Tell me about Instagram

[Annabelle4]

I'm very late to the party and have only just joined, mainly for style.

I'm mid 30s, I like smart casual. I'd consider myself to be quite stylish

I've posted a few pictures and a lot of hashtags, but only seem to get less than 5 or so likes. Gosh that sounds so pathetic, I'm not looking for likes, maybe that's normal?

Who should I follow?

I would look at starting off with the big brands and then look at who they follow. And then slowly you'll see the names of fashion bloggers.

I'm 41 and I follow a lot of 40 something fashion bloggers - most are Mums like me so I do get a lot of ideas / inspiration from them.

I bloody love Instagram!

Thank you Brummiegirl15.
What have I been missing?! I love it too already

Follow Emma Hill, she's great!

Done

Can other people see my activity - what I've liked etc?

The more you engage with Instagram the more its algorithm likes you. Spend time liking and commenting on lots of posts. Post frequently. Like similar accounts.'

That I can do

How do I post more than one picture? I've seen pictures with more than one photo, that you scroll through (e.g. a post showing followers what's in a store)

Thank you

In the right hand corner of the photo when you go to upload, one of the icons should say ‘select multiple’ - that’s how you do the carousel posts.

You can write up to 30 hashtags per post, but any more than that and your whole caption will be deleted. Try to do as many as possible to get more chance of others finding your posts. Have a look what hashtags bigger accounts use, rather than making up your own.

Thank you both

#ootd put that in the search bar & follow the hashtag I just love seeing what people all over the world are wearing on that day.
I love instagram I love when someone has the same top as you but they have styled it unreal then you can copy them. The ideas are endless. You can also save the photos you like and put them into collections like Pinterest. That way you can go back to something you like & sort them into different categories.

Thanks for all the advice. I've downloaded the app and it's much easier to use. I'm hooked

OP, if you want any longevity and credibility on Instagram do NOT buy or sign up to anything which gives you hundreds of likes or follows. They are just bots or people in far flung parts of the world employed to click on anything and everything. A deeply unethical way to operate.

You need to decide what you are posting for. As a personal photo album, keep your account private and only let friends follow you. Or keep it public and just post away with what you like. If you are actively looking to build a profile or hope to make money though, it won't happen organically. You won't get anywhere without doing some app business and marketing research, choosing a USP, choosing a style, spending a lot of time taking hundreds of photos just to get the "one", probably do a photography course, learn all about the formatting and filtering apps, or invest in a pro camera, tripod, and editing equipment. Not to mention hashtagging the hell out of each photo, and spending hours liking and commenting on accounts you genuinely like and want to connect with.

Good luck!