My Instagram journey has been a long one! To name just a few of the mistakes that I made:

1- I spent too much time in my DMs.

I started using the platform three years ago for my network marketing business.  I would spend hours sending DMs to enroll only a few customers. I felt discouraged and frustrated. 

2- I relied too heavily on the follow-for-follow strategy.

I didn't know how to produce the right content and use the right hashtags to grow my account, so I relied heavily on the follow-for-follow strategy.

A few months later, I started taking a bunch of online courses to learn how to use Instagram "the right way." I learned about the importance of creating a sales funnel for my Instagram bio. I set one up but kept growing my account mostly by following other accounts because creating "quality content" still felt elusive. 

3- I favored quantity over quality.

I would spend hours planning my posts each month. However, I didn't think about how to create shareable content. One piece of shareable content is better than 10 pieces of content that will never be shared.

4- I failed to understand what my audience really wanted.

I never looked at my Insights to learn more about my top-performing posts. I didn't know how to refine my content strategy based on what my audience wanted.

5- I focused on esthetics over content.

I thought Instagram was supposed to look pretty. After taking one of the many Instagram courses I purchased over the years, I spent hours coming up with beautiful quotes and planning my feed using Planoly to make sure my feed looked curated.

Needless to say, I grew frustrated by the amount of time I had to spend on Instagram. For about six months, I gave up.

6- I treated Instagram as an influencer, not as a business owner.

I focused on the number of followers and likes when business owners need to focus on website clicks and profile visits. For business owners, Instagram is about creating authentic connections with your audience and your customers. It's about growing your mailing list by helping your followers solve their problems.