackets
  • Sunsets
  • Rain and umbrellas
  • Apples
  • Pumpkins
  • Spices (cloves, cinnamon sticks, etc.)
  • Books
  • A cozy, warm atmosphere

You can use these elements for inspiration when coming up with inspiration for all the content ideas below.

2. Run a special sale or promotion for fall

It’s very common for businesses to hold special sales for fall: Labor Day sales, back-to-school sales, or just something celebrating the new season. Be sure to promote your sale both in your Feed and in your Stories.

For example, Garden Architecture & Design (@gardenarchitecture), a furniture store in California, made a video showing off its wares and offering a 20% discount on “all those incredible pieces you’ve been stalking all summer”:

3. Highlight a fall-related product

Have you made some leaf-themed product lately? Does your farm, restaurant, or other food service offer any special fall items? Feature them in a Feed post or Story, and don’t forget to use plenty of fall hashtags: #autumn, #autumnvibes, etc.

Check out these adorable fall leaf earrings from @ewi.macrame:

4. Recommend your favorite fall read

Fall is a great time to curl up with a cozy book to read. Show your followers what you’re reading, or what you like to read during the fall. It could be related to your field, or just something you enjoy. You can combine this with a request for book recommendations!

5. Share a fall-related quote

Create a graphic with a quote that has something to do with autumn. You can find lots of lists of fall-related quotes online, such as this one. See if you can find footage or images that match the quote — for example, if you select “You’re never too old to play in the leaves,” find a picture of a kid (or adult!) playing in fall leaves. Even better, find a pile of leaves and have someone photograph you playing in them!

Artist and author Dani DiPirro (@positivelypresent) created this beautiful image with a fall quote from Rumi:

6. Ask a question about fall

Asking questions is a great way to create engagement. You can create a Feed post and encourage people to answer in the comments, or use a Question or Poll sticker in a Story.

Some ideas for questions to ask:

  • What’s your favorite thing about fall?
  • Pumpkin spice lattes: yea or nay?
  • What’s your favorite movie/book to curl up with in the fall?
  • What do you like to do when it’s raining?
  • Which do you prefer: sweaters or jackets?

7. Create a fall-related tutorial

Now’s the time for fall recipes: apple pie, pumpkin spice anything, stews and slow-cooked dinners with lots of root vegetables, etc. It’s also back-to-school time, so you can create a tutorial for a school-related craft: pencil cases, gifts for teachers… or, given it’s 2020, maybe a kid-sized cloth mask or a cute pouch for carrying hand sanitizer. Click here to read our post on creating a tutorial using Instagram Stories.

For example, artist Anastasia-berry (@anastasiadeg) created this tutorial for coloring a fall leaf:

8. Back-to-school post

Try to find an angle your target audience will relate to. For instance, if your target audience is moms who may be relieved to be sending their kids back to school, you can base a video on this template from Boosted:

Maybe combine that with a special offer. For example, if you’re a massage therapist, offer a discounted massage for moms! Boosted video templates are extremely versatile, and you can use them to create both Feed videos and Stories.

If you’re targeting college-age students, you may want to focus more on things like tips for organizing a dorm room, quick and easy recipes, or tips for maintaining focus during their studies.

9. Document local fall scenery

If you live somewhere with beautiful fall foliage, get out that smartphone camera and take some great photos! You can post the images as they are, or use them as background for any of the more text-based ideas in this post.

You can also take a walk downtown and take photos of other types of fall scenery: window displays, people drinking apple cider at a local cafe, etc. This is an especially good idea if your business targets a local audience. Click here to read more ideas for targeting a local audience on Instagram.

10. Launch a fall-related photo contest

While you’re at it, why not get your followers to show you what fall looks like where they live? Launch a fall photo contest for some user-generated content, and offer a giveaway as the prize. Click here to read more about how to run a successful giveaway on Instagram.

Check out this stunning winning post from a photo contest by Timberline Adventures (@ziptimberline) last year:

11. Give fall-related tips from your niche

If you’re in the beauty or fashion industry, you can talk about looks that are hot for this fall and how to achieve them. If you’re in the food industry, give some tips for working with seasonal ingredients, like apples, pumpkins, and spices. Photographer? Give some tips for capturing fall scenery.

You can create a graphic featuring the tip as text, or use the graphic to introduce the idea and elaborate in the caption. You could also make a video of yourself explaining your tips and post it on your Feed or using IGTV.

