The Instagram accounts we see fail aren’t the ones that post badly. They’re the ones that post every day for three weeks, then nothing for four months. A modest plan you keep for a year beats an ambitious one you abandon by March.
This is the plan we’d give a local business owner who has other things to do: a café, a physio, a boutique, a tradie, a gallery. It takes around two hours a week once it’s running.
The weekly rhythm
| What | How many | What it’s for | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feed posts (photo or carousel) | 2 to 3 | The shop window. What someone sees when they check you out | 45 minutes for the week, batched |
| Stories | 3 to 5 days, a few frames each | Staying top of mind with people who already follow you | 5 minutes a day |
| Reel | 1 every week or two | Reaching people who don’t follow you yet | 30 to 45 minutes |
| Replies and messages | Daily | Turning interest into enquiries | 5 minutes a day |
That’s it. No daily posting, no trend chasing, no three reels a week.
What each format is for
It helps to know what job each format does, because it changes what you put in it.
Feed posts are your portfolio. When someone hears about you and taps through to your profile, the grid is what they judge you on. Posts here should be your best, clearest material: finished work, products, your space, your people. Carousels (several images in one post) work well for before-and-afters, a job from start to finish, or “three things to know about”.
Stories are for the people who already follow you. They’re casual, they disappear after 24 hours, and nobody expects them to be polished. This is where you show the day-to-day: the delivery that just arrived, today’s special, the van on the way to a job, a quick poll. Stories keep you in people’s heads between bigger posts. Save the good ones to Highlights on your profile (Menu, Services, Reviews, Find us) so new visitors can see them.
Reels are for new people. Instagram shows Reels to non-followers far more than it shows ordinary posts. If you want to reach locals who don’t know you yet, this is the format. One decent reel every week or two is plenty for most local businesses. They don’t need to be clever. A 20-second walk through your shop or a time-lapse of a job works.
Replies are where the money is. Comments and DMs from locals are warm enquiries. Answer them the same day, like you’d answer the phone.
A sample week
This is how it might look for a small business. Shift the days to suit your trade.
Monday (20 minutes). Look back at last week: what came in, what you finished, what people asked about. Pick the three things you’ll post this week and write rough captions. Schedule them in Meta Business Suite so they go out on Instagram and Facebook together.
Tuesday. Feed post goes out (scheduled). A couple of stories during the day: setting up, a customer question you answered.
Wednesday. Stories only. Maybe a poll or a question sticker (“Which colour should we stock next?”).
Thursday (30 to 45 minutes, every second week). Film and post a reel. Keep it simple: one idea, filmed on your phone, captions on screen.
Friday. Feed post goes out. Stories about the weekend: hours, specials, what’s on.
Weekend. Stories if you’re open and something’s happening. Otherwise, nothing. You’re allowed a weekend.
Every day (5 minutes). Reply to comments and messages. Like and reply to posts you’re tagged in.
The two hours, broken down
- Planning and scheduling feed posts: 45 minutes
- Stories across the week: about 25 minutes total
- One reel (averaged over two weeks): about 20 minutes a week
- Replies and messages: about 30 minutes across the week
The planning time is what makes it work. If you try to come up with a post at 8pm on the day, you’ll skip it. If three are scheduled on Monday, they happen whether you’re busy or not.
Stuck for what those three posts should be? Our list of what to post when you think you’ve got nothing is built from moments that happen in every business anyway.
Make it local on purpose
Being local is your advantage over every bigger competitor. Use it.
- Tag your location on posts and stories, using your actual town or suburb.
- Say the place names in captions. “Finished this deck in Lennox Head” tells Instagram and people where you work. Instagram search increasingly reads caption text, so a plain description with the town in it helps people find you.
- Tag local businesses you work with: suppliers, the café next door, the venue you did the job at. They often reshare, and their followers are your neighbours.
- Show up for local events. Markets, footy finals, the show, a fundraiser. A story from the local event says more about who you are than any designed graphic.
Our piece on websites for regional businesses makes the same point for your site: local detail is what makes you look like the obvious choice nearby.
Hashtags: keep it short
At the time of writing, Instagram limits posts and reels to five hashtags, and says a few targeted ones work better than lots of generic ones. For a local business, that means something like your town, your trade and your business name. Spend the effort on a clear caption instead.
Photos matter more than the plan
The plan only works if what you post looks good enough to stop a thumb. You don’t need a photographer every week, but you do need a library of strong images to draw on when the week’s been quiet: your space, your team, your products, your best work.
A gallery like Haven Gallery has an obvious advantage, because the work is visual. A plumber or accountant has to try harder, and that’s where a half-day of commercial photography pays off: one shoot gives you months of feed posts that don’t look like everyone else’s phone photos.
Week one
Don’t start with the full plan. Start with this:
- Tidy your profile: clear bio with your town and what you do, a link to your website, a recognisable profile picture.
- Set up three Highlights covers.
- Schedule two feed posts for this week.
- Post stories on three days.
- Answer every comment and message within a day.
Do that for a month, then add a reel every second week. Keep it going for three months before you judge whether it’s working.
If two hours a week is two hours you don’t have, our social media management service can run the plan for you, from $650 a month + GST, using real photos of your business rather than stock.