How to Write Engaging Instagram Captions That Drive Action
Even though Adam Mosseri and the gang over at Instagram HQ are trying to get all of us to make TikToks, er, “video content” the reality is captions still matter. It’s entirely possible to have a Reel go viral and not get a single sale, DM, or even an email signup. Because at the end of the day, if the caption isn’t strong, people will go right back to scrolling.
So how do you make your Instagram captions do more of the heavy lifting when it comes to boosting engagement and selling your services? You write captions like a copywriter would. You create a strong hook, give them reasons to believe, and give them one very clear call-to-action. Whether you’re creating brand awareness, promoting a product, spotlighting your services, growing your email list, or selling an offer, you need a framework that stops the scroll.
Let’s break it down piece by piece.
Start with a strong hook
The first line of your caption has one job. It has to get people to read the next line. And the next line needs to make you read the one after that and so on. Without words or emojis that capture attention, your post might as well be invisible.
So. If you have 5 minutes to create a caption, spend 4 of them on that first line. It’s the billboard, the subject line, the newspaper headline. It has to start answering the question “What’s in it for me?” Because let’s be honest, we’re all completely overwhelmed by the firehose of content we consume every day. We simply don’t have the time to thoroughly read through every single caption in the feed, right? (And if you do? Please share your secret with me immediately!)
Next time you’re in need of a hook, try one of these:
The call-out: “This you? 👀”
The hot take: “I’m gonna get some heat for this but…”
The list: “8 Ways to [result they want]”
The question: “Are you struggling to create engaging captions?”
The open loop: “So I’m sitting there, barbecue sauce on my titties…”
Give them a reason to read on
The best way to keep people reading after you grab them with the first line is to deliver value. Remember that value takes many forms. It isn’t always how-tos and tutorials. Entertainment is valuable. If you can get them laughing, you’re delivering value. There’s also something valuable about feeling seen. So if you create copy that makes your audience feel less alone, or make someone feel better about a perceived problem, you’re delivering value.
It’s especially important to write like a human being when creating captions. Infuse your content with your unique voice. This is also important if you create a lot of voiceover or talking head video. When people are familiar with the way you sound, they “hear” you captions in your voice, creating an additional connection point.
As you’re writing, remember to follow your story and/or relatable tidbit with a phrase that makes it clear why you’re sharing this information. You can even keep the phrase “and that’s why” in your head as you write. Think of it as a way to tie everything together. Show why they need to work with you. Or how their life gets better with your product or service.
Wrap up with a clear next step
They’ve hung in for this long — don’t leave ‘em hanging! Give them a CTA (call-to-action). CTA is a fancy marketing term that basically means “tell them what you want them to do next.” There are essentially two types of CTAs relevant to Instagram captions: engagement and traffic.
Examples of CTAs for engagement are things like follow, like, share, save, tag, etc. They help build engagement on your account, which helps you reach more people.
CTAs for traffic ask your reader to move away from the post. These actions are things like “sign up for my newsletter at the link in bio” or “DM me to set up a call” or “RSVP to my event.” They’re less about your Instagram account and more about getting folks a little closer to actually working with you.
One word of caution about CTAs: be careful you don’t have more than ONE. It gets confusing when you ask a detailed, think-y (that’s a word, right?) question, tell them to drop the answer in the comments, then hit them with the “book your discovery call at the link in my bio.” No. Slow it down. Stay focused on just one action per post.
Examples of effective captions
Who doesn’t love a real-life example? Here are some accounts that really crush their Instagram captions, highlighting what they’re doing well.
Marykay knows her audience. Although this account is for her Airbnb, she does an alpaca education series where she shares cool stuff about these extremely cute animals. She starts off with a scroll-stopping facts and wraps up with a clear CTA.
Totally Taryn Social helps brands create a socially conscious social media strategy. This is a great first line. Some people will just read the graphic and move on. But the people who are genuinely interested will read through the whole caption. Nice!
Joi is a coach for multi-passionate creatives. Here, she starts with an intriguing question and then delivers tons of value to her audience.
I created a set of caption templates coaches and course creators can use to write engaging Instagram captions like these! Snag the set of 25 right here.
Captions don’t have to be long and involved to be effective. Laura runs a social media agency and often shares brand partnerships with her audience. Here she’s just sharing some extremely (painfully!) relatable content that shows her audience she “gets” them.
This is the kind of straightforward post I always forget to write! Kay starts out with a song lyric everyone (well, almost) recognizes and then lets people know exactly how they can work with her. She finishes by telling them how to get in touch if they’re ready to take the conversation a little further!
Now let’s recap
Creating Instagram captions that drive action takes time but as long as you include the essentials, you’ll see results. Start strong, give them a reason to keep reading, tie it to what you do, and close with a clear call to action. You got this!
