Really, Instagram? 4 Ways to keep subscribers engaged while Instagram is down

TL;DR: Instagram has once again decided to shut down random accounts, and this time, we made the list. Did you? If so, we’ve got tips on how to keep your followers engaged.

Okay, Instagram—what did we do wrong now? Too many educational posts about growing your list? Did we like too many dog singing videos? Whatever we did, we’re sorry—can we have our account back now, please?

Chances are that Instagram won’t read this blog and give us immediate access to our Instagram account, so we’re making the best of the situation and keeping our audiences engaged in other ways—like with this blog. Keep reading to see what we’re doing and get tips on how you can stay connected to your audience on other social media channels, in the inbox, and on your blog. 

And hopefully, by the time this blog goes live, we’ll all have access to our accounts again until another social media platform decides to shut down or deny access to your account.

Did you wake up this morning, roll over, and grab your phone to check your email and social accounts only to realize Instagram wasn’t feeling your account and temporarily shut it down? Yeah, us too. We’re not happy about it, but we’re making the most of it. Here’s how (and how you can, too!):

Your followers love your content—that’s why they follow you, after all. So, why not create more content for them on your blog? We’re writing about how ridiculous this shutdown is and how we’re dealing with it, but you can write about anything.

Need ideas? You’ve come to the right place:

The ideas are limitless—it’s about keeping them engaged and your brand top of mind, even when they can’t find you on Instagram. As long as your blog post provides value (even if it’s comedic relief when everyone’s frustrated), you’re good!

Pro tip: Do something. It shows your audience you value your relationship with them and staying connected, whether it’s on social media, the blog, or, better yet, the inbox.

We’re not bitter about Instagram locking us out of our account…

Okay, maybe we are, but we have awesome TikTok, Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter accounts (check them out), too. And you bet we’re jumping on the #Instagramdown bandwagon. If you’re active and have an audience on other social media platforms, why not add the hashtag and potentially grow your audience over a shared frustration?

You can jump in on conversations or start new ones with a broader audience of people who might want to follow you! Brand awareness, anyone? 

So, who’s ready to run to the other social platforms while Instagram figures its stuff out? 

Pro tip: Take this as an opportunity to engage on other platforms, both on social media and other platforms like email and your blog. Add your social icons to the bottom of your emails to get subscribers connected on other platforms.

Social media and email marketing work best together, and what better time to remind your followers that they can get all the best content directly in their inboxes than now? Social may have crapped out, but I’ll deliver everything right to you via email! Who could say no to that?

You probably use Instagram to share your opt-in forms and drive people to subscribe, but you’ve got other options, too:

And if you’ve already done all that, bravo! Now you can design a beautiful email in Flodesk Email and send it to your existing subscribers to let them know what’s up. 

Pro tip: Create new forms or freshen up your old ones before you start sharing them to ensure they’re on-brand. You can even get creative and use funny copy like, “And they said email was dead! IG may have died, but we’re still here. Join our list.”

Instead of sitting around stressing about how you’re going to live without Instagram (no judgment, we had our five-minute meltdown here earlier), get to work on creating an email for your subscribers! 

You can do it in under 10 minutes, and it’s a great way to let subscribers know you’re aware of the situation, you’re not gone for good, and that they’ll still get the best content in their inboxes.

We’re all for making it comical with funny GIFs (yep, you can embed them directly in Flodesk) and lighthearted copy that empathizes with subscribers and offers valuable or hilarious content to consume until Instagram is back up.

But if you’re not sure what to say, here are a few ideas to get you started:

Social media has become part of most people’s daily routines. We wake up, check our email and social media, and then start our days. So, we get it if you’re freaking out—we were too…for a minute. But then we realized that what we really can’t live without is email marketing. And if you have an email list, you might feel the same way.

So, instead of stressing or getting overly annoyed with Instagram, turn to your tried and true partner: email marketing. You own your email list, and your subscribers opted in to receive the best content from you there. Head over to Flodesk Email and design an email to send while you wait for Instagram to grant you access again to your account.

And if you’re not a Flodesk member, you can try it free for 30 days, so next time this happens, all you have to do is hit Send.