This post from The Ayurvedic Institute (@theayurvedicinstitute) features some tips for maintaining your health in the fall:

12. Decorate your workspace with fall-themed items

This doesn’t have to take much: some leaves, a steaming mug, a book, and a warm photo filter could do the trick. If you’re working on something that has to do with fall, consider creating a behind-the-scenes video or carousel post.

Heather of Heather House Interiors (@heatherhouseinteriors) posted this photo of the fall-decorated entrance to her home:

13. Hold a little fall event

In other times, we might recommend holding a real-life fall party or event, but the pandemic-related restrictions may make that tricky this year. Instead, organize a little fall outing or event for your staff (or for yourself, if that’s your full staff!) and be sure to document it well. Some ideas:

  • A hike in the woods
  • Go apple or pumpkin picking
  • Visit a local farm or farmer’s market
  • Make apple cider or apple pie together

Post plenty of photos and videos in your Stories (and save one or two favorites for your feed).

Action Items:

  • Go over this list and jot down ideas that spark your imagination.
  • Get out your calendar and pencil in a schedule for fall-related posts and promotions for your Instagram feed.
  • Be sure to leave plenty of time for content ideas that may require some prep work.
Autumn Instagram Ideas

Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.

7 Father’s Day Social Media Content Ideas for Your Business

Father’s Day is coming up in June, and as with every shared special occasion or holiday, it’s a good opportunity for content that’s tailored to fit the moment.

One important thing to keep in mind when creating marketing content for Father’s Day is that it’s not the same as Mother’s Day. Though each of these days celebrates a parent, people celebrate parents of different genders in different ways. Statistics show that people spend significantly more money on gifts for Mother’s Day.

Since Father’s Day is less of a commercial event, it’s better to focus on content that engages, stirs the emotions, and inspires customer loyalty rather than content that makes a hard sell. You can always tout your products and services as Father’s Day gifts (as in idea #5 below), but be aware that you’re less likely to make direct sales from Father’s Day campaigns.

Below are 7 content ideas you can use across all social media platforms in honor of Father’s Day.

1. A tribute to dads, or your own dad

A tribute to your own dad shares something personal and shows the human side of your business. It can also convey some of your important business values. You can post a photo of your dad and caption it with a story about him that relates to your brand, or simply explain about things you learned from him that make you who you are today.

You can also post a tribute to dads in general, or to someone else’s dad: a client, an employee, an influencer, or anyone who has some connection to your business.

For example, this short video from clothing brand @UnderArmour features football player Bryce Harper talking about what he learned from his dad:

2. Inspirational Father’s Day quote

When in doubt, you can always go with a quote. It can be funny or moving, but the most important thing is to make sure it’s original and not too clichéed. Create a clean graphic with the quote, or make a short video that features it.

Boosted has the following Father’s Day template that you can customize for yourself or your business:

Boosted allows you to create beautiful videos you can share on all social media platforms in just a few minutes, complete with stock footage, text, background music, and smooth animation.

3. Tell a dad joke

“Dad joke” is a relatively recent concept. It’s usually a punny one-liner that other people in the room find groan-worthy.

Dad jokes can be a cute, lighthearted alternative to a quote. Find one that relates to your brand and tell it using a graphic or video. Check out @classicdadmoves for endless dad joke inspiration:

4. Father’s Day giveaway or contest

Contests and giveaways are always a great way to generate buzz. Choose a product or service to give away that has to do with dads and come up with some rules for the contest based on your goals.

This campaign by the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team was great for exposure and viral content, since all people needed to do was retweet it:

If you’d like the contest to generate more followers, or even create some great user-generated content, ask your followers to tag someone or post their own content with a certain hashtag. For example, ask them to post a photo with their dad, or to tell a funny story about fatherhood.

Learn more about How to Run a Successful Instagram Giveaway with our guide.

5. Showcase a product or service as a perfect Father’s Day gift

Do you sell a product or market a service that might make a good Father’s Day gift? Post a photo or video of it and let your followers know why they should consider purchasing it for their dad. Typical Father’s Day gifts include men’s apparel, sports equipment, watches, and electronic gadgets or accessories for gadgets.

Here’s some inspiration from Australian floral business @thelittleposy_co:

6. DIY tutorial or recipe

You can also create a tutorial showing your followers how to make their own Father’s Day card or gift. Some ideas for crafts Dad might appreciate:

  • Wallet
  • Tie rack or hanger
  • Decorated mug or tumbler
  • Picture frame
  • Leather or cloth tool roll
  • Watch holder

Dad-oriented recipes could work too: they usually feature copious amounts of meat, potatoes, and beer.

7. Collaborate with another brand or influencer

You can always team up with another brand or an influencer to create some fun Father’s Day content.

