How To Create Seasonal Instagram Content

Creating seasonal content is one of the best and most enjoyable ways to draw attention on Instagram. Seasonal content also makes it easier to use trends, music, and sounds to elevate your content strategy.

If you have not yet attempted to make a splash on Instagram with season-specific content, there is no better time to start. Here is your ultimate guide to creating seasonal Instagram content throughout the year to captivate your audience.

Creating a Seasonal Content Calendar

Before you start thinking of all the bells and whistles, you must have a content plan in place. Your content plan must ideally exist on a content calendar. This way, you have an overview of the holidays, seasons, and trends relevant to your brand.

Trends That Influence Seasonal Content

The main seasonal content trends for 2024 are shaping up to look like this:

• User-generated content

  UGC is not going anywhere this year. You can use UGC to encourage your audience to participate in seasonal contests or challenges. This is a fun way to increase engagement and keep the seasonal theme going.

• Authenticity

  Consumers and social media users crave genuine connections more than ever. Ideally, you want to turn this demand into human content. This means highlighting your team and behind-the-scenes processes. You can show your followers how your business celebrates the seasons and holidays, making your brand more human.

• Short-form videos continue to lead

  Short videos work for every season, and even better for holidays. You can work the essence and atmosphere of holidays into Reels for Instagram.

• Sustainability

  This is another trend that is not going anywhere anytime soon. Online audiences, especially Gen Z, demand brands to be more eco-conscious. You can spotlight your business’s commitment to sustainability during relevant holidays like Earth Day. You can even create a spring campaign focused on saving the planet one green step at a time.

• Shoppable content

  Shoppable posts are huge on Instagram. You can use shoppable content to feature seasonal products or even set up seasonal gift guides. Think Valentine’s Day, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Understanding Your Instagram Audience

Now that you have all the trends you need for your seasonal content, you need to get to know your audience. You can only create seasonal content that resonates with people if you know what type of content they want to see.

Consider the Seasons When Brainstorming Content

Brainstorming is a fun part of creating seasonal content. You do not have to fall back on old posts to get you through different seasons and holidays. Instead, give yourself enough time to brainstorm completely new ideas that your audience can get excited about.

There are a couple of fundamentals to remember when brainstorming seasonal content. Firstly, you want to put visuals front and center. This is the easiest way to capture the feeling of a holiday or season. Think fall foliage, green shoots, a crackling fire, and summer cocktails. Each concept represents a different season, and you can visualize them even before choosing imagery.

The same goes for holidays and major events. Content that focuses on major holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas, for example, invites more engagement on your Instagram feed. You can pair your themed posts with special offers and promotions. You can even add a trend or two in there. Think Starbucks and pumpkin spice lattes.

Choose Formats That Make Your Content Pop

Again, Instagram is all about the visuals. So, if you have not done seasonal content before, you may want to start with a photo campaign. This is the best way to grab attention before you move on to different formats. You can also use Instagram’s editing tools to enhance the seasonal mood of your campaigns.

If you are launching a seasonal product, you can promote it using the carousel format. This will allow your followers to swipe through and view each angle and explanation of the product.

When you get the hang of seasonal content, you can try your hand at Instagram Stories and Reels. Stories are excellent for seasonal customer experiences, while Reels can help you engage your audience with trends and special effects.

Captions That Spark Engagement

The captions you write are just as critical as the images you use. If your images and words do not connect, your posts will go right over your audience’s heads.

Instead of going for generic captions, think of how to start conversations and engagement on Instagram. For example, come up with thought-provoking questions that relate to the season. Or draw a parallel to real-life situations. You can also create a seasonal narrative by telling a story using captions.

Do not be afraid to go for some laughs. Humor, or simply a lighthearted approach, can elevate any post. Just be sure to avoid anything resembling mockery because this will turn your followers off.

Emojis are also great for seasonal content. You can even incorporate them into your CTAs to make them more visually appealing.

You Need Hashtags for Seasonal Content

Like your regular content, you want people to find your seasonal content easily. This means you must incorporate hashtags. You can create special seasonal hashtags and combine them with generic ones. You can even throw a branded hashtag in there.

Ideally, you want to mix broad and specific hashtags to reach a larger audience. And, if you do use branded hashtags, you should create new ones for each campaign.

Examples of Popular Seasonal Content

Instagram is usually overrun with seasonal content. For instance, fashion brands pull out all the stops to promote their fall or winter lines. Travel bloggers share content related to their seasonal getaways. Food content creators typically share summer recipes or spiced-up pumpkin spice recipes in the fall.

You can use this content as inspiration for your own seasonal content.

Embrace Seasonality To Engage Your Instagram Audience

By making the most of each season on Instagram, you can create engaging content to keep your audience coming back for more. So, dedicate some time to creating seasonal posts in 2024 and transform your feed into a seasonal wonderland for your followers.