I posted for 365 days straight. Here's what I learned.
On September 26, 2023, I committed to post daily on Instagram.
1 year later, I reached my 365th consecutive post—without missing a single day.
It definitely wasn’t easy, but it’s been one of the most rewarding challenges I’ve taken on as a photographer.
Today, I want to share with you 2 key things that came out of this experience:
The real results of posting consistently for an entire year, and
Some of the most valuable content creation tips I learned along the way.
If you've ever struggled to stay consistent or wondered how to get the most out of your content, this is for you.
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But before we dive in:
If you've ever struggled to grow your social media, stay consistent with posting, or felt overwhelmed trying to manage it all... you're not alone.
Most people feel that way - but, it doesn't need to be like that.
I might be able to help you personally.
I have a few spots open in my Social Media Accelerator program.
That's where I guide you step-by-step. I help you create a clear strategy and build systems for consistent, less stressful content creation.
If you're interested in seeing if we’re a fit to work together.. apply here before the spots fill up.
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The results
1) My follower count
I was at 17.6k when I started posting again. And well, in fact, I was losing followers most of the first 30 days I was posting.
(It was not motivating at all.)
A bit over 30 days, after publishing the best idea I had, I got my breakthrough.
The video has ended up gaining close to 5.3M views and has gained me close to 40,000 followers alone.
And now after posting a lot, and several viral videos later, we're at 133k followers.
2) I landed a dream collab
Someone from the Sony team reached out to me in February and asked whether I'd like to play around with the Sony a6700 and some lenses.
Of course, I said yes.
I even got to ask for lenses to try out - and I was nervous to ask for a 100-400mm lens haha, as it's an expensive lens.
But, they sent it along with other ones.
I got to play around with the gear for close to 5 months.
(This is not how it often goes, but the period was extended for me.)
A team ended up interviewing me of my experience with the Sony a6700, and my photography overall. (You can read it here.)
Lastly, I got a big surprise.
My contact at Sony asked what lens I feel like I missed.
I said the 100-400mm, as I felt my 70-200mm did lack in reach at times, and couldn't get the compression I wanted.
A few weeks later a box arrived on my doorstep...
And there it was.
They actually sent the lens to me.
Now it was my own.
It was crazy to me, and well, it still is.
So cool.
3) I started making money through Instagram
Now, I had made money earlier too with Instagram.
But it wasn't anything like this.
I launched my first course in 2021, or 2022, and it did embarrassingly.
I believe I made less than €700 in sales in total.
You might say that's not bad.
But it is, considering I spent months if not over a year working on it.
But well, I knew little about marketing and launching compared to what I know now.
But in November 2023 I announced I'll start to teach social media 1-1.
I got my first students quite fast.
It was much fun teaching them.
I've kept the coaching program going since then, and my students seeing some amazing results.
OJ Perry has gone from 6.9k to now 42.1k.
And Vlad Manea went from 1.8k to 10k in around 3 months... as an example.
Not only does this bring me money, but also fulfilment.
Being able to help my students succeed has been one of the most incredible things in my life.
Those are the main things that totally changed.
Of course, I got much better at making videos, as I did so many of them.
And I've become much more efficient at making them.
(You can see my first main feed talking video I posted on September 27, 2023, here.)
Alright, this is how my life changed. But now, how can you do the same?
My top 8 lessons
Well before diving into them... it's important to note I believe everyone should do videos on social media.
Yes, photographers included.
Why?
Because the average user of social media prefers video nowadays.
And yes, that can be a hard pill to swallow for many of us.
But that's how it is.
If you want to keep this a hobby, then sure, post photos and post them whenever you like.
But if you want to grow, and make money through this...
I'd say if you don't make videos, you're making this process much more difficult for yourself.
Alright, let's dive in.
1) Quantity > Quality
Most people are thinking of the opposite of this.
Don't get me wrong, your content needs to be good.
But how do you get to the point it is good?
Just wishing it improves?
Unfortunately, that's not how it works.
You get good by doing it a lot.
If I only posted 1 video to Instagram, there's no way I'd have the results I have now.
