A lot of small businesses are frustrated and fatigued with Instagram these days. It has changed considerably over the last decade, and especially in the last few years, so it's understandable that business owners who once saw certain results from using Instagram might feel discouraged if they're no longer experiencing the same rewards for their efforts.
I am no social media expert, but I spontaneously felt compelled to organize and share some thoughts about using Instagram for a small business in 2025, so here they are! The following 5 takeaways are things that have been helpful to me, or otherwise things I’ve observed being helpful to others, in using Instagram for a small business. The only scant authority informing these thoughts is my personal experience and observations (both as a small business owner and having designed plenty of social media posts for clients), so I encourage you to take what resonates, leave what doesn’t, and infuse your specific goals and beliefs to create your own intentional approach to using Instagram as a small business this year.
Instagram can be a noisy, overwhelming place that often feels quite boring and mentally draining. It has changed so much over the years, and for many of us the reasons we started using it are barely relevant anymore. If you haven’t done so recently, it’s time to do an audit of why (or whether) you want to use Instagram, and if the time you’re putting into it is worth what you’re getting out of it. For me, the reasons I use Instagram are 1) finding creative inspiration, 2) building community and making connections, and 3) sharing work / creative playground. However, I’ve realized that due to changes in the algorithm and such, the way I get inspiration from Instagram needs to adapt, as well as the ways I share work. More on this in the next takeaway.
After you’ve narrowed in on why you use Instagram, it’s time to evaluate all the ways you might be using it that don’t align with these goals, or ways you’re not getting out of it what you wish you were. Instagram as a company doesn’t care what your goals are, and has its own agenda. It’s important to be aware of this so you can stop wasting time on things that simply aren’t working, and brainstorm better ways to accomplish those goals.
For example, one of the main reasons I started using Instagram years ago was for finding creative inspiration. I followed all these talented creators I had never heard of or had access to before, and delighted in their gorgeous, aesthetically cohesive content feeds. Now, however, the Instagram algorithm shows me the same 50-ish accounts on repeat, and I don’t even see the posts and stories of the other hundreds of accounts I follow for creative inspiration. So what does this mean for how I should use Instagram? I still think Instagram is a great place to find inspiration, but I’ve realized I can’t rely on my feed anymore. It’s too full of ads, and I don’t even see most of the accounts I follow in it. I’ve realized that when I want creative inspiration from Instagram, I need to treat it as an intentional treasure-hunt session rather than hoping inspiration will be presented to me organically in the feed. I’ll now comb through accounts I follow and the discover page to search for inspiration, rather than scrolling through my homepage.
Furthermore, the Instagram app is operated by a massive company that profits off of how much time we spend on the app, and it’s designed to be addicting. Acknowledge and take inventory of the ways your Instagram use might be influenced or manipulated by the app’s functionality, so you can refocus and use it more intentionally. For example, I often find myself opening the app automatically, without a goal in mind. Mindlessly using Instagram to fill quiet, unoccupied moments is not one of the reasons I want to use Instagram, so this habit is just a manifestation of the addictiveness of the app. Some ways I set boundaries to combat this include deleting the app off my phone periodically, using an app blocker, or putting my phone in grayscale via the settings. The latter is great for reducing phone screen time entirely.
For me, connecting with others and building community have continued to be the most valuable thing about Instagram. It is social media after all, but there’s no questioning that in practice it can sometimes be a very unsocial place. To me, genuine connection on Instagram means thoughtful comments, kind messages, and supporting and sharing other accounts I admire and am inspired by. These interactions continue to make a meaningful difference for small businesses, and in my opinion are some of the few real merits of Instagram. It’s so easy to mindlessly spend time on Instagram without engaging at all, but I think it’s worth making the effort to thoughtfully connect with other accounts. Most of us want to limit mindless scrolling, and one way to do this is remembering there are real humans behind the posts we see, and that forming a supportive community and making new connections can be really cool and worthwhile.
Many small businesses want to use Instagram as platform to grow their business. With all the changes the app has gone through, I know this is an ongoing challenge and struggle for many businesses. I don’t have a lot of expertise with using Instagram in this way, but here are a few tactics that could help with growth and performance metrics:
Prioritize photos over graphics: As a graphic designer, I’m out here sharing graphics quite regularly on Instagram. The occasional times I pepper in photo-based posts, they out-perform my graphics posts by a landslide. Instagram started as a an app for sharing photography, and I think this core part of its identity is still really highly valued by both users and the app algorithm. So share high quality, beautiful photography of your work or products or whatever it is you want to share, and be minimal and intentional about using text or graphic elements on posts.
Consider share-ability: If growth is important to you, try to post content that people will want to share. Some types of content that tend to get shared are funny or relatable memes and reels, or quotes and ideas that deeply resonate with people. This requires some strategic evaluation of who your target audience is and what they really care about.
Utilize carousels & reels: Instagram pushes these types of posts because they prompt more engagement from users and thus more overall time spent on the app.
Be human: Posts with a human element still perform the best. If you’re comfortable with it, show your smiling face and/or use your beautiful voice! People want to connect with the human behind the account. Of course, it’s totally understandable if you’re not comfortable being too personal on Instagram. Just be thoughtful about your goals, what’s working, and what your boundaries are.
Finally, the internet is weird. Be mindful of its public nature, respect the privacy of others, use your good judgment, and stay safe out there!
