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Instagram Guide has been slowly rolling out and being tested on certain accounts before it went global. If you do not have access to this feature yet stick around. I’ll be showing you a trick for how you can get it on your account. You’ll then be able to create Instagram guide within a few minutes and add it to your Instagram profile. It will also help others to search for it and make you popular.

If you are new to Instagram or want to check out what all new features have been introduced, do see our beginner’s guide to Instagram 2021 version as well.

What are Instagram Guides?

Instagram Guide is a new tool that allows anyone to share their favorite products, places, or posts in the most beautiful, editorialized way on Instagram. This basically means that users now have the ability to create long-form text content in a dedicated tab on Instagram. Think of them as a blog post. They might also feel like Pinterest pins but with text. Instagram’s goal by allowing users to create Instagram guides was to make it easier to find, create and share certain products, places, and posts. They also want their users to stay on their platform for longer. So, by creating a blog-like content option, instead of having their users direct their followers to their website or blog they can now direct their followers to a guide. Overall making the Instagram app more successful.

Steps to create an Instagram Guide

To create any sort of new piece of content on Instagram the quickest way is using the plus button. It is in the top right corner of your Instagram profile page. You can find the plus button almost in the middle of your phone. Tap that button. Among various other options like “Post”, “Story”, “Story Highlight”, “Reel” etc. you will also see “Guide” at the bottom. You can tap it to start creating your first Instagram guide.

Also see – How to use copyrighted music on Instagram legally?

What if Instagram Guide option is not visible?

It may also happen that you do not see a guide option when you tap the plus button. The options may be limited to “Post”, “Story”, “Story Highlight”, “IGTV” and “Reel”. The Instagram guide option which should be at the bottom might be missing.

In this case, there are two ways to get it. First, you can update your Instagram app to the latest version. Just close the app, go to the app store and check if you have the latest version of Instagram. If not update it and try again. You should then be able to see the Instagram guide option available when you tap the plus icon in your profile.

If this doesn’t work, then there is a second option. You can visit anyone’s profile who has already created an Instagram guide. The guide’s tab is like a little newspaper. Tap on that and scroll to the bottom of the page. At the bottom of the page, Instagram will give you an option to create a guide for your account. If none of the people you know or any celebrities, you follow are using Instagram guide then you can go to Adam Mosseri’s Instagram profile. Adam Mosseri is the head of Instagram and uses almost all new features that Instagram releases. Adam’s Instagram handle is @mosseri. Adam Mosseri’s profile is one of the best examples of Instagram Guide.

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Options available for creating Instagram Guide

You get three options when you try to create Instagram guide. Like, once you tap on the “Guide” option, it will ask you to choose a guide type. These three options are Places, Products, and Posts. You can think of them as more of a list of recommendations. So, when you click places, you can choose a place. And then you’re able to select photos that have been tagged to these locations and create a guide based on those photos. Basically, you can use anyone’s pictures. If people have been to a certain place and they have taken pictures which they upload to Instagram tagging this location, then you can use them. You could also go to your saved photos or your own posts to create a Place guide.

For products, you can search through different brand’s products. I believe it starts with brands that you’re already following. But you could search for a specific brand and then select products that they have listed. So, if you are into video games or gaming consoles then you can make a guide related to your gaming experience. Select all gaming products and accessories that you use to have a good gaming experience and create an Instagram guide. You can create a guide completely dedicated to it. If you have shared pictures of your gaming PC, your new console then you can use those Instagram posts of yours to create a guide as well.

A more general example would be your traveling accessories. If you travel a lot and have pictures of different places. Or if you have used different bags, kits, or electronics that you carry while you are on a trip, you can share them.

If you’re somebody like me who already has a bunch of captions written, then I would first start by going through your feed and saving your posts into their own folder. When you save a photo, you can save it to a collection. A collection will help you create guides quickly. You can just select pictures from one collection, then add a title, set the cover photo. Mention what the guide about? And maybe add a description that why do you like this place etc. and post it. Each collection of yours then would be considered a potential Instagram guide.