For example, @Footlocker, an acclaimed sneaker brand, collaborated with comedian Jesus Garcia to put together this adorable one-man skit promoting their sneakers as an ideal gift for Dad:

Action Items:

  • Review this list and pick an idea or two that sparks your imagination.
  • Create a photo or video and craft the accompanying copy.
  • Post across your social media channels in honor of Father’s Day!
Father's Day Instagram

Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.

9 Mother’s Day Instagram Content Ideas for Your Business

Mother’s Day is approaching, and it’s a great opportunity to craft some content celebrating the mothers on your staff, in your life, and among your customers.

But what should you post?

Here are 9 Instagram content ideas to get your wheels turning:

1. A tribute to your own mom

Find a great photo of yourself with your mom. Post it with a caption describing how she shaped who you are today, and thank her for all she’s done for you.

Posts like these are fantastic because they have a personal touch and show humility and gratitude. But be sure to get your mom’s permission to share it first! Get inspired by influencer @michelleoksana‘s content:

Your post will be especially effective if there’s a business tie-in. How has your mom helped or inspired you in your business? Even if there’s nothing obvious, give it some thought — maybe she taught you to be creative, or to work hard, or to be honest and open. Chances are you’ll find something!

2. A meaningful quote about motherhood

Create a graphic for your feed or Stories containing a brief, meaningful quote about mothers and motherhood. If you can, take some extra time to find something original and creative — you don’t want it to be too cliché. @KaaartBlanche nailed this here:

If all else fails, you could always simply write “Happy Mother’s Day” on a pretty background. Your followers will appreciate the sentiment.

3. Highlight a product or service as a perfect Mother’s Day gift

This idea is a little more promotional, but might be effective if your product or service makes an excellent Mother’s Day gift.

For example, if you’re a massage therapist, you can write about how often mothers forget to take care of themselves and how important it is to give them a chance to wind down and connect to their bodies.

If you sell multiple products, showcase one or two that are especially appropriate and write about what it might do for a mom to receive it as a gift.

4. Special Mother’s Day sale

Take it a step further by offering a special sale on products or services that make a perfect Mother’s Day gift. Be sure to create an engaging graphic or video announcing the sale. You can use Boosted to create a stunning promotional video for your feed or Stories in just a few minutes.

5. Mother’s Day contest

Another great promotion idea for Mother’s Day is to create a contest, giveaway, or hashtag challenge. Offer one of your products or services as a prize, and challenge your followers to choose a mom who deserves it as a gift and explain why. You can select a winner randomly, or choose your favorite story. You can also challenge your users to post photos of themselves with the deserving mom, explaining why she should get the prize in the caption.

Learn more about How to Run a Successful Instagram Giveaway with our guide.

Here’s some Mother’s Day contest inspiration from @theflowerboutiqueinc:

View this post on Instagram

Mother’s Day is around the corner! We are collaborating with @topcatering to give away 10 beautiful floral arrangements for Mother’s Day. All arrangements will be delivered to the address of your choice. Free delivery is for Orange County only. To enter, you must complete all these steps: 1)Follow @theflowerboutiqueinc and @topcatering 2)Like this post 3)Share this post on your IG story and tag @theflowerboutiqueinc and @topcatering 4)Comment below and tag as many friends as you’d like in a separate comment to increase your chances of winning ****You can only win twice***** THAT’S IT!!! GOOD LUCK!!! Giveaway ends Thursday, April 30th, 2020 at 11:59pm PST. Winners chosen and announced on Monday, May 4th, 2020. *This giveaway is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Instagram*

A post shared by The Flower Boutique (@theflowerboutiqueinc) on

6. DIY Mother’s Day gift tutorial or recipe

Create a tutorial in your Stories or in a short Feed video for a DIY Mother’s Day gift that’s related to your brand. You can learn more about making tutorials for Instagram here.

Another option is to post a recipe for Mother’s Day. What’s a Mother’s Day recipe, you ask? Maybe a festive cake with pink frosting, or a health shake with strawberries, or perhaps simply an easy recipe you learned from your mom. Take a photo of the finished product and post it with the recipe in the caption.

