Instagram recently shared guidance on how to write compelling post captions so that marketers can maximize interest in their content, and improve the discovery potential of their posts.
Visuals, of course, are Instagram’s main focus, but captions play a key role in providing context, both to human viewers and to Instagram’s sorting systems. That makes captions an important factor in creating effective content.
As per Instagram: “Captions add relevant context, spark conversation, and tell search engines what your content is about: making them a key part of your content strategy.”
Instagram provided the following tips:
- Have a strong opening line: Only the first two lines of the caption will be visible before the “more” CTA, so creators should lead with something compelling. Instagram suggested asking a question, sharing a surprising fact or teasing other elements to drive people to tap the more button.
- Tell a story: Instagram said the best captions either tell a personal story or provide useful information that the audience will want to save or share. Creators should consider whether viewers would want to screenshot the caption or share it with a friend.
- Include a CTA: Instagram said creators should provide explicit guidance on what they want their audience to do next in the caption. “Invite them to save for later,” the company said. “Direct them to a link in your bio. A strong call to action turns passive viewers into active community members.”
- Include keywords: Instagram said creators should use descriptive and relevant keywords in their captions. Instagram search uses captions as reference data for discovery, so using clear, descriptive text will help the system understand relevant context.
- Multi-captions for carousels: Instagram said creators should consider adding multiple captions to carousel posts to provide more context. Instagram added the option to offer a description for each image in a carousel in May.
- Break up text: Use line breaks, emojis and short paragraphs to make captions easier to read.
These are some simple, practical guidance notes that could help creators drive more interest in their IG posts, via simple, relevant content descriptions.