Checkout – Cool Instagram Username Generator.

Making your Instagram Guide Search Friendly

One thing I would recommend here is knowing a little bit of SEO. SEO is search engine optimization. It means that while creating Instagram guide you should mention general words that people use to search in your title and descriptions. Similar to hashtags but in Instagram guides, you don’t need to use hashtags. Rumor is Instagram will soon move to keyword scrapping in titles and descriptions to recommend guides to its users. Something like what Google does. Then hashtags will not be very relevant to Instagram guides. So, start putting words like ‘AT&T Stadium Football Live’ if you are posting about a recent match that you have been to at AT&T stadium. Or maybe ‘Things to carry while traveling’, or any other searchable terms that users may use. This will help your Instagram guide to be found by other users.

Once you have added the title and description, click ‘Next’. You will then see a few options. There will be options to preview your Instagram guide, share a guide to your profile, or save it as a draft, so you can complete it later. If you are done with your guide, then go ahead with the preview option. You will be able to see how your Instagram guide will look to your followers or people who will search for it. You can go back and make changes if you find any things incorrect in the preview or you feel like adding more pictures or text. Like you can add an address for the location, add more tips, anything that makes it more blog friendly.

Once you have edited it, go ahead and publish it. It will then be visible under the guides tab on you Instagram profile page.

You can also edit your guide after publishing it. So, if you have traveled to more places or purchased more travel accessories, then you can go back to your guide and edit it. Your guide has an edit option. You can tap it, scroll down and add more pictures. Add more text to the description or comment about new things. It also gives you an option to delete your Instagram guide. If you think it’s no longer relevant, then go ahead and delete your Instagram guide. But do be sure because once you have deleted it you will not be able to get it back.

You also have a copy link option. Like once you select the three dots on the top right corner of your Instagram guide, you’ll see a copy link option. You can use it to link this guide on your website or send the link to other people and even share it.

So, this was a short tutorial on how to create Instagram guide? There are many more features that Instagram keeps on updating and if you want to stay updated with them then do subscribe to our blog. We will make sure you are completely UpToDate and your followers are seeing the best of you on Instagram.  

Instagram is a social media platform for sharing photos and videos. It was first created in 2010 with the intent of helping people share images. Facebook and Orkut were okay with text and status but Instagram loved Images. Kevin Systrom, the founder of Instagram wanted something more of social sharing with Images. He got to the idea that images are the ones that catch more interest and no doubt he was right. Later on, many other functionalities were added to Instagram which we see today. If you are not sure about all of these functionalities don’t worry. We have tried to make our beginner’s guide to Instagram 2021 pretty exhaustive. We do update this page regularly with the latest Instagram features and options. So, make sure you subscribe to our blog!

In 2012, Instagram (www.instagram.com) was purchased by Facebook. Mark Zuckerberg did saw the way it was growing in the social platform space and might have had a deja vu. The acquisition made complete sense and I expected an even better integration of both apps but let’s keep that for later.

Coming back to the Instagram app, lets’ proceed with downloading it on your phone. You do have to be at least 12 years old to use the app.

Download Instagram App on your Phone

You can download Instagram from the App Store on just about any phone you have. It is available for iPhones, Android phones, and Windows phones. Instagram has over 100,000,000 users at the time of me writing this post. Search for the Instagram app in the store, then go ahead and download it. This is the first step on our beginner’s guide to Instagram 2021. After you download the Instagram app, the next step is to create an Instagram account.

How to sign up for an Instagram Account?

To create an Instagram account, first, download the app and open it.  Then press “sign up” on the app page to create your account. On the first page, you’re going to see some options to sign in.  You can use Facebook to sign in or you can sign up by phone or email.