Get inspired by @bekindandmakeart‘s Mother’s Day DIY how-to for kids:

View this post on Instagram

Mother’s Day Masterpiece (number 2)! To start off, I showed our kiddos how to draw a flower. They used crayons to draw their own special flowers on their papers. Next, we took paint and traced over our flowers with corresponding colors. Once finished & dried, I cut all of the flowers out. Then, I took photos of each child making a fist, printed and cut them out. They were all assembled together to create these BEAUTIFUL & uniquely special masterpieces! :: A couple notes: I did this project with ages 3-5. I knew it would be trickier for our Younger 3’s class, but I knew it was best to ask their teacher the best course of action since she knows her students best! She teacher advised me to work in small groups, and to show the artists step-by-step and work alongside of them! She told me that they are extremely visual children and need to see me work slowly & draw/paint right in front of them for this specific project. And it worked! I was so proud of them! With our ages 1-2, they glued and assembled together PAPER flowers instead (flexing fine motor skills). :: ALSO ALSO, I think this is my new favorite project! I am SO proud of our little artists who focused, took their time & worked hard to create something so special for their mamas!

A post shared by Kathleen Motoa (@bekindandmakeart) on

7. Share a funny meme or cartoon about moms and motherhood

Motherhood is a bottomless well of inspiration for humor. There are many funny memes and cartoons you could share on your feed or in your Stories. You can make one yourself, or find one you like using hashtags or on Google. If you post someone else’s content, though, be sure you have their permission and don’t forget to credit them.

8. Interview a mom

Set up a simple video interview with an important mom in your life: your own mom, an employee’s mom, or even an employee or customer who has an interesting story or perspective on motherhood. Maybe even string together small clips of moms giving advice or expressing an opinion on something related to your brand.

Videos like these can be cute, funny, or inspirational. As always, match the tone to your brand.

9. Celebrate the moms on your staff or in your community

If you have moms on your staff, now is a great time to create a video tribute highlighting the importance of their roles in your business and what you especially appreciate about them. You could also celebrate moms in your community or customer base that you especially appreciate. This could be a carousel post with a collection of photos of the moms you want to celebrate, a video collage of their photos, or multiple Stories with slides about each one of them.

The creative possibilities are endless!

Action Items:

1. Pick one or two of the above ideas that speak most to you — preferably ones that can complement each other as posts both in your feed and in your Stories.
2. Make sure to craft the content in a way that is authentic and consistent with your brand.
3. Have fun and get personal — this is a great time to show your following a little about yourself and your life.

social_media_ideas_for_mother_s_day_marketing


Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.

4 Spring Instagram Ideas for Small Businesses

If you’re a believer in Punxsutawney Phil, who didn’t see his shadow this year, then you’re probably excited that Spring is upon us. As the coats come off and the weather warms up, more people will be outside and active, which makes Spring the perfect time for creating a content strategy to up your Instagram game.

Whether you plan on posting to Stories, IGTV, your Feed, or all three, there are plenty of options for making sure your brand’s Instagram is full from March 19 through June 20. With so many seasonal quirks and holidays to leverage—April Fool’s Day, Passover, Easter, Tax Day, Arbor Day, Cinco de Mayo, Mother’s Day, and Memorial Day to name a few—here are some ideas for you to use.

1. Get Clever with Captions

Nothing achieves more engagement than a stunning image with a meaningful photo caption—and quotes are a great place to start if you’re not sure how to weave your small business into a Spring-themed post. Caption an upbeat, relevant photo or create a meme using some of the most popular sayings about Spring, such as:

  • The best time for new beginnings is now.
  • A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms.
  • Plant smiles, grow laughter, harvest love.

Or, use popular quotes about Spring, such as:

  • “Spring is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s party!’” — Robin Williams
  • “In the spring I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of four and twenty hours.” — Mark Twain
  • “Some old-fashioned things like fresh air and sunshine are hard to beat.” — Laura Ingalls Wilder

Pro tip: Make sure to tie the quote or saying to what your small business does in order to show your readers that you’re not posting just to post but that you value your fans and are being intentional.

2. Spring Forward with Something New

Everyone knows the season is all about “springing forward.” Spring’s theme is essentially the original call to action (thanks Mother Nature!), so use it to your advantage and encourage fans to take action—whether that’s shopping your website, commenting on your post, or contacting you to schedule a product demo or fitting.

For example, if you own a gym or wellness brand, you can encourage your fans and followers to spring forward into a new chapter by getting fit or recommitting to a healthy lifestyle. Use bright images with motivational quotes or special promotions to encourage fans to get back into a routine. Or, if you own a clothing brand, there’s no time like the present to spring forward into a new look or wardrobe. Urge your customers to take the leap and revamp their closets just in time for warmer weather. Here’s some inspiration from Vail-based fashion brand @perchvail:

3. Host a Seasonal Sale

Among the most popular sales-oriented Instagram posts you’ll see pop up during Spring are the “spring into savings,” “spring cleaning,” and tax day sale posts. When 34 percent of Instagram users are ages 25 to 34—and this age group has the greatest purchasing power—it’s important to give them what they’re looking for and to stand out from the rest while you do it.

