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You need to know about Instagram layout ideas because an impressive Instagram grid layout and design is the ultimate first impression. After all, if followers are amazed by your feed, they’ll quickly tap your follow button. And if it looks a little
You need to know about Instagram layout ideas because an impressive Instagram grid layout and design is the ultimate first impression.After all, if followers are amazed by your feed, they’ll quickly tap your follow button. And if it looks a little shabby, they can easily forget it— forever!In a previous post, we discussed the different Instagram layouts ideas. But how do you go about designing an attractive Instagram feed? What are the best feeds for specific brands or influencers? And how do you design your Instagram grid?In this post, we’ll discuss everything you need to know about choosing an Instagram grid design and layout that potential followers simply won’t be able to resist.
What's In This Article?
- Understand Your Audience
- Choose A Color Palette For Your Instagram Grid
- Discover Inspirational Feeds
- Explore Different Types of Instagram Layouts Ideas
- Maintain the Same Edits
- Plan Your Instagram Grid Layout
Instagram Layout Idea #1: Understand Your Audience
When deciding on an Instagram layout idea and design layout, consider your audience.Play around with borders, layouts and colors and look at your engagement rates. Some brands stick to a theme, but don’t require a specific layout. For example, Airbnb’s feed is inspired by travel theme, but doesn’t stick to a specific grid layout:
Netflix’s “The OA” series, meanwhile, uses a puzzle grid layout—a drastically different approach.
The bottom line is to assess your following.Are they more likely to see your posts, on their Instagram feed? Or are they more likely to visit your profile? You might find that a puzzle grid layout would attract more followers. If so, run with that.Back to Content Menu
Instagram Layout Idea #2: Choose a Color Palette
Choosing your Instagram grid layout’s color scheme is one of the most important steps when designing your feed.It's a good idea to stick to specific brand colors not just for Instagram, but for all your marketing material and social media platforms. That way, your brand is instantly recognizable and easily remembered.For example, Stella Maria Baer's feed (@stellamariabaer) uses a consistent color palette and the effects are amazing:
If your brand has a logo, then you already have colors to choose from.Celine has a black and white logo. As a result, they use a monochrome theme on their posts:
These examples don’t mean that your color scheme should be entirely based on your logo. Simply make certain colors more prominent in the feed like Glossier.
Once you find your ideal color scheme, stick to it. That’s how you create a grid that's easy on the eyes. Back to Content Menu
Instagram Layout Idea #3: Find Inspirational Feeds
We all need to get inspiration from somewhere, so why not browse the Instagram of others for a little help with your feed’s vision.You can start by looking at competitors or influencers in your niche.A few questions you can begin by asking include: Does their feed use a specific grid layout? If yes, then how does this impact the experience of their followers? Does it make the brand seem more appealing?You can also explore Pinterest for inspiration or browse Sked’s blog for a few top examples.Next, follow the accounts that inspire you. They don’t all have to use a specific design and layout. You can look at them at a later time and visualize the ideal layout that would work best for your business.Back to Content Menu
Instagram Layout Idea #4: Understanding Different Types of Grid Layouts
Now that you’ve gotten some inspiration and understand the importance of color, let’s discuss the different types of layouts in-depth. In this section, we’ll tackle the pros and cons of each layout, and find out the layouts that may work better for different brands or industries.
Squares Insta Grid
The squares layout is one of the most common Instagram layout ideas. No surprise there. You only need to upload one photo at a time, and you don’t have to focus on your post’s overall impact on your feed.To state the obvious, the advantage here is its ease of use. But using this layout doesn’t mean you can upload photos at random. You can follow a consistent theme or aesthetic like Soko Glam:
Soko Glam maintains consistency by using clean backgrounds and sticking to the beauty theme. Of course, the disadvantage is that you don’t maximize the grid’s overall effect on your feed.You can also stick to specific themes or colors to establish aesthetic consistency. Take a look at Glossier’s pink feed:
Checkerboard Insta Grid
The checkerboard feed alternates between two colors or post types. The most common example is alternating between different types of backgrounds like Boss Babe (@bossbabe.inc):
Most brands that use the checkerboard Instagram grid layout alternate between visuals and quotes. To determine if it fits your brand, answer the following questions: How important are words and messages on my Instagram feed?Is it better to stick to visuals? Or do you alternate between words and visuals?What message would you like to send to your followers? Will you need both words and pictures?Most brands stick to visual posts and connect with followers through pictures of their products and customers. That’s okay. You might find that high-quality visuals attract more customers than inspirational words.But if you’re an inspirational or motivational entrepreneur, the checkerboard layout can help you deliver quotes or inspiring messages to your followers.
