Writing Engaging Captions for Instagram Posts

Everyone says "Just hit that blue post button” But no one tells you how to make your post stand out. After hitting 8000+ impressions in 2 weeks of posting, I have figured it out. Steal my entire “make your posts valuable” playbook: 1. Give value to your reader Always have a takeaway for your audience. ↳ Give in-depth knowledge. ↳ Make them learn about a topic. ↳ Make it real-time actionable tips. But also, stick talking to 1 burning problem. Don’t shove 2-3 different problems. The goal is to get specific about the value. You print money when you go deeper, not wide. 2. Don’t tell, show Telling them to write clearly won’t make you an authority. You need to show them how. ↳ Signed a $1000 client? Show a step-by-step process ↳ Had a viral post? Share what you learned from it ↳ Hit 20k followers? Do a breakdown strategy People won’t believe it unless you’ve done it. That’s how you’ll build trust and proof. 3. Write your hook strong Your hooks are the first few lines people see on their feed. If it doesn’t grab their attention, they’ll ignore: ↳ Write your hooks in 1 liner. ↳ Tell them what to expect from the post. ↳ Include numbers, use simple words & be specific. ↳ Share a polarizing statement to interrupt their reading. You are fighting the attention of 2 million posts. So, keep it enticing enough to stop the scroll. 4. Match the context with your hook Don’t be a clickbait. It will piss people off Don’t promise 1 solution & deliver a different solution ↳ Write your posts with a focus on a single message. ↳ Focus on 1 reader, 1 problem, 1 solution, 1 action. ↳ Keep your hooks, meat & CTA focused on 1. That’s what defines a high-value post. 5. Edit like a crazy person Make sure your writing is tight. Nobody has time for fluff, extra information or repetition. And the best way is to edit after 24 hours of writing: ↳ You’ll find unnecessary words. ↳You'll come up with new ideas to fill in. ↳ You’ll find lines that can be written better. Don’t write & edit at the same time. It will stop your creativity. Keep this in mind before you hit the post button. Most people continue to post without evaluation. Don’t be like them. Evaluate and hit "post", always. P.S. Do you follow a checklist before publishing your post?

𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐬! 𝐒𝐨 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞, 𝐚𝐝𝐝 𝐚 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐝. Not a mic drop question. Not something rhetorical. An actual question I can answer. Because I want to comment, I want to connect. And it's very hard to do that without a "?" inviting me in. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬=𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭=𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐞 You WANT people to comment. That's where you can build deeper relationships. I've been actively posting every day in this space for almost 6 months. I am no expert, but I have learned a few tricks to encourage engagement & genuine connection. ➡ Always include a question or call to engage (CTE) at the end of your post. ➡ Ask questions that most people can answer or have experience with. ➡ Encourage tagging or celebrating others to build community. ➡ Make the question simple & direct to encourage responses. Examples include: 𝘞𝘩𝘰 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳? 𝘛𝘢𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮! 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳? 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬? 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭 (𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘪𝘱) 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘥𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵? Asking a question at the end of your post is like opening the door & inviting someone into your world. So let others (& me) come to that party! 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫? 𝐓𝐚𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐰! P.S. Have additional posting tips? Share them in the comments. ♻ Repost if this would be a helpful share to your network.

Here are a few tips to consider that go beyond "post consistently". 1. Your hook can decide whether I keep scrolling in 3 seconds. You want your opening line to make someone pause mid-scroll and think "wait, what's coming next?" or "I need to hear this." Our industry data shows you literally have about 3 seconds before they keep scrolling. Make them count. 2. Invest in either caption or creative. If you have a strong image or video, let it breathe. Your caption should support, not compete. The same goes for a strong caption! Then your visual becomes the supporting character. Two stars on stage just create chaos. 3. Diversify your creative. Yes, the algorithm loves vertical content. But the algorithm also loves variety. Mix in carousels, text-only, and multi-image posts. Putting everything into one format is redundant—eventually, people crave something different. 4. Show, don't tell (seriously, stop telling). Humans are wired for stories, not lectures. Instead of saying "our product is innovative," show your product in action. Instead of "we care about customers," show a moment of your team going the extra mile. What's something you'd add to this list?

I’ve been seeing more advisors post videos on social media lately (yay!), but not all are getting the same results. Here are 3 common mistakes I see and how to fix them: ❌ 1. Posting “naked” videos Videos with no caption, no context, and no copy. Your audience doesn’t know who it’s for or why it matters, so they keep scrolling. ✅ Always include a caption that explains who the video is for and why they should care. ❌ 2. Writing long, dense captions Social media posts should be easy to skim. ✅ Use this 3-part formula: • Hook (grab attention) • Value (why it matters to them) • CTA (comment, share, or send a DM) ❌ 3. A weak first 3 seconds If your video opens with a logo or slow intro, most people won’t stick around. ✅ Start strong: smile, speak directly to the viewer (use “you”), and add a bold overlay headline. You took the time to make a great video, so you want to give it the best chance of success. Here's another way of thinking about it: Think of your caption like a choose-your-own-adventure. It should deliver value on its own and invite people to watch the video for more. — 👋🏼 I’m Katie, and I help financial advisors use video more confidently and consistently without making it a full-time job. ⚠️ My next 12-week workshop kicks off May 7, and this will be the final time I run it live! If you’ve been thinking about joining, now’s the time. Message me for details or check the link in my profile.