iDigic has an excellent post with a great infographic containing bits of advice from 31 Instagram experts. You can check it out here, but below is a summary of what they feel is important to use the platform to its utmost.

1. Have a pre-load strategy. Before you begin posting, know who you’re trying to engage, how often you’ll post, the number of times of day you’ll need to do it, and the times.

2. Provide value. You need to post content that your followers find useful or engaging, but also reinforces your brand as well.

3. Communicate with your followers. The most critical part of a good Instagram strategy is engaging your followers. Contests are a great way to do that. Commenting and sharing photos of other Instagrammers is another way.

4. Relevant hashtags are critical. Hashtags are as essential on Instagram as they are on Twitter, but you must treat them strategically. Find the appropriate hashtags for your feed and then use them consistently.

5. Build a community. Followers have to feel like they belong to your community and identify with your brand. The best way to do this is to repost their pictures, which shows that you’re willing to engage them, and be sure to reply to all their comments.

6. Treat it as a unique environment. You need your account to stand out and the only way to do that is by treating it differently from your other social media platforms.Although it is, at present, one of the most popular social media tools, many artists may struggle with getting the most they can out of the popular image sharing platform. Here we look at six important tips on how to correctly and effectively use Instagram.