Go Live on Instagram from your brick-and-mortar location and walk through some of the products or services you’re offering as part of your sale and encourage people to stop in, shop on your website, or message you to make a purchase. Or, leverage Instagram Shopping to sell directly on the platform to your customers. For example, if you’re a small business that specializes in winter gear like skis or snow sports attire, you could host a Live “spring cleaning” clearance sale.

Another great idea is to create an IGTV video—which you can then auto-share to your Feed and pop into your Stories. A great video that you can create from the comfort of an iPhone is a behind-the-scenes video in which employees share their favorite thing about Spring or what they plan on doing with their tax refund, but here are some additional ideas:

Go Live on Instagram from your brick-and-mortar location and walk through some of the products or services you’re offering as part of your sale and encourage people to stop in, shop on your website, or message you to make a purchase. Or, leverage Instagram Shopping to sell directly on the platform to your customers. For example, if you’re a small business that specializes in winter gear like skis or snow sports attire, you could host a Live “spring cleaning” clearance sale.

Another great idea is to create an IGTV video—which you can then auto-share to your Feed and pop into your Stories. A great video that you can create from the comfort of an iPhone is a behind-the-scenes video in which employees share their favorite thing about Spring or what they plan on doing with their tax refund, but here are some additional ideas:

  • Fashion brands can record a virtual runway with Spring fashion as the focus.
  • Small businesses in the food space can create a Spring recipe how-to video.
  • Lifestyle brands can create a video with trends for the new season, whether highlighting gardening, healthy living ideas, crafts, home tips, and so on.

4. Get Creative with Unique Spring Imagery

Spring-themed content is growing like weeds on Instagram, so be thoughtful about the images and content you curate and post to your Feed and Stories. Spring tends to bring out lots of pictures of flowers, birds, eggs, and pastels, so try to get creative. Websites like Pexels or Unsplash are brimming with great Spring images—both traditional and outside the box—for your Feed and Stories, but also try to use some of your own home-grown images.

 spring instagram marketing
Unsplash, Florin Beudean @florinb19

Also, be sure to create branded hashtags and leverage trending hashtags, including those around:

  • Days of the week (#MotivationalMonday, #TGIF)
  • Events (#SpringBreak)
  • General interest (#gardening, #springcleaning)
  • Holidays (#MothersDay, #EarthDay)

Then, encourage fans to post their own content using your branded Spring hashtags so you can repost their content to your feed, which can help fill the gaps and work as social proof too.

Action Items:

1. Plan out your entire Spring content calendar now, so you have ideas through June 20.
2. Use Boosted to create beautiful Spring videos with top-quality templates and a library of images and video from Getty Images video clip library.
3. Look at Google Trends to see what people are asking about spring and leverage those trends in your content calendar.

ATTACHMENT DETAILS  Instagram_Marketing_Spring_time_Ideas


Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.

7 Instagram Content Ideas for Easter 2020

Easter is right around the corner, and that’s good news for businesses of all sizes. Last year, the National Retail Federation predicted that Americans would spend more than $18 billion—or around $151 per person—before and during the Easter weekend.

If you want to leverage the Easter shopping frenzy but are curious how you can hop on the seasonal bandwagon by providing fun and engaging content for your fans, we’ve got seven ideas for your Stories and Feed.

1. Run a Contest

There’s no easier way to get people involved and engaged on Instagram than by running a giveaway in your Feed. Whether you give away a discount to the winner(s), offer to send them out your newest coffee blend, or give them their pick of an item from your website, there are many options for staying seasonal with a giveaway, including:

  • Guessing game: Fill up a jar with chocolate eggs and have fans guess how many are in the jar. If you have more than one winner, pick a random winner from the group or reward everyone.
  • Name game: Have them name the new office rabbit or plant; for Easter, the flowers of choice are lilies, tulips, daffodils, daisies, and yellow roses. Then, pick a random winner.
  • Trivia: Bust out some little-known facts about Easter and test your fans on their knowledge. Pick winners from those who guess the right answer.

For insights on how to run a successful Instagram giveaway, check out our recent blog. Here’s some giveaway inspiration from @platosclosetyakima from Easter 2019:

2. Get Creative with Seasonal Content

Your followers’ Feeds are going to be chock full of Easter content, with every brand and business they follow trying to capitalize on the holiday to boost sales or engagement. Focus on thoughtfully and carefully curating seasonal images with valuable captions and trending hashtags so that your content stands out and your fans save, share, and engage with your content.

