Hi! My name is Joanna and for the last 8 weeks of summer I have been interning for the one and only Ziba Lennox. The main thing I have helped with is assisting her in keeping up with all of the social media platforms she uses from Instagram, Pinterest, to her blog. We both thought it would be a good idea for me to create a post where I could cover the behind the scenes of blogging. I will share some tips and tricks to help you build your own platform or insight if you want to intern for a blogger! Hope it helps.
Behind the scenes of Instagram
Ziba @zibalennox has a large following on Instagram. When I first started the job she had about 70,000 followers which was crazy to me! I learned that with Instagram you have to be patient because growth can seem slow. It is exciting that the content I helped Ziba create is able to reach such a large audience. Here are some things I learned in the last few weeks that are necessary to continue an upward growth with Instagram.
Some of my favorite pictures I’ve taken…
1.) Consistency
One of the biggest takeaways I have learned is that consistency is key with Instagram. The Instagram community is very active, and your content will get lost in the feed if you are not posting on a regular basis. (at least five times a week) Ziba is really great at keeping up with her page, and tries to post at least every day. Her posts vary from a brand collaboration to outfits and style, to cute family photos to help connect with her audience. I have learned that sponsored posts and the Instagram game in general can be very tiring, so if posting every day isn’t an attainable goal for you just try to be consistent with a schedule. Posting on the same days every week such as every Monday and Friday is a good idea when building a following because people will begin looking forward to your posts on those days. This can help if you cannot or do not want to post in such large quantities.
2.) Give support, gain support
If you think that you can simply post your content and people will actively engage without any engagement on your part, you are wrong. When Ziba posts a new picture, she makes sure to respond to everyone’s comments so that people know they are being heard and acknowledged. Instead of thinking of this as a chore I think of it as giving back and supporting other people trying to build their own platforms. It’s fun! I am not as interested in fashion as Ziba, but with my own radio/music Instagram @thesauce_radio I enjoy engaging in discussions that are happening in my feed. Discussions about up and coming artists, album reviews, etc and engaging in these conversations helps bring people to your page. Whether it’s fashion, motherhood, or music it is important to engage with the community you want to be a part of.
3.) Learn from others, but stay original
One thing that Ziba always emphasized with me is that it is important to look at and learn from other people’s content. Whether it’s the angles the photographer used to capture a dress, a cool fashion collage, or certain filters and presets, we definitely get inspiration from other prevalent istagrammers and bloggers. However, it’s important to keep in mind that you have to give people a reason to want to visit YOUR page and not someone else’s, so it’s important to stay true to your own style while learning from others. We all have something unique to bring to the table, and no one wants to see the same thing twice!
4.) Good photography is important
It makes sense that accounts with high resolution photos usually do better. You don’t need a fancy camera (although it can help) to take good photos. In fact, most of the photos I take of Ziba are with an IPhone. However, we think about the photos a lot before-hand. For example, the setting is extremely important. A rural vs. metropolitan background gives off a very different vibe. Something fun that I like to mess with is trying to match Ziba’s outfits to the background setting and to shoot a lot of different angles. She also filters them with Lightroom to achieve the a consistent look.
5.) Know when enough is enough
I think we have all agonized over what to caption our Instagram pictures before, or whether they are good enough to post. I think this is good because it means you care about your content, but at the end of the day you just need to get it out. Posting something is better than nothing. Know when enough is enough and just get it out there! I have found that people are often a lot less critical than we imagine.
6.) Have fun with it!
Lastly, try to enjoy and have fun with your Instagram. It is a place to be creative and promote your brand. It should not be a chore even if it is a part of your livelihood as an influencer or business owner. Let your thoughts be heard and have fun sharing them.
Behind the scenes of Pinterest
Instagram and Pinterest are similar in a lot of ways, but their are definitely some distinct differences that I want to touch on. Pinterest was one of my main focuses starting as of day 1.It is one of my greatest accomplishments since I started working with her 8 weeks ago in gaining traction and a pinning schedule. I have seen the greatest results on this platform in a short period of time. Pinterest is extremely important for bloggers because the pins lead people to their websites and other social platforms. Here are some things I have learned that helps Pinterest performance.
