May 12, 2025 Rachel LaCount

5 Instagram Strategies I’m Trying After Attending Social Media Marketing World

Rachel LaCount was awarded a scholarship from Social Media Breakfast Madison to attend the 2025 Social Media Marketing World conference virtually. She recently shared highlights from what she learned and will be putting her new skills to work on the Gather Wisconsin Instagram page. Thank, you, Rachel!

5 Instagram Strategies I’m Trying After Attending Social Media Marketing World

Social Media Marketing World left me feeling challenged, inspired and excited to take Gather Wisconsin’s Instagram strategy to the next level. AI and authentic storytelling are reshaping how we connect with audiences and Instagram is still the best place to build trust, showcase values and spark conversations.

Here are five actionable takeaways I’m bringing back to Gather Wisconsin’s Instagram and how we’ll measure what works.

1. Reuse What Already Works: The 17×3 Strategy

Building influence on Instagram isn’t about going viral—it’s about making meaningful connections. One strategy I’m bringing home is called the 17×3 strategy: evaluate your 17 top-performing posts and recreate each in three new formats (like reels, carousels or stories). It’s a smart way to focus on content that’s already proven its worth.

Action Item for Gather Wisconsin:

  • Review our highest-performing content.
    Repurpose into new formats with a focus on emotional storytelling and thought leadership in food and farming.
  • Measure: Track reach, shares and saves, especially from non-followers.

2. Thoughtful Commenting = High-Quality Engagement

Engagement isn’t dead, it’s just changed. Instead of obsessing over likes or followers, it’s time to focus on meaningful interactions. Commenting is the biggest thing you can do for brand exposure. Connect and build relationships by intentionally commenting, engaging and sharing with the people you want to connect with and build a community around.

Action Items for Gather Wisconsin:

  • Spend dedicated time commenting on posts from local food creators, Wisconsin brands and community partners.
  • Create posts that spark conversation with questions like:
    • “What’s one food from your childhood you love sharing with your kids?”
    • “Which Wisconsin-made grocery item is always in your cart?”
  • Measure: Track engagement rate, comment count and how many DMs or responses the post generates.

3. Use Instagram Stories to Build Relationships

Instagram prioritizes messaging and direct interactions and Stories are the gateway. Experts shared the STORY method for creating consistent and varied story content:

  • Showcase your work or promote something for your business
  • Teach a quick tip or mini tutorial
  • Open up about yourself or your brand
  • React to trending news or hot takes
  • Your audience—highlight a follower, question or shared story

Action Items for Gather Wisconsin:

  • Post one story in each category Monday through Friday.
  • Measure: Track DMs started from Stories, emoji reactions and forward taps.

4. Reels That Actually Work in 2025

Reels are still the best way to grow on Instagram, but the strategy has changed. Instead of chasing trends, the algorithm now rewards watch time, shares and saves. Three types of reels consistently perform:

  • Authority: Tell a story that positions you as an expert
  • Connection: Share why your audience will love your content or how it solves a
    problem
  • Value: Offer a quick win like an easy recipe or local shopping guide

Action Item for Gather Wisconsin:

  • Create one reel per week using the categories above.
  • Measure: Watch time (aim for >3 seconds and 50%+ completion), shares per reach, saves and comments.

5. Let AI Be Your Instagram Intern (With the Right Prompts)

AI isn’t replacing marketers—it’s enhancing us. One speaker said to think of AI like “a brilliant but clueless intern.” It can do amazing work, but only if you give it clear direction.

Here’s how we’ll use it:

  • Analyze performance data to find trends in content types, engagement formats and
    post timing.
  • Prompt AI with specifics: “I manage an Instagram account connecting consumers to Wisconsin farmers. Analyze this engagement data and suggest the best-performing post formats, emotional tones and frequency.”

Bonus tip: Don’t waste time chatting back and forth with AI—edit your prompt instead. Being more direct and specific saves time and sharpens results.

Action Item for Gather Wisconsin:

  • Use ChatGPT to analyze monthly post performance and suggest data-driven strategy updates.
  • Measure: Compare 30-day engagement trends before and after implementing AI insights.

In the coming month, Rachel and her team will test each of these strategies on Gather Wisconsin’s Instagram and report back to the SMBMad team on what moved the needle. From smart AI prompts to comments that build community, this is a chance to connect with our audience in deeper, more authentic ways.