If you don’t have a Facebook account then go-ahead to sign up by phone or email. Again, Instagram is owned by Facebook, so a lot of the options are going to be related to Facebook.
Go ahead and sign up by phone or email here.
Then type in your phone number or your email address.
On the next page, it will ask you to add your name so your friends could find you. If you want your friends to be able to find you, use your real name. If you want to be more anonymous then you can go with nicknames or some other fancy names. Then press “next“.
Create a password. Make sure you remember this password because you will need it again to log in if you do log out.

You will no be able to see your username. See if you like it else Instagram allows you to change your username even after the account creation. You could do this basically every once in a while. And if you are unsure about which username to choose check out our cool Instagram username generator.

Find friends and follow your favorite influencers – Guide for beginners

Then it’s gonna say do you want to connect to Facebook, to find your friend. If you do already use Facebook then go ahead and connect to it. If you don’t then skip it.

It will now ask you for permission to access your contacts. You can allow or skip it.

It will then ask you to add a profile picture. I recommend you do this here. This will help your friends to identify and find you easily. But you could do this anytime and skip it, for now, to get started quickly.

Then it’s going to suggest to you some people whom you can follow. When you follow people it is going to show you everything they post.

So go ahead and follow your favorite move starts, rock bands, brands or favorite shows, etc. You can search for them in the search box as well. For example, you can follow Nike, Nat Geo, and maybe Rock. Then press “next”. It will then ask you if you want to turn notifications on. You could turn that on or skip it.

Congratulations! Now you’ve created your Instagram account. Let’s go through the Instagram features. What all things you can do on Instagram?

How to use Instagram Features? – Beginner’s Guide to Instagram 2021

The next thing that we are going to discuss in our beginner’s guide to Instagram 2021 is the overview of the app. In the last few years, Instagram has rolled out a lot of new options. You can think of Instagram as a combination of six different apps. In Instagram, you have your:

• Instagram feed,
• Instagram direct messages,
• Instagram search,
• Instagram reels,
• Instagram shop and,
• Instagram story

Instagram Feed

Let’s see a quick overview of each. I would start with the first feature – the Instagram feed. It was the original way of Instagram for the first five years or so. Instagram feed is the homepage of Instagram. On the homepage, you can basically scroll down and if you are following people, you will see their post.

For example, If you followed Rock and Nat Geo as we discussed previously, their posts will appear on your feed. It’s like your Facebook wall where you see updates from your friends. You can keep scrolling up and down to check out more updates from the people you follow. The latest updates are always on the top. Hence, if your friends posted something recently it would appear in the first few posts.

If you like a post, just double-tap it and it will give a heart to the post. You can see that heart below the picture, in the bottom left corner.

Next to it in the comments section. You can tap on it to make a comment. You could leave an emoji comment for example and press “Post”. Underneath the heart, you can see how many likes a post has and all the different comments people posted.

Instagram Direct Messages (DMs)

Then you have direct messages. There is an airplane icon that takes you to the direct message interface. Here you could send direct private messages to your friends. In our example, you can send something directly to the Rock. You can send him a message, but probably he is not going to get it. This message will go through the spam filter and will be marked as spam. But you get the idea. If you send messages to people who follow you or are not public figures, your messages will hit their inbox and they will be able to read them.

You can check that you are on the homepage by viewing the icons in the bottom part of the app. When you are scrolling through your Instagram feeds, the home icon on the bottom ribbon will turn bold. So this was about the homepage of Instagram on our beginner’s guide to Instagram 2021. Let’s move on to the Instagram search which is next in the line.

Instagram Search

At the bottom of the page, you also have a search icon next to the home button. Here you could actually search for people who you know, whom you want to follow. It is similar to Google search for the internet or windows search box for your windows PC. If you know your friend’s Instagram handle, then search for it in the Instagram search box and you will be able to see their profile. Else you can also search for their name and Instagram will show you suggestions to choose from. Or you can also press the little plus icon “+”, on the side. It will then get access to your contact and based on that it will recommend you some friends to follow.

When you will tap the plus icon “+”, it will show you three sections “Suggested”, “Facebook” and “Contacts”. The suggested ones are coming from your current friends. It finds the people who are friends to your friends and suggests them to you. Facebook suggestions will be visible if you have connected your Facebook profile. Contacts are recommendations based on the cell phone numbers in your phone directory.

