You’re ready to tackle the content monster. Over the past 4 years, it seems like Instagram and its algorithm are constantly changing. Staying up to date and building a community that resonates with your content can feel daunting at best. Most of the clients we work with approach Instagram with one of two responses.

They either love it.

OR

It’s a looming black cloud within their business.

I completely understand where you’re at and know that if you’re posting without strategy on social media it can easily become a full time job. You have other things to do in your business other than obsess about a perfect feed or film dance videos in public. (Don’t worry. This article isn’t about creating another dancing TikTok.)

When it comes to planning 30 Days of Instagram Content in a Single Day, I know what you’re thinking, “A month worth of content in 1 day! She must be crazy! It takes me an hour to edit a single reel.”  After tweaking and working out this process over and over again, it works! This is the process I use for both social media clients and for the agency. With a bit of discipline and planning, you can create amazing content your audience will love and that showcases both your brand and increases sales!

How to Create 30 Days of Instagram Content in One Day

The beauty of batch working.

When it comes to efficiency and productivity there’s nothing like working in batches. On this day, I choose to work offsite. I find myself at a favorite and inspiring setting, that also mirrors the aesthetic I’m looking to filming in. (Yes it also means I keep an album on my phone of b-roll clips to ensure we always have fresh content to pull from.) This day is dedicated to one thing- I write, edit, and schedule my content for 30 days. Schedule this monthly date on the calendar and make sure to keep this appointment with yourself. Like all things social media, timing is everything. Schedule this day a week prior to the start of a new month (and quarter). As your accounts grow in strength and following, you’ll be able to predict collaborations and plan lead time for working with other brands. (These take a bit more planning and forethought.) It’s no secret that certain trends will change from week to week, from audio to concepts you might want to use in your content. Every Sunday afternoon, take an hour and tweak your scheduled content to make the necessary adjustments. This is also a great time to add to your idea bank, update your calendar and review your insights from last week. (Your insights will offer data on what content your audience likes, what is being pushed to new audiences and following growth. Don’t sleep on this data!)

That’s great. But where do I begin? Steal our content calendar and watch the masterclass.

I want you to feel confident as you begin developing a strategy. My goal is for you be able to have a sustainable posting schedule that positions you as a thought leader within your community. I’m not here to tell you how often to post or when to post.

Follow our step-by-step method below using a blank sheet of paper and our content calendar. (Trust us, it’s a lot easier than you think.)

1. Brainstorming (1 hour)

Set a timer for 1 hour and brainstorm as many content ideas as you can. Think through if you have any new offers or launches you want to consistently talk about over the next 30 days. What does someone need to know prior to purchase? What do you want to make them feel? Are there any current social media trends you want to use to create content? Write them down and add symbols that speak to what type of content it will be. (Carousel, Reel, Stories, Feed, etc.)

2. Schedule it. (1 hour)

Use our content calendar to build a posting schedule for your Instagram content. At the time of writing this article, posting daily within your feed is a way to both 1) burnout and 2) tank your engagement. Instead for aggressive growth, I recommend posting 3 times a week to your feed, 5 reels, and daily to Stories. Transpose your brain dump from the list above into your calendar and add the necessary symbols in the bottom right hand corner to denote the form of content (carousel, reel, stories, feed, etc.)  Congrats you now have a plan in place.

3. Write the captions. (2 hours)

Joseph Sugarman stated, “Great copywriting is like a slide. Once someone reads the first sentence they are going to read the rest.” All great captions do a few things. They have a clear hook that grabs your customers attention. Then they directly speak to a customers problem and proceed to position your product or service as the solution. Finally they include a call to action. Play with this formula and remember to honor Instagram’s word count of 2200 characters. With a bit of formatting and clever uses of emojis, you’ll be able to grab the readers attention and keep them reading your content. When you are creating your reels you can do this through text within the app on the cover image and how it displays within the grid.

4. Filming content (4 hours)

You’re almost there. Now it’s time to build out your shot list and get to filming. Make sure hair and makeup is done and you have multiple outfits pulled to get the most out of your content. Accessories can easily be thrown in a tote bag to change up your look easily. With a travel collapsable tripod in hand you’ll be able to film without another person present and can easily setup on the-go. We know filming in public can feel a bit scary but you can do this!

5. Schedule your posts in the app.

Using a scheduling app to schedule your posts. You can schedule all of your content ahead of time including your reels and Stories. To retain video quality on reels, I typically edit in CapCut or on my iPhone prior to placing within the app. Remember the goal here is to have content you enjoy creating and a posting cadence you can commit to.

Still feeling stuck? Here’s additional ideas of what to post:

• Quotes- post inspirational quotes and relate them to your life, service, and lessons in your industry
• Tips and tricks – what are ways you can educate your audience. Whether it’s website, tips, how to dress for a session, or the best ways to automate their business
• Pictures of yourself- more than anything, people relate to people. Typically images of yourself will rank the highest among still photos and content. In the land of AI, human recognition and tone of voice is essential as you grow your brand. The way you set yourself apart in business is to show personality. There are thousands of others in your industry. What will set you apart? Begin to show up. With your ideas, with things you love, and the daily aspects of your life.
• Hot takes – this is a great way to showcase leadership within your industry and your unique point of view.
• User generated content- create a unique hashtag and encourage people to post using your product or your service. It’s a natural community builder and ways to build your photo library without much additional effort. If you’re a brand looking to launch products or a new offer, paid UGC is a phenomenal strategy. We’d be happy to help you get started.
• Invite people into a challenge (This can also serve as a way to build your email list.)
• Weekends- people love to see how you spend your time off. Whether it’s an adventure or a perfect novel, you’ll find that your weekend/lifestyle content gets the most engagement over anything else.
• Things and people you love. Don’t be afraid to celebrate the things and people you love! It shows personality behind what you post and can create organic cross posting and traffic. Whether it’s your favorite piece of clothing, bag, or cup of coffee, your audience loves you and wants to know what you love.
• Service or product offerings. This one is obvious, but it’s time to think past a standard moodboard, product shot or picture of a wedding. Your work is great but why would a user care? Offer a unique point of view or build visual campaigns for your offers.
• Behind the scenes. What does your workspace look like? Who is on your time?
• A day in the life. How do you spend your time? We love doing this in Instagram Stories with timestamps within the app. It peaks curiosity in your following and naturally showcases a story without much additional thought.
• Recent work. Mood boards, product as hero, your latest shoot, or designs. Let others know tangibly how you can serve them and show up with your work.
• Share a story or testimonial.

Book a few hours with a photographer on the given day (This is a great way to knock out your last 4 hours). By working with a photographer on retainer, you can retain consistency within imagery and always have fresh assets to pull from.

Over the past 4 years, we’ve seen a massive influx in the online space. It seems that everyone became a coach, was building a course or a personal brand. But if I’m honest, there’s been loads of bad marketing done and really poor messaging in the name of growth, scaling and revenue. At this point, everything rises and falls on your last piece of content. Nothing can make up for poor images. Just as you wouldn’t put a low quality and grainy image on a billboard, the same applies to your social media accounts. Book seasonal session with a photographer Branded and lifestyle photography can be recycled and used over and over again. Build your own library of images. Within images, find ways to keep your color palette and your feed cohesive. Your images will be viewed both, 9 images at a time and as single images within the feed and Stories.

You’ve done it! Congratulations 30 Days of Instagram content, shot, written, and edited in one day!

P.S. Are you looking to outsource your social media strategy? Let’s chat about working together.