I highly recommend posting a lot.
(But for this, you need to develop systems, of course.)
Another reason to post a lot is if you want to earn through this.
According to Google, an average person needs to see your product or service 11 times before they're ready to buy.
And an average person needs to spend 7 hours consuming your content before they buy.
Now, there are people who buy immediately.
I know I've bought many things before consuming 7 hours of someone's stuff...
But that's the average.
So if you post one 15-second Reel per week...
It's going to take a while to reach that 7-hour mark, won't it?
2) Virality isn't enough
Going viral is great.
You feel like your work is seen... and that you're finally rewarded for your efforts...
But if you just go viral... then what?
Yes, you'll have a lot of followers... but will that make you feel fulfilled?
I'd say it will, for a bit.
But we humans are weird creatures.
We always want more.
I remember when I was nowhere close to 100k.
I told myself I'd not need more than 100k followers.
Once I reached it, I felt like so... for some time.
Now, I want even more, lol.
When sooner or later I get more viral hits... will that change my life?
Well... yes, it might.
But will it satisfy my mind?
For the long term, no.
So understand, whatever follower count you want, you'll want more at some point.
But a good question to ask is why do you want more followers?
Is it that you feel like your work is now validated as good?
Do you hope that'll bring you more work - and allow you to do what you love?
It's good to be aware of that.
Or - do you perhaps wish people not only like your work... but you as a person?
I must say, I wish people liked both my work and me as a person.
Sure, some people just follow me for my photos, and they're welcome to do so.
But I want to have a connection with my followers.
That's why I don't only share my photos, because my only sharing photos, it's tough to make a lasting connection with a fellow human.
This brings us to the next point.
3) Authenticity is king
Want to create a connection with your followers?
You don't do it by just sharing your highlights.
That's why I do my best to share the downs too, and don't want to talk of highlights all the time.
(You'll see this even more with my upcoming content this year.)
I have told:
I was bullied my entire childhood
I was depressed
I hated myself
I procrastinate at times
I get distracted
I sometimes find myself scrolling mindlessly
I skip a meditation routine of mine at times
I skip a cold shower at times
I can lack organization
I was scared to start posting online...
And so on.
We humans aren't perfect - none of us is.
If you don't showcase any of the "downsides" of your life... people will think you're full of sh*t, haha.
We all know everyone faces something tough at times...
And if you only keep showing how amazing your life is...
Then you can't create that amazing connection with others.
We humans often connect through hardships.
I'm not saying you need to share all the downsides - I don't.
I only share the downsides that I feel kind of comfortable sharing.
If I made a major mistake yesterday and I'd be crying about it... I'd not share it immediately.
I'd take my time to process it first - and then consider sharing it.
To wrap up this point...
To create a connection with your followers, you must share some downsides too, and show who you are as a person.
When it comes to business, people won't buy from you if they don't trust you.
And if you only post short Reels showing your "perfect" life... how will they start to trust you?
See?
Being human, and showcasing that you aren't perfect, is important in many ways. :)
4) You overestimate how much people care
Let's keep this simple...
Most people don't care about your posts.
And - the same thing is with my posts...
Most people don't care.
Or at least don't care a lot.
And this can be a positive!
That's why I'm saying it to you.
Let's take an example:
Instagram shows your post to 10,000 people.
How many of those 10,000 people will like the post?
Well... let's say it's 500.
Cool, that's (with my maths) 5% of people.
Alright, what about how many people will remember the post?
For that, I can't give you a number per se...
But it's not a lot.
I'll be honest with you...
If you asked what I posted 7 days ago, I have no clue without checking.
Even 4 days ago is hard for me to remember.
(I don't have dementia - this is because I post a lot, haha.
If I posted once per week, it'd be easy to remember my full month's posts.)
So... if I don't remember what I posted 7 days ago...
What are the chances some random person scrolling remembers?
Now, some people will remember, and that's great.
It means the post has resonated with them in some ways.
But that's a minimal amount of people from the 10,000 video example.
Understand:
Not everyone will be shown your posts
Not everyone who sees the post cares about the post
Not everyone who cares about the post cares about it so much that they remember it for a long time.