And if you don’t give access to either Facebook or your contacts, then you will have to manually search for people in the search box.

On the discover page, you will discover a variety of different contents based on what you interact with. If you like cars a lot and you tap like on cars or view cars, it will start recommending more Instagram posts about cars.

You can also explore this page by topics on the top of the page. Slide through different sections at the top, below the search bar, to see different categories. When you will tap on any of the categories latest Instagram posts around them will appear. For example, If you are more of a travel enthusiast, the explore page will show you travel-related posts mostly. As you use the app more and more it becomes more customized to your liking. And starts showing you the content you are fond of.

This was a short description in our beginner’s guide to Instagram 2021 about Instagram search. It’s pretty handy when you want to look for people or content on Instagram. Let’s move on to Instagram reels.

Instagram Reels

Instagram launched a new product called “Reels“. It’s built right into Instagram. A reel is simply a short video anywhere from 3 to 15 seconds. If you’re familiar with Tiktok at all, you’ll feel right at home with Instagram reels. If not you can think of reels as another attempt by Instagram to maintain dominance in the social video landscape.

You’ll find the reels option next to the search icon at the bottom of the app. Once you select this option, you’ll see popular short videos created by different Instagram users. You can scroll up and down to check out switch to another reel. You have the option to like, comment, and share the reel on the right corner. These options work similarly to the ones we have in the post.

Also see – How to use copyrighted music on Instagram legally?

Instagram Shop

As the name suggests, Instagram launched a shop for its users. You can see the shop icon next in line to Instagram reels. It is in the form of a handbag. Once you tap it, you can see different products sold by users you follow and the ones that are popular. You can also search for different shops using the search bar provided at the top.

You can also sell products on Instagram. But I’ll create a separate post on how you can do that.

Instagram Story

Now comes the last option we have inline – an Instagram account. You can use it to post an Instagram story. If you have used Snapchat, then it’s kind of similar to a Snap. You can post a picture or a video on Instagram that will last for twenty-four hours. It is also similar to Whatsapp status. To add an Instagram story, click on the “+” icon on your profile picture and if will start accessing your camera. You can then take a short video or maybe a photo, edit it and share it on Instagram.

These were some of the new Instagram features that you can use. This collection of features are regularly updated on this post, beginner’s guide to Instagram 2021. So do subscribe to our blog to stay updated.

Now we have discussed a lot about new Instagram features and how to access what others have shared, let’s see how can you add new posts, stories, and reels on Instagram.

How to add a post to Instagram?

Sharing your daily life updates and special moments with your friends and family is a great joy. You might not want to post it just on the Instagram story as it will go away in 24 hours. But to share it on your Instagram account as a post so that it remains on your profile for as long as you want. Below are the steps on how to add a post to Instagram?

• Step 1 – To add a story on Instagram, go to the app’s homepage.
• Step 2 – You’ll see three icons in the top right corner, tap on the one that shows a ‘+’ sign as shown below.
• Step 3 – It will then access your photo library. And ask you for the photos or videos you want to add to your Instagram posts. Select the posts/videos.
• Step 4 – It will then provide you options to enter a caption, tag your friends, add the location where the pictures/videos were taken. Also, if you want to share it on other social media accounts like Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr as well. Put the relevant information.
• Step 5 – Check everything thing looks good and tap “Share”.

This were some quick steps from our beginners guide to Instagram 2021 on adding a new post to Instagram. This was about the Instagram post but what about Instagram reels and live videos. Like, we have discussed how you can add story and post on Instagram? But what about other stuff?

Adding reels to Instagram is also simple and very similar to adding story and posts. Check below on how to add reels to Instagram?

How to add reels to Instagram?

