Stepping away from Social Media marketing: why I love my fixed- 9- grid on