I hope that makes it a bit easier for you to start posting.
5) Getting people off IG
It's crucial you get your followers off Instagram.
Honestly, what happens if Instagram disappears tomorrow?
If you asked me last year after I went viral... I'd say I'm f*cked.
Even earlier this year I was in that case.
But now, I would be good.
Why?
Because I have over 2,000 of you reading my Newsletters, which is absolutely brilliant and I'm grateful for that.
Having all of you here means I can continue to communicate with you no matter what.
Nobody can ban me from sending emails to you...
And to these emails, in theory, I could attach videos and so on.
(Of which I'm brainstorming of.)
When it comes to business, I'll be good too.
I can create something awesome, and present it to you here via email.
I don't need to rely on Instagram.
But Hugo... how do I get people off Instagram to my mailing list?
Well, that's a long topic to cover.
But in short, I'd start with ConvertKit (I'll make a bit of money if you sign up through me), and make some free resources to attract people to join.
(It might be that's how you ended up joining here, hehe ;) )
Anyway, it's good to have specific free resources, automation and a clear strategy for sending emails.
It's too long of a thing to cover in this Letter and is specific to everyone's needs.
It's something I also cover with people on my Social Media Accelerator if that's something you want my help on.
6) Importance of Stories
I'll spill out something most people don't understand...
There are a lot of people who only check out Stories - and not their feed!
That's why, it's crucial to have a strategy for stories, and overall posts there.
I'm still figuring out what to post there for those who don't check my feed posts...
But I do have other strategies for it, such as for connecting with you, for getting people to sign up for this Newsletter, and for making sales.
Do you have a strategy? If not, please do one.
And lastly... a tip that will change your Stories reach...
Don't post more than 3 stories at a time if you want to maximize your reach.
And - if you truly want to maximize your reach, then only post 1 Story at a time.
The key is to also attach an automation to that story.
(I make my automations with Manychat.)
That's how I've got up to 14k+ views on a Story myself.
(The normal amount for an account my size is 2.6k)
There you go, enjoy better numbers. :)
7) Ideas are the thing
Keeping this fast and simple:
If your post idea is bad... then nothing else matters.
It doesn't matter how you filmed it... edited it... and so on.
The same thing is if you posted a photo.
Yes, a composition is important.
And so are the colours.
But if you take a photo of a random rock... it just is more boring compared to the Northern Lights.
Focus on finding great ideas.
8) Sustainability
Alright, the last point - and one of the most important ones.
This is something I factor a lot in.
Whenever I'm now starting something, I make sure I can sustain it for a very long time.
(Thanks to my mentor Tom Noske for teaching that to me.)
Tom has mentioned something along the lines of:
"If you can't sustain it for 10 years... don't ever bother starting."
And I believe that too.
You might have seen one of my newer videos.
It's filmed outdoors...
Whaaat? Outdoors?
A shocker. I know.
But this is something I thought about for a long time.
I started filming indoors as I knew I could sustain it.
I didn't need to find a location to go shoot my videos... I could just start here in my room.
But after having chats with some friends... I couldn't shake off the thought of:
What if I could find a way to film outdoors sustainably?
It always felt like a big deal to drag my camera outdoors just to shoot video.
But... I tried it out...
and... I liked it.
Now, I won't go to a new spot every time.
Heck no.
If I always had to find a new spot to film... I don't think it'd be sustainable for me.
So, I'll keep it in the same spot I found in a forest for now.
Maybe I'll rotate the camera to show the lake view... but it'll still be the same spot.
Lesson:
Don't start something if you can't sustain it.
Because to get success, you must sustain it for some amount of time - and often - for a long amount of time.
Last words
These were some of the best lessons I've learned so far.
There are so many lessons, to be honest... but this would've ended up being like 10,000 words, lol.
But I hope you found those points insightful, my friend.
Still a reminder: If you want my personal guidance to help you with social media...
Apply to my Social Media Accelerator program here before the spots fill up.
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I hope you enjoyed reading this, my friend.
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Till next emails,
Hugo
