• It’s a social networking app for sharing photos and videos from your smartphone
• Pictures and videos posted to Instagram will appear on your profile and newsfeed
• Audiences will engage by following you, liking and commenting on your photo or video
• Interact with your audience by following them, responding to their comments and liking their content.

• Set up a new account for your research project to create continuity for your audience and improve engagement with them
• Write a short bio to explain your research in lay terms
• If you’re working with researchers who use Instagram professionally, add their handle to the bio so your audience can link to their profiles
• Direct new audiences to a project website or blog by including a link.

Use the accessible content checklist to create a blog that is quicker and easier for everyone to understand and use, regardless of individal need. Making your online content accessibleis also a legal rquirement for universities. It's simple to do and makes a big difference.  

• Photographs of people can be considered personal data. Ask for written consent to use photographs and archive this information for the future.
• Different types of material have their own copyright frameworks. Read the University’s copyright policy and guidelines and email copyright@kent.ac.uk for advice.

• Add a picture to your profile by pressing the plus symbol at the foot of the screen
• Choose a picture from your library or take a new photo
• Add up to ten pictures to one post by tapping Select Multiple
• Use the edit features to adjust brightness contrast, saturation and much more.

• Write a short lay description of your picture
• Help new audiences find your content by adding hashtags after the description. Press the hash key (#) and follow it directly with the subject
• When your post is live click on your hashtags to find and follow similar content.

• Engage with your audience to keep them interested in your research
• Ask for opinions when you share your next post.
• Set your followers a challenge so they actively engage with your work
• Respond to comments or direct messages to show you appreciate feedback
• Follow other people and engage with their content.

The University of Kent Instagram shares pictures and videos of the university and its campus and also utilises its interactive channels such as Instagram TV to keep followers engaged with live video.

Click the button below to email the Research and Scholarly Communication team about social media for researchers.