Try to find images on sites like Pexels or Unsplash for your Feed and Stories that are outside the box, and do your best to forego the typical Easter images of decorated eggs, pastels, and flowers that are going to saturate social platforms. Here is an Easter collection you can browse, curated by Unsplash.

easter social media marketing
Image Credit: Micheile Henderson, Unsplash

Some content ideas:

  • Easter is definitely about the food, and even if your brand isn’t food focused, you can share a recipe with an unexpected twist on a classic Easter favorite (roast lamb tacos, anyone?) and let your fans know the office will be enjoying it over the holiday.
  • Did you know Americans eat more than 16 million jelly beans on Easter?! Post Easter trivia questions to your Stories with relevant and seasonal images teasing to the answers and tag related brands when it makes sense.
  • Share gratitude! Easter is a time when people gather with friends and family, so share who and what you’re thankful and grateful for.

Also, we recommend businesses avoid going crazy with the Easter puns in captions, egg-tractive as they may be, because everyone takes this route. Be different!

3. Plant an “Easter Egg”

No, we’re not talking about literal Easter eggs here. In the digital world, Easter eggs are hidden messages, jokes, or features. Easter eggs became a thing thanks to Google, which plants clever Easter eggs throughout the web, but now you can find them in video games, movies, computer programs, and plenty of other places.

Consider planting your logo, a brand mascot, or cleverly placed Easter-themed icon in your Stories or Feed posts and then encourage fans and followers to try and find it—and a giveaway attached to finding the Easter egg can’t hurt! Or, if you’re working with brand influencers, have them post your Easter-egged image and see if fans can figure it out.

4. Host a Sale

Did you know that 34% of Instagram users are ages 25 to 34? Today, this age group also has the greatest purchasing power, and the NRF says they’re doing more than planning egg hunts for Easter—they’re also planning to shop online for clothing, decorations, gifts, food, candy, flowers, travel opportunities, and more—and 74 percent will be busy shopping on their smartphones.

Leverage spring fever and the $18 billion that consumers will spend during the Easter weekend by hosting a “spring into savings” sale or promotion. Or, do the flip and run a “spring cleaning” sale by delivering a special promo on closeout or clearance items or services that are slow during this time of year.

5. Go Behind the Scenes

Easter is a time for gathering with friends, family, and even coworkers, so why not show the world what your employees are doing for the holiday? Easter offers a great chance to post content that can boost brand awareness and build loyalty by showing the world who you really are.

You don’t have to produce something super involved. Just hop around the office and ask your employees about their favorite Easter candy or what their plans for the holiday are and then post the videos to your Stories or post multiple images to the feed with their responses. Then, encourage your fans to comment on which staffer they relate to the most.

6. Run a “Caption This” competition

Find an interesting Easter-themed picture and invite your fans to caption the post on your Feed. Be sure to respond to each of the comments so your fans (and Instagram’s algorithm) know you’re engaged. If you’re running in your stories, use the question sticker and post responses to your Stories as they come in—it’ll keep your Stories busy and full of content all day.

Here’s some recent “Caption This” inspiration from @meowed:

7. Run a Poll with a Challenge

Throw a poll into your Stories asking your followers how they prefer to chomp down on the holiday’s beloved chocolate rabbits: Ears first? Feet first? Then, create a hashtag—think #ChocolateBunnyChomp or #EasterChompChallenge—and invite fans to post pictures of themselves to their stories and Feed with the hashtag.

Be sure to share images to your Stories as they come in so your fans feel seen and like they’re a part of your brand. If you’re working with influencers or have partner businesses or brands, get them onboard with the hashtag too.

Bonus Tip!

Whatever type of content you decide to leverage to boost your engagement and follower rates over Easter, don’t forget the holiday has deep religious significance for many who celebrate. From the images and GIFs you choose to the captions you write, be thoughtful and respectful to the way that different people celebrate the holiday.

Action Items:

  1. Start planning your Easter content strategy so the holiday doesn’t sneak up on you.
  2. Poll your followers now to find out what they love most about Easter. Then, work what’s relevant to your fans into your content calendar for maximum impact.
  3. Download VideoBoost to leverage easy-to-use templates and a library of images that will make creating Easter video content quick and easy.

Instagram Ideas Easter 2020 Social Media Marketing


Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.

5 Instagram Content Ideas for St. Patrick’s Day

Every holiday and special occasion is an excellent marketing opportunity. People love celebrations and tend to spend more money during holidays, too.

