Creating visual continuity for your financial institution’s Instagram may be daunting, but the process is actually quite simple. Your financial institution’s Instagram is potentially your audiences’ first impression of you, so it is imperative to water your Instagram aesthetic garden, and make it a world of its own. Here are 4 tips to get you started:
- Identify Your Target Audience
Identifying your target audience is key to building a visual identity for your Instagram. Not all audiences are going to be pleased by the same aesthetic, so you have to make sure your financial institution is catering to the content they want to see. For example, a bank focused on home loans geared at first-time homebuyers will have a different feed than a bank focused on retirement accounts. Younger generations may be more intrigued by aesthetically pleasing imagery, whereas older generations may be more intrigued by family-friendly content. If you are aiming at audiences who have young children, for example, including photos of kids in your content will help attract that target audience.
Tip: Check out other popular Instagram accounts that are in the financial institution industry to see how they have built their feed, more often than not you will have a similar target audience, so you can look at this company for inspiration.
- Choose Your Color Palette
One of the most important aspects of a visually pleasing Instagram feed is the color palette, which are the colors you have chosen to use to thematically represent your brand. Sometimes, these colors are similar to ones that are associated with your financial institution’s branding, and sometimes, they are just colors that are pleasing to the eye. The colors on your feed speak the language of your brand, so it is important to represent it properly. For example, if you are a modern bank focused on restructuring the financial institution model and want to come off more casual, you may choose to utilize more neutral, relaxing tones. But if you are a bank that already has a solidified, recognizable brand and color pattern, it may be in your best interest to stick to what your audience knows and work around that predetermined scheme.
Tip: Do your research on how to develop the perfect color palette for your brand, and take the time to truly understand the brevity the colors hold in making a strong first social media impression.
- Diversify Your Visual Assets
Another way to build a visually appealing Instagram feed is to diversify your visual assets. Whether it is a static photo, carousel, or video clip, your financial institution needs to include a wide range of imagery to keep your feed diverse and uncluttered. If your bank’s feed is all photos of groups of people, for example, the visuals may seem too cluttered and overwhelming to the eye. Break it up by adding in simpler imagery, such as a landscape, so that your bank’s collection of images does not look overcrowded and hard to see.
Tip: Try out the 1:3 rule. With every one photo of a crowded frame (photo of a group of people, a busy city street, a plate full of food), post three photos with a large portion of empty space. This will make your brand’s feed look crisp, contemporary, and clean, allowing users to fully take in all of the imagery.
- Plan Your Content
After you have found your audience, decided on your color scheme, and chosen your visual assets, it’s time to plan accordingly. There are not many successful Instagram feeds out there that are posting on a whim. Visually pleasing content is only possible with the appropriate amount of planning and organization. You may choose two photos to post on the same day, and then realize that once they are next to each other on the feed, it looks unappealing. Line up your visual assets to see if they colors will match well together, and that certain types of content are evenly distributed throughout.
Tip: There are apps that plan your Instagram feed for you! Check out these free apps to get you on the right track to aesthetic heaven.
Now that you’ve learned how creating visual continuity for your financial institution’s Instagram can change the game, it’s time to have some fun! Get your creative juices flowing, and make a feed your brand will be proud of.
Learn more about financial and banking marketing from The Cyphers Agency here for more blog posts visit our Push ‘n Pull blog.