Adding reels is similar to adding posts on Instagram. Below are the steps:

• Step 1 – Open Instagram and stay on the homepage of the app.
• Step 2 – Select the ‘+’ icon on the top right corner like you did for adding posts above or tap on your profile picture.
• Step 3 – You will notice that Instagram now has access to your camera. At the bottom, it shows you different options such as “POST”, “STORY”, “REELS”, and “LIVE”. Select “REELS”.
• Step 4 – Tap the media player option at the bottom center to record the Instagram reel video.
• Step 5 – Use the option on the right middle section to edit your Instagram reel, add music and change the speed of your Instagram reel, etc.
• Step 6 – Check the reel and tap on the “Share to” option at the bottom right corner.
• Step 7 – Select who you want to share the reel with. Usually, Instagram users make it public and share it with all of their friends.
• Step 8 – Share it.

So, these were some quick steps on how to add reels to Instagram from our beginner’s guide to Instagram 2021.

Do you want to post copyrighted music on Instagram and not be blocked? Do you want to record some really cool videos and add some catchy music lines before flaunting them on Instagram? But not sure how to do it legally. Then you are at the right place. Below I have mentioned a detailed article on how to use copyrighted music on Instagram legally and not worry about being sued or getting your account blocked.

Instagram Guidelines for Posting Copyrighted Music

We know the music is copyrighted and is not there to be used for commercial purposes just like that. So, let’s first see what Instagram’s team thinks about copyrighted content and what it says about using copyrighted music on Instagram legally.

1. They do say that music shared in stories or the ones that you record in traditional live music festivals is permitted to share. So, something like filming your favorite artist or sharing the clips from your visit to a rock concert is totally permissible.
2. Instagram says the more the number of full-length songs you will put in a post the more it will be limited. What they mean is some music is not available in all regions and countries. And if you share this music publicly with all viewers there are chances it will be taken down by Instagram. Keep the number of songs to a minimum.
3. It’s better to take some part of that music and share it. Always good to keep the length short.
4. Instagram also says that there should be a video along with the music that you are linking to it. If you just post the audio or maybe a video with a black blank screen or maybe with some kind of wallpaper it will be taken down.

These are the main point to remember when you want to post copyrighted music on Instagram. And if you are planning for a short length video and the above points work then you are good. You don’t have to worry about copyright issues much. But if you want to post a long-copyrighted music video on Instagram then let’s dig a little deeper.

Also see – Benefits of edu email address.

Checks if you Want to Use Copyrighted Music on Instagram Legally

You can only post music to Instagram if it doesn’t violate intellectual property

Before you do your next post to Instagram, think and ask yourself the question am I violating someone else’s intellectual property rights?

What is intellectual property?

Intellectual property is something that you create with your own brain and that also has commercial value. It’s not an idea, you can’t copyright an idea, but it’s something that you think about. Something that you create, that you spend time on, and that you can fix in a tangible form. Something like a YouTube video that you make, like a song that you sing or like lyrics that you write.

To use copyrighted music on Instagram legally and avoid getting your Instagram post blocked, always think before you post. Ask yourself, “Am I using something someone created with their own brain and I don’t have permission for that?” And if it’s something that you created then you’re ready for check number two.

Protect the music that you created before posting it on Instagram

The best way to protect it is to make sure you write it down, record it in some manner. Maybe use a pen drive, a hard drive, or a CD. Fix it into tangible form and then go to your country’s copyright office via the Internet. In America, we have copyright.gov. You can go to this website and find the performing arts section. Click on “Register a work of the performing arts”. Usually, it costs about $35 or so. In this way, you can protect your song from people who want to use it for commercial purposes.

But how are you protecting it for Instagram purposes? Well if you register your song in your countries Copyright office, then you have clear proof that you are the Copyright Holder of the song. Eventually, after about six months or so, when the application is processed and accepted. You’ll get a hard copy certification of your Copyright for that music. You can use this hard copy to verify that you are the Copyright Holder to Instagram. Then you can make sure that Instagram takes down any unauthorized uses of your music on Instagram.

