Aesthetics Still Matter
Gone are the days of a perfectly colour-coordinated, matching Instagram feed.
I get it. Nobody wants that pressure.
And with the rise of Tiktok and Reels, it’s clear that people love to see real life.
But, in my opinion, if you run a business, you still need to have a cohesive brand and that includes your aesthetic.
What is an aesthetic? You might see that word used on social media but are unsure of what it means. Have you ever heard of cottage core, minimalist, or cyberpunk? Those are all specific types of aesthetics.
Here’s a great definition from Later
“When people talk about their "Instagram aesthetics," they are referring to the visual planning and arrangement of images on their Instagram grid. It goes beyond individual posts and focuses on the overall look and feel of the profile as a whole. This may involve using a consistent filter, maintaining a specific colour scheme, or following a particular theme. The goal is to create a visually pleasing grid that tells a story or represents the brand or creator’s interests, personality, or values.”
Your aesthetic is the FEELING or emotional reaction in the person viewing your content has when seeing your content, and this is still an important aspect of branding yourself.
So, give some thought to the type of reaction you want your ideal client to feel, and then design your aesthetic to create that feeling.
Your aesthetic should appeal to your ideal client. It should also help you stand out from your competitors, which is so important in the overly saturated social media world.
Here’s a couple of examples. Imagine you are in the wellness niche, and your ideal client is a young mom with children. You could create a minimalist aesthetic that helps a tired overwhelmed mamma feel peaceful and calm.
Or maybe you are in the make-money-online niche, and your ideal client is a businesswoman. You could create a rich girl aesthetic that would make an ambitious working woman feel inspired.
Here are just a few areas to focus on if you want to create a consistent aesthetic on your page:
The look and contents of your profile
Your color palette
Your photo or video type
Your filters and editing style
Your font choices
Your graphics
Your tone & voice
If you aren’t sure of how to do this, I’d start by identifying your ideal client and thinking about what would appeal to her.
I’ll be sharing more branding tips in the future so come back and visit often. In the meantime, you can check out my Pinterest page and look at examples of different aesthetics. I also like to go to Etsy, and type in my niche. I’ll often see photo layouts and graphics that inspire me.
If you need help identifying your niche and creating an appealing brand I have two courses that can get you off to a great start!
THE BEGINNER OPTION - This easy-to-follow digital marketing course teaches you everything you need to know to grow a business on Instagram. Includes lessons on how to identify your niche and how to brand yourself! It’s perfect for the beginner, or anyone who loves Instagram! It also comes with master resell rights so you can resell the course, as many times as you want, for 100% profit.
THE PROFESSIONAL OPTION - This comprehensive digital marketing course teaches you everything you need to know to launch, grow and scale a business on social media. You will learn how to market your business on all the major social media platforms, plus a lot more! For all levels from beginner to advanced. It also comes with master resell rights so you can resell the course, as many times as you want, for 100% profit.
So I’d like to encourage you to start with baby steps and not get intimidated by the Instagram feeds of old. Rather than throw out the whole idea of creating an aesthetic, focus on a few key areas to start and go from there.