That’s why, even if your business has little or no connection to Ireland or Irish culture, it’s a good idea to plan some dedicated content for St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick’s Day (March 17) is the Catholic feast day of the patron saint of Ireland. Though it was originally a religious day celebrated mostly in Ireland, it spread with the Irish diaspora and has been embraced by other cultures as an opportunity to celebrate all things Irish.

Below you’ll find 5 ideas for content to post on Instagram in honor of St. Patrick’s Day.

1. Showcase (or create) Irish-themed merchandise

If you sell merchandise, chances are you’ve got something in green! Create a dedicated post that features a photo of all your Irish-themed products together. Aside from the color green, you can feature any product that reflects the other visual themes of the holiday:

  • Rainbows and pots of gold
  • Leprechauns
  • Guinness or other Irish beverages
  • Shamrocks (3-leafed or 4-leafed clover)
  • Luck

You can also take this a step further and create special St. Patrick’s Day merchandise. For example, if you’re a cake decorator, make a special St. Patrick’s Day cake decorated with any or all of the symbols above. If you make jewelry, create a special pair of earrings or necklace using green stones or a shamrock charm.

2. St. Patrick’s Day-themed tutorial or recipe

Another option is to create a tutorial or recipe for a St. Patrick’s Day-themed food, craft, or activity. Here’s some inspiration from @thecountrycook:

There’s plenty of room for creativity here. If you’re a makeup artist, you might make a tutorial that features green eyeshadow. If you’re in the wellness industry, you might post a recipe for a “lucky” green shake.

You can make a quick video to post to your feed (with the help of a tool like VideoBoost), post a photo of the finished product with instructions in the caption, or make a tutorial using Stories — as explained in this post.

3. “Luck of the Irish” contest

Leverage the “luck” theme to launch a special St. Patrick’s Day contest. You can select a prize that’s connected to an Irish theme, or not — you already have the element of luck built in! Here’s a successful thematic contest run by small biz @petwantsocsouth in 2019:

View this post on Instagram

🍀 Lucky day, it's time for a giveaway! In celebration of St. Pawty's Day one lucky pup is going to win the prize at the end of the rainbow…. fresh pet food and treats! Winner will receive a Pet Wants Dog Food Flight (includes 5 of our most popular formulas), Signature Chicken Jerky, Freeze-Dried Chicken Hearts and a St. Patty's Day Bone Plushy. All will come wrapped up in one of our burlap delivery totes. ⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ 🌈 Entering is easy! Just follow us on Instagram and tag friend in the comments. Each new tagged friend counts as an additional entry!⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ ✨ Giveaway closes on March 16th at midnight (PST), winner will be announced here on St. Patrick's Day! Open to U.S. residents only.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ ☘️ This promotion is no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Instagram.

A post shared by Healthy Pet Food + Supply Shop (@petwantsocsouth) on

To learn more, check out our post on how to run a giveaway contest on Instagram.

4. Post fun trivia about Ireland and Irish culture

Did you know that the first St. Patrick’s Day parade was held not in Ireland, but in Boston? How about that there are more people in the United States who claim Irish origin than there are Irish people in Ireland? Or that the odds of finding a 4-leafed clover are 1 in 10,000?

Everybody loves a fun fact, and if you can find something that connects to your brand — even better.

You can simply post an Irish-themed image and mention the fact in your caption, but if you want people to see and respond, it’s best to include it in the image post itself. You can simply post it as text over a green background, or include some Irish-themed decorative elements.

5. Dress your staff in green

This is a fun and easy one that can work as a photo or video, and might be especially good for posting as a Story. Have your whole staff dress in green (even if it’s just you) and record a St. Patrick’s Day greeting. Extra points if some of you wear a green top hat!

Action Items:

  1. Go over the above list and choose 1 or 2 ideas that spark your imagination.
  2. Plan your content ahead of time and have it ready to post on March 17.

st patricks day social media marketing


Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.

7 Engaging Instagram Content Ideas for Valentine’s Day 2021

Valentine’s Day is no longer reserved for romantic couples sharing loving selfies across social media. Brands and businesses create an endless amount of creative social content yearly in honor of #ValentinesDay (there are 20M+ usages of that hashtag, by the way!).

Not sure what type of Valentine’s Day content to create for your small business? Here are 7 engaging Instagram content ideas to help your brand spread the love.

1. Change up your feed

Plan for your feed colors to match the pinks and reds of Valentine’s Day from the start of February through the 14th. This will not only give your ‘gram an impressive aesthetic, but can actually increase your IG engagement – people are more likely to interact with your brand’s content if it’s timely & matches the mood of the season.