Penalties on Using Copyrighted Content

There are certain penalties involved in using the copyrighted content. Once you have the certification on copyright on your music, other users will not be able to use copyrighted music on Instagram legally without your permission. They will have to give music credits on Instagram. In the worst case, with a registered Copyright, you can bring someone to court if they have taken your song. You could absolutely bring a lawsuit against them for Copyright infringement. In certain cases, people have recovered up to $150,000 for each violation of your Copyright. You can also collect the attorney’s fees it takes to prosecute the action.

So, it’s a very good idea if you want to post copyrighted music on Instagram that you created. The music you got registered in your country’s copyright office. If you own the music, you’ve got to protect the music. If you don’t then let’s go to the third rule.

Also see – Download best free Google chrome extensions.

You can use someone else’s content only with their permission

Permission doesn’t have to be formal; you could just talk to someone and get their oral permission. Then you’ll to be able to use copyrighted music on Instagram legally. I always advise that you confirm that oral permission in writing with an email a text or a letter. Mention something like, “listen this hereby confirms that you give me the authorization to use your song”. With the creator’s name and the song name. You can also give music credit on Instagram by mentioning the title and creator’s name in the Instagram video. In that way, you’re doubly protected. There will never be a question about whether or not you have permission to use that song in your Instagram post.

Permission can also be formal, for example, you can use the royalty-free music streaming service EpidemicSound.com. You can register with them by paying a certain amount of money each month. In exchange for that, they will give you a license to be able to use their music in any of your videos. With this written agreement you will be protected from getting blocked and will be able to avoid copyright strikes.

Give Credits Even After Getting Permission to be Double Sure

If you have permission from the Copyright Holder or a license from a music royalty-free website, then you can post copyrighted music on Instagram. What I like to do is to be double sure. To avoid Instagram having problems with the music I put in my post, I give credit to the original Copyright Holder in the post itself. In this way, I can use copyrighted music on Instagram legally. I put the name of the song, the artist, the year, and sometimes the music publisher in that actual post. And that way if Instagram ever comes back to me and says, “Hey do you have permission or do you have a license to use that music in your post?” I can say, “it’s right there!”. They can find that and then be sure that I have permission to post copyrighted music on Instagram. If you don’t have permission or a license to use the music that you want to put on Instagram, then you got to go to the next rule.

Also see – How to fix webpage not available error quickly?

You can use music that someone else created if you comply with the doctrine of Fair Use

Fair use is a right that most countries recognize as fundamental. We have a right to create, we have a First Amendment right to get free speech. Judges don’t want to stifle our creativity and so they created this rule, this doctrine called “Fair Use”. It allows us to use the art, the copyrighted music, literary works of others without their permission, if we transform that art and make it our own. You can transform copyrighted music that you want to post on Instagram. Make modifications and alterations; Make the original music barely recognizable in your own art. Then you can just post it anywhere as your own content. It is your own art, your own copyrighted music in this case. And you can use this copyrighted music on Instagram legally.

Fair use is hard to qualify for. Whether it may be on Instagram, on Facebook, on YouTube and it is a difficult walk to walk. However, if you work hard and if you learn some techniques, you will be able to use the fair use doctrine comfortably. Instagram has mentioned in its terms and conditions that you can use the “fair use” rule. Use it to change the content or use a limited part of the music to express your views. Then feel free to post it on Instagram without getting blocked.

Posting other people’s music on Instagram requires either permission or the fair use exception

There are no other ways to post copyrighted music on Instagram account and not get blocked the original copyright holder.

The only time you get to be involved in that is

1. When you get permission from the creator of the content or
2. When you qualify for “Fair Use” by changing the content of the music and making it sound new and different.

Giving credit for the music, that you want to use in your Instagram post is a good idea. But it doesn’t get you around the Copyright infringement hurdle and worse it jeopardizes your Instagram account. So, don’t do it.

This was a short guide on how to use copyrighted music on Instagram legally. If you found this article helpful and you learned something about how to post copyrighted music on Instagram, then do comment and share it.