Vertical Line Insta Grid
If you want to place one relevant quote per row, then this grid lets you do it with style.iHere’s an example from @mysimplegram:
The advantage (or disadvantage) is that you don’t have to follow a specific color scheme throughout your feed. Instead, you make each row aesthetically consistent. And you can change your color scheme after you move to the next row.But you need to establish visual consistency for posts in the middle. You can do this by using the same background but alternating the font or color (similar to the example above).Some users of this feed like to be creative with the words they place in the middle. The words may relate to the images on either side.Of course, the disadvantage is that you have to post three photos simultaneously. Otherwise, you lose the line in the middle and your feed won’t look visually consistent.This is highly recommended for travel and style bloggers. The lack of color consistency makes your feed feel fresh and new. However, if you’re a business that adheres to a specific color or aesthetic, then you’re better off with another Instagram layout idea.
Diagonal Insta Grid
If you value consistency, then the diagonal grid is for you. In a previous post, we explained that it “features images with similar visual aesthetic or objects in diagonal lines.” Here’s an example from @headspace.
If you’re an eCommerce store, specializing in two or three product types, then you can use this layout to highlight each of your products. It’s also useful if you use two to three themes. If you’re a lifestyle blogger specializing in food and travel, you could place your travel posts and food posts in separate diagonal lines.That said—you need to do a bit of planning to implement this successfully.After all, for people to notice the diagonal line there has to be similarities between the posts in the diagonal lines in terms of subject or color scheme.Fortunately, you can easily create a diagonal feed using Sked’s Visual Planner.
Row by Row Insta Grid
If you want to use your Instagram feed to tell a story, then try the row by row layout. As you scroll down the feed with different rows, your eyes will naturally move from left to right. This makes it seem like you’re reading a magazine like @personaljournalapp’s Instagram feed:
This layout is best for travel influencers and agencies with a unique story to tell every now and then. If you’re a travel influencer, you can change the color scheme per row to highlight the different stories you’d like to tell like @mvandersluis.
You can also use it to highlight different product offerings like @linefeeds:
The downside is that you have to post three posts simultaneously, each with a similar look and feel.
Rainbow Insta Grid
The rainbow feed is one of the most impressive grid layouts. There’s just something amazing about the color transitioning as you scroll down the feed.Of course, the advantage of is that it helps you stand out. It’s great if you’re an influencer, graphic designer, photographer or a design agency.For example, Jac Cunningham brands herself as a creative and graphic designer. She is able to showcase her talent as a designer and make her branding come to life through her intricate rainbow feed.
But a lot of brands don’t use this feed, and for good reason.Businesses stick to a few colors because it enables them to be more recognizable and memorable. For example, Glossier sticks to light pink, while McDonald’s sticks to red and yellow. You’ll easily be able to recognize a Glossier post because of it’s pink aesthetic.In contrast, a rainbow feed isn’t constant. It’s always changing. And followers won’t be able to recognize your brand’s post, unless they visit your feed.Another point to consider is that it involves a lot of planning. You can’t just take a good photo or choose a random prop. You have to be selective of every element in the photo, especially their colors.Plus, you need to pay attention to the transition of one color to the next. If one post seems out of place, it will be very noticeable.