Get inspired by @dunkin’s on-trend feed from 2020:

brand example valentines day 2021

If you’re searching for a wide variety of Valentine’s Day themed images – Unsplash is a great resource for free, high-quality photography (here’s a Valentine’s Day Collection that they’ve compiled).

2. Create a Valentine’s Day Video

Did you know that the average person will spend 100 minutes per day watching online video in 2021 (source: Zenith Media)? Creating videos for social media doesn’t need to be complicated or time consuming. Try downloading Boosted, the video creation app with professional, ready-to-go templates.

Here’s a video that you can customize for your brand using Boosted:

3. Share your love…for your IG community!

You probably don’t typically think of your followers as your valentines, but hey – you wouldn’t be where you are today digitally without them! Share a post or Story expressing appreciation for your audience, to your audience (the more sincere and authentic, the better!). Detail specific reasons as to why you appreciate them, and share what you’ve accomplished thanks to their support.

4. Host a giveaway

Who doesn’t love a good giveaway? Here are a few suggestions for running a successful Valentine’s Day Instagram contest:

  • Get creative – think outside the box for your contest concept! One idea: You can ask your audience to share their love stories – either as a comment on your giveaway post, or as their own feed post or Story. Remember to celebrate all different types of love – romantic, familial, friendship etc. Create a branded hashtag for the giveaway and be sure to tie the prompt back to your brand.
  • You can also hold a simpler, more classic giveaway (follow/like/tag). Here’s some brand inspiration from a 2021 Valentine’s Day contest @espyexperience is currently running:

  • Prize – offer a product, service or experience for two that the winner(s) can share with their loved one.
  • Keep in mind – Read up on Instagram’s Promotion Guidelines when planning the details of your giveaway. You can also check out our guide here for more tips on running a successful Instagram giveaway.

5. Create a Valentine’s Day themed Reel

Have you created Instagram Reels yet for your business? Accounts of all sizes have the opportunity right now to boost their engagement (and potentially go viral!) by creating short-form video content for Reels. Some Valentine’s Day related Reels ideas include:

  • Showcase the Valentine’s Day products / services that your business offers
  • Share 3 Valentine’s Day fun facts – this can be 3 things that you love about the holiday, 3 Valentine’s Day traditions that you have etc.
  • Share a video that you create with Boosted (see tip #2!) to Reels. Be sure to export the video in 9:16 format.

Reminder: Reels content – like TikTok content – is meant to show off your brand’s personality! Focus on providing value to your audience in an engaging, casual & fun way. Check out our guide here for everything you need to know about Instagram Reels.

6. Share a few of your favorite things

Create a listicle of the Top 5 (or 10, 20 etc.) things that you’re currently loving. Listicles are a very popular content format (you’re reading one right now!) – they’re digestible and easy to understand. Some ideas:

  • Favorite books
  • Favorite podcasts. Some inspiration from @gurlgonegreen:

  • Favorite Instagram influencers to follow for inspiration within a certain area (such as ‘Top 5 Favorite ‘Grammers to Follow for Social Media Marketing Inspiration’).

This can make a great feed post, Story (or both!) and you can easily repurpose this content for your blog and other social channels.

7. Put together a last minute gift guide

Valentine’s Day is now the 2nd biggest commercial day in the US (acc. to ValueWalk). Total spending in 2021 is expected to reach $21.8 billion in retail revenue! Compile a gift guide (last-minute gift guides work great as well!) and share it as a Story and carousel post . Bonus points if you tie your products or services into your roundup!

Remember to use the right hashtags. No matter which content idea you decide to go with, make sure to optimize your hashtags to make your content more discoverable.

Here are 5 hashtags we recommend incorporating (listed by volume of Instagram hashtag usage, from largest to smallest):

#valentines

#valentineday

#valentinesdayideas

#valentinesdaygiveaway

#valentinesday2021

Spread the love on social by getting a head start on planning your Valentine’s Day 2021 Instagram content! For further Valentine’s Day inspiration, check out 5 Unique Ways to Promote Your Business This Valentine’s Day.

Action Items:

1. Review these content ideas and pick one to pursue on Instagram. You can also search through the hashtags mentioned above for inspiration.
2. Create your content. Try to find a way to utilize both your feed and Stories.
3. Get sharing. Spread the love on Insta! Remember to engage with your audience and to check your Insights often to see how your video is performing.


Subscribe to our social media tips and get a FREE Instagram checklist for your business.

By subscribing, I agree to the Lightricks Privacy Policy.