Caption writing and formatting of posts

 

Over the years I’ve seen the #MarchMeetTheMaker Instagram posts formatted in a number of ways and some appear to prove more successful than others. But perhaps the most popular I see is this style:

 

Day 21 of #MarchMeetTheMaker - Materials

 

Closely followed by simply using the word and some emojis:

 

✏️ Materials ✏️

 

And then there are the captions that don’t make reference to the prompt at all and simply dive in and start talking about that prompt. 

 

Whilst all of these are equally valid and it’s completely up to you how you want to format your posts, I have seen people talking about how the first style that mentions the day and the hashtag appear ‘messy’ and out of sync with your regular content and that it is obvious that you’re partaking in a challenge. For this reason many people are shifting over to the single word option or simply not mentioning the word at all meaning that the challenge content blends in more with your usual posting style. Some may even put the day, prompt and hashtag at the very end of the post so that it still there as a reminder. But this is entirely up to you!

 

When writing your captions, remember to be authentically you, let people in and encourage them to comment with a question or call to action! Start a conversation, really talk about that aspect of your business because no matter how boring or obvious it may be to you, it will be fascinating and interesting to someone else! That’s the best part about this challenge, learning about other crafts, and things we would never think about unless we were in that specific field. For example, I know what a weeding tool is, what it is used for and so many others who create things using vinyl also know, BUT my customers might not have a clue what it is, what it does or how I use it. And this small part of the process could be interesting for those who enjoy to see how things are made. If you find the caption side of things difficult, imagine you are writing it with a friend in mind, what would you tell you friend about that specific days prompt? I find writing like I'm chatting my friends a much easier way to tackle posts that I'm having trouble with!

 

Hashtags

 

Where possible, avoid using the same hashtags every day as apparently (don't quote me on this) the already troublesome algorithm isn’t too keen on this! So try to mix them up where possible! Take 5 minutes or so to research new sets before posting so that you’re able to mix them up! The same goes for the #MarchMeetTheMaker hashtag. Also feel free to use #MarchMeetTheMaker2024 - I will definitely be using this one too!

 

My favourite way to find new hashtags is to search for one specific thing and then browse the other posts using that hashtag to see what else they have used. It’s a good way to find new and interesting tags that you may have not otherwise discovered and from there jump from one hashtag to the next! You can also find some great new accounts this way!

 

Images

 

One of the things that I've seen a bit of disappointment over (as well as excitement for the people involved), is the part of the challenge where I chose makers to put on my round up stories at the end of each day. If I could feature everyone, I really would! But it's just little old me over here doing my best, and there are thousands of posts on the hashtag each day so it would be impossible to share them all! So I thought it might be a good idea to tell you a little more about how I choose the selected images for my challenges so that some of the mystery is taken out of it. Sounds good? Let's go!

 

So what do I look for when I'm choosing images?

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• Lighting - I love a well light photo with no harsh shadows. I also notice how the light could be affecting the colouring. E.g. a standard light bulb could make your colours appear more yellow rather than their natural tones.

• Composition - a well thought out shot with interesting angles, placement, focus and the use of props.

• Colour - I'm bit of a colour magpie so I'm automatically drawn to bright colours or pastel shades. But that doesn't mean that I don't love monochrome or moody. Let's be honest, I love a bit of everything when it comes to colour use!

• Edit - I'm not afraid to say that I edit everything before it hits the main grid. A carefully selected filter or adjustment can change the whole mood of an image, fix something that was niggling you or make or break the image. Too many filters is a big put off.

• Attention - if it grabs my attention and stands out on the feed that I’m scrolling, I’m more likely to save it for later for when I’m doing my stories. Sometimes I find myself following a certain theme for that day without even realising it. It could be that for that one day I could be drawn towards blue images, or those with bright background or perhaps even those featuring a pet. It varies day to day.

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Taking a break

 

If at anytime you’re finding the challenge a little too much, feel free to take a break and come back to it when you are ready. There is no obligation to do the whole thing so pick and choose what works for you. This challenge is here to be fun and help you to tell your story, but if you need to take a step back only do a few days a week, that is completely fine! You’ve got to do what is right for you!

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