The 5 post types that work and the 7 that don't

Yesterday you diagnosed your account. Today you build the new content menu. We are going to identify the 5 post types that consistently get above-average reach for local businesses and the 7 categories you should stop posting tomorrow.

The 5 post types that work:

1. Behind-the-scenes process. A 20-second Reel of you making the croissant, building the bouquet, finishing the haircut, mixing the cocktail. People watch process content to feel like an insider. Engagement: 4-7x your average. The trick: zoom in tight, no talking, use trending audio.

2. The "if you know, you know" local landmark Reel. You at the coffee shop down the street, you eating at the rival restaurant, you on the famous bench in the park. Geotag aggressively. This is the single fastest way to grow a local audience because the algorithm shows it to people who follow that landmark.

3. The educational carousel. 6-10 slides teaching something your customer wants to know. "5 mistakes I see new yoga students make" or "How to choose the right shade of foundation" or "Why your sourdough is dense (and the fix)." Saves: 8-12% of reach, which is exceptional.

4. The customer feature. Photo or video of a real customer, with permission and a quote. Tag them. They share it to their story. Their audience sees your business. Conversion to follower: 3-5% of their audience.

5. The owner-on-camera Story take. 30-second selfie video of you talking about something happening today. Today's special, today's mood, today's behind-the-scenes drama. Builds parasocial connection, which is what makes followers walk in the door. Frequency: 3-5 a day.

The 7 categories to stop posting tomorrow:

1. "Happy Friday!" / "Happy Monday!" generic posts. Zero algorithmic signal. Zero customer impact. Stop immediately.

2. Reposted quote graphics. Algorithm specifically deprioritizes reposted content. Customers also scroll past instantly.

3. Stock photos of your industry. A stock photo of pizza on a pizza shop account is invisible. The algorithm recognizes stock and downranks.

4. Posts with no caption or a single emoji. The caption is where you stop the scroll. A blank caption is a missed conversion.

5. Single-image posts of your physical product on a white background. Save these for your website. Instagram wants context — your product in someone's hand, in a customer's home, in your shop.

6. Cross-posted TikToks with the TikTok watermark. Algorithm specifically downranks content with competing platform watermarks. Re-export from TikTok without the watermark, or shoot natively in Instagram.

7. "Link in bio" posts asking people to click without a hook. If the only call to action is "link in bio," fewer than 0.5% click. Reframe as a Story with a link sticker.

The 70/20/10 rule: - 70% of your content should be value (entertainment, education, behind-the-scenes) - 20% should be community (customer features, local landmarks, collabs) - 10% can be direct sales (specials, new arrivals, promotions)

Most small business accounts are inverted: 70% sales, 20% generic filler, 10% value. Flip the ratio and your reach doubles in 6 weeks. We've seen it 200+ times.

The "no idea what to post" fix. Open your phone's notes app. Set a daily reminder for 8 AM: "What is one thing a customer asked me yesterday?" Write the question. That is your post idea. Customers' real questions are the highest-converting content you can make because if one person asked, 50 people are wondering.

The visual quality bar. You do not need a DSLR. You need: - Good light (natural light from a window beats $500 of artificial lighting) - A clean background (your kitchen is fine if it's not cluttered) - Vertical 9:16 framing for Reels (this is non-negotiable — horizontal Reels get crushed in distribution) - Steady hands (a $15 phone tripod fixes this)

Your output goal for this week: 2 Reels, 2 carousels, 1 customer feature, 14-21 Stories. Total active time: about 90 minutes of shooting and 60 minutes of editing across the week.

Tomorrow: the Reel formula. We dissect three Reels that took local businesses from 800 followers to 8,000 in 90 days and extract the structural pattern they all share.