Creating images to post on Instagram from my computer
[May 2023] I used Inxtify for several months and liked it (described below) and then found Hootsuite and used that for a few years. Now I use the Facebook Meta Business Suite planner to create and schedule Facebook and Instagram posts from my computer.
If I’m creating something on the fly, Instagram also has a Create button that I can use to create a post from my computer and upload a custom image I’ve created (rather than uploading a photo from my phone as most people do).
Original post about Inxtify…
I love to put text and images together to make inspirational images and post them on Facebook. Recently, to try out another social media venue, I created an Instagram account. The problem is that I don't upload photos from my phone and that's what Instagram is designed for. Fortunately, I found a freeware program called Inxtify that works on my Mac. I'm able to create images in Photoshop, drag them to the Inxtify loader window, and either publish immediately or schedule. For scheduled posts, I'll need to have my computer on at the time I've scheduled for this to work. The program is easy-to-use and does just what I need it to do.
Optimized photos load more quickly and improve SEO (search engine optimization) for your website, without sacrificing quality. Techniques for optimization include resizing and compressing the photo to reduce the file size while maintaining sharpness and clarity.
Whether your website is new or has been around a while, decluttering the content to encourage visitors to browse is always a good idea.
Whether you design your website on Squarespace or some other platform, you’ll be making color choices that are unified and compatible across your website, from the text to the buttons to the colors in the images. Designers call these color choices a color palette. Here’s how I simplify color selections for my clients.
I recommend starting your business with a Google Workspace Business account so your business email address includes your domain name. But a personal Google account can be useful for many everyday tasks. In this blog post, I cover how the two types of accounts differ.
To stretch and expand the background image to the top of your website, change the site header color style to Adaptive. The site header then becomes transparent so the background image shows behind the navigation text.
The clickable image that shows up on social media posts is called a link preview image. In Squarespace and other website editors, you can designate a specific image to show up when you share a website page on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter/X.
Understanding in advance how your website will support your business will inform your website's design and content.
The aspect ratio of an image is its width relative to its height. Understanding aspect ratio helps you design your pages with images that look attractive and well-matched. Aspect ratio choices can also help with planning and choosing images you’d like to use on your website.
You can add a Social Sharing image to Squarespace to be shown as a link preview for your website when you share a URL on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. The size of 1200x628 pixels works best for those platforms. You can also set custom images for specific website pages or blog posts to draw extra attention to them.
Squarespace lets you promote your blog post automatically on your connected social media accounts through the Share settings for the post.
Taking the time to add a note to your invitation to connect to someone on LinkedIn improves the chances of the invitation being accepted. Adding information about how you know the person or mutual connections you have builds trust.
Use the Facebook Like Button Configurator to generate code to add a Facebook Follow button on your website.
I used the free version of MailChimp for several years and found it easy to use. I now use MailerLite because it allows a Welcome letter automation sequence that MailChimp no longer offers on the free plan. Still MailChimp is a good choice for small-business owners who want to add a newsletter to their site without the monthly cost of an email marketing plan if they only need to send new subscribers a single Welcome letter.
As you start a blog, first determine the focus of your blog. Then choose topics that are relevant and that are in your area of expertise. Blog posts can contain text, images, videos, links to other blog posts, links to podcasts, and personal or creative endeavors. Each blog post adds content to your website and gives you cumulative client-attracting and SEO benefits.
High-quality images are an important part of any online message you want to deliver. Free images that you can use on your website and with social media postings must either be your own originals, those that you have permission to use, or donated by artists to use free for commercial use. In addition to Pixabay, I've also discovered Unsplash as another place to find beautiful images that are free to use for commercial use.
Choosing the main image on the home page of your website has repercussions for the colors, mood, and typeface choices for your whole website. Designers take a lot of things into consideration, including colors, size, and arrangement before choosing what's called a "hero image."
Save yourself some time by keeping these tips in mind when you are selecting a large banner photo for the top of your website page. These guidelines apply both to selecting a photo from a stock photo site or if you plan on using photographs of yourself in banner photos as many service-oriented business owners do.
Kerry A. Thompson
You don’t need a big agency to get your website done. You just need the one right person. I offer Squarespace website design and content development services for creatives, coaches, and healers. Learn more in a free 30-minute consultation.