1.) Consistency
Consistency is important on all platforms. Pinterset is no different. As with Instagram, daily activity is recommended. We developed a strategy to maintain daily activity and it was always the first thing on my list for the day. I made sure to re-pin other peoples content first every day. Then post new pins or repin old pins created by Ziba as well.
2.) Be active in group boards
I have found that being active in group boards on Pinterest is huge. Similar to Instagram, it is another way to engage with the community. Re-pinning other people’s content and then pinning Ziba’s in these group boards has helped her account gain a lot of new followers and views.
3.) Pinterest likes anonymity
Something I realized early on and Ziba later confirmed is that Pinterest, unlike Instagram, likes anonymity. While Instagram likes a familiar face, it is a different story for Pinterest. I have found that a better shot performing shot for Pinterest is if Ziba didn’t face the camera and the focus was simply on her hair and dress. I believe this does well because it is easier to picture yourself with a product (outfits, accessories, food, etc) when you do not have to look at someone else’s face. It’s more impersonal, which we thought was great!
Good Pinterest Examples
4.) Tell people what they are looking at
I have been taking pictures off of Ziba’s blog and Instagram and using editing apps to write captions and create graphics of the photos. Captions like: “Summer sales not to miss” or “the best meals for picky eaters” give the photos context and tells people what they are looking at. These types of graphics do well on Pinterest.
Behind the scenes of the Blog (dancingmamastyle)
The blog has definitely been one of my favorite things to work on. I am minoring in English at school and have had a passion for reading and writing my whole life. Therefore, creating and editing blog posts has been really satisfying to me. The main things I have helped with concerning the blog is research, creating new content, editing old posts for grammar mistakes, and finally making sure that the algorithms are good so that the blog is easy to search and find from google. All these things have helped boost Ziba’s organic search significantly. Here are some of my blogging tips in more detail:
1.) First just write
Ziba always talks to me about how she could just write forever, and I feel the same way. Word vomit all those great ideas and research and then go back later and edit. It is important to not think too much when first starting a blog post and just get it down.
2.) Make the topic clear right away
Google actually like longer blog posts, and the more informational the better. However, you have to make sure that the topic/main focus of what you are talking about is clear right away. Try not to go on tangents and then come to the main point, but start with it.
3.) People love tips and useful hacks
No one wants to just be talked at. Give your audience something to take away after reading your post. I have found that some of Ziba’s most popular posts such as, “My top 10 favorite jeans in my closet” or “Body love tips for any age” are very informational and definitely have new insights to share.
4.) Make yourself easy to find
This one is huge. It is so easy to get lost in search engines, so you have to make sure you do everything to make your page accessible. Plug-ins such as the one we use “Yoast” make sure we have a meta description for google, that there are a certain number of headings, a keyphrase, etc. All of these tiny algorithms make it a lot easier for people to find Ziba’s blog. Make sure you’re not invisible!
5.) Make it attractive and easy to read
This is the fun part! Using headers, bullets, photos, and different blog formats help make your blog easier to read and unique to you. It is cool to have your own blogging style to draw people in.
6.) Have integrity
Something that I really appreciated about Ziba is that I really see her use and love the products that she promotes. When I look at other bloggers pages and Instagram’s I often wonder, do they really like that product? Or will they just say that to make money? I can’t speak for everyone, but I think it is extremely important to be authentic and only promote things you believe. People will figure it out sooner or later if you are not being real and actually testing out the products first. I can confidently say that everything I have bought from Ziba was up to my expectations and I think that this authenticity gives her an edge.
Intern tips
1.) Liking who you work with is important. Good thing Ziba and I get along. 🙂
2.) Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Nobody expects you to know things magically, asking questions helps you get it right.
3.) Make lists and follow up with brands, peers, and your boss.
4.) Lunch breaks are extremely important as a physical and mental re-boost!
The Takeaway
Sometimes my friends are confused by my internship. They think I am just on Instagram all day, but obviously it is so much more than that. A lot happens behind the scenes of blogging, I was shocked and still am by how much time and effort it takes to keep up with these different media platforms. It gave me a real insight into what it takes to gain a substantial media following and create a successful platform in this day and age. It is a cross-platform game that has to be kept up with. But hey, you have something to say–so say it and get creative with it!
Please make sure to follow my own Instagram @thesauce_radio! It’s an account I created to help people discover new music and give updates about my radio show. Best of luck with your own endeavors, Joanna
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