Skip to main content

Continuation of last week’s post – What is Instagram?

More about Instagram –

If you’re interested in photography and have a smart phone, I highly recommend Alli Worthington’s book iPhone Photography. It’s an ebook which will give you all type of helpful hints to take better photos and use them for your business.

Sharing images beyond the Instagram feed

Instagram allows you to share images to other social channels. It is as easy as a click of a button as you share the photo.

I usually share my images to my Flickr feed which I have connected to my website AND I share my images to my twitter account.

I’ve pushed it one step further.

Alli’s book introduced me to IFTTT.com (LIFT without the L) is a utility which automates actions with your social channels.

What is IFTTT.com

IFTTT is a service that lets you create powerful connections with one simple statement: IF THIS THEN THAT

IF I upload a photo to Instagram and tag it with the #hashtag of #photography, THEN it will post it to my WordPress.com blog as a new post.

So my recipe looks like this.

How to create an action with IFTTT.com recipes

1. Choose a recipe  – (you can make your own later)

2. Activate the channels – (give ifttt permission to access your social channels)

3. Choose the ingredient(s) for your recipe

4.  click Use Recipe.

By using a recipe of a trigger and an action you can automate activity on your social media without thinking about it. I’m planning on testing some of the other recipes with my other social channels.

Is it worth it?

I’ve found my photos are noticed more often than my posts. Does that mean I’m a better photographer than writer – maybe, more likely it’s because people are more visual and enjoy seeing the world through other people’s “eyes”.

By using the automation offered by IFTTT.com,  I’ve increased the hits on my blog by 25% and quadrupled my followers, and have had over 500 likes in 6 weeks.

The ease of use has allowed me to almost double my posts – IFTTT.com takes the work out of it.

The use of the tags and photo descriptions in the titles has given me great SEO.

I’ve also increased my Klout score by 10 points in the same time period.

Plus I’ve enjoyed sharing what I photograph with others.

If you’d like a little more information on IFTTT.com and how it can help your productivity, check out this Video Tutorial – Thank you Grovo!

Putting the internet to work for you!

On September 19th I had the opportunity to present “Embracing and Utilizing New Technology” to 160 entrepreneurs at the Women TIES Retreat in Skaneateles, New York. I’m taking this opportunity to re-purpose the information as blog posts for the next few weeks – giving more details and offering the opportunity for questions. Feel free to comment or ask questions.

Next time: Using Pinterest for business

Becky Bayne

Becky Bayne is an international book designer, a published illustrator, and an experienced graphic design entrepreneur. She loves brainstorming with her clients about all the options for designing their unique book for self-publishing as they begin their authorprenerial journey.

2 Comments

Feel free to share your thoughts here...

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.