Puzzle Insta Grid
The puzzle Instagram layout idea divides one large image into nine different parts and posts them individually. It’s not a common sight to see, which is why it stands out. Here’s an example from @nellke_kramay:
It’s not used by a lot of businesses, and for good reason. If you read up on Instagram engagement, you know that every post counts. You have to consistently engage with the most number of followers to appear in more feeds and engage with more people.If you’re using a puzzle layout, people won’t interact with a part of a whole. They can’t appreciate a single image, unless they view the feed itself. So, while the puzzle layout looks great, it certainly isn’t for everyone.That said—you can still rock the puzzle layout by making each puzzle piece unique and attractive in its own way. Juniperoasts (@juniperoasts) Instagram feed is a testament to this fact. She brands herself as a “romantic minimalist” and her feed reflects this. It’s not often that you see a puzzle layout done wonderfully.
At the end of the day, the puzzle layout is a lot more difficult to visualize and execute. You need to use tools like Lightroom and Photoshop to create a large image and slice them into equal pieces. You also need to come up with great concepts to ensure that each puzzle piece can stand out both as a whole or on its own.
Mixed Insta Grid
If consistency isn’t your thing, try to mix different types of Instagram layout ideas. @joi.knows.how mixes up the vertical line and row by row layout.
It’s not bad to mix things up and experiment, especially if your business is just starting out on Instagram.
Borders Insta Grid
The easiest way you can make your feed look consistent is to add the same border to all posts in your Instagram grid layout.Yuka’s (@yukastudio) photos have slightly different color schemes. However, thanks to the white border’s effect, nothing seems out of place.
Black and white borders are the most common types of borders used. This is because their neutral characteristic enables them to mix every type of photo you place on your feed. Here’s another example from Vedang Marathe (@vedangmarathe):
Using borders is the simplest way to establish consistency in your posts. However, if your brand’s aesthetic doesn’t mix well with black or white borders, then try another Instagram layout idea.Back to Content Menu
Instagram Layout Idea #5: Use the Same Edits
Instagram grid layouts determine people's first impression of your brand. Therefore, influencers and brands should choose themes, filters and color schemes that will resonate with their ideal target audience.One way influencers achieve a cohesive look and feel in their Instagram feed is by taking advantage of photo editing tools. They use the same Adobe light presets, and some even create a business out of it. Influencers like @tezzamb, @joliejanine, and @travel_inhershoes have gotten their presets downloaded by their followers and other influencers. Their feed is a testament to the power of using a consistent Instagram aesthetic.Others take editing a step further by having their own visual style. For example, Tara Whitman (@taramilktea) is famous for her bold aesthetic:
Instagram Layout Idea #6: Plan Your Grid
Instagram grid layouts are famous for their careful attention to detail. You can't create a rainbow feed or checkerboard feed if you're inconsistent.That said, you need to carefully plan the overall look of your feed and each post you publish.Images that don’t match with your overall theme or aesthetic will look out of place. And it won’t do any favors for your marketing. They also garner less engagement.Fortunately, you can plan your Instagram layout ideas to perfection with Sked's Planner. To get started, visit the homepage and click the planner icon on the sidebar. Next, drag the images from your drafts section to the grid. Move the posts around and organize them based on your chosen grid layout).
Once you're satisfied, click the "Submit Changes" button.
By using Sked's Planner, nobody will see your mistakes, since you can preview each post before they appear on your feed. What’s Your Favourite Instagram Layout Idea?There are definitely a lot of Instagram layout ideas to choose from.You can use the puzzle layout or row by row layout, if you want to stand out. You can use the rainbow feed to entice people to scroll down your feed. And you can even add borders to easily establish consistency.Of course, there are pros and cons to every Instagram grid layout you choose. A rainbow feed requires a lot of planning. You have to carefully watch the color of everything you post.On the other hand, the squares grid layout doesn’t require much. But you need to pay attention to your theme or color. You might also have to consistently upload high-quality photos to attract more people to your feed.Whatever feed you choose, don’t forget to use Sked Social to perfectly plan and schedule your post.What does your Instagram grid layout look like? Let us know in the comments.If you're looking to carve out hours in your social media workflow, sign up for Sked’s 7-day trial. Our all-in-one Instagram scheduler allows you to automatically post images, carousels, Stories, videos and more. Tag locations, users and products and manage all your hashtags in one place to save 5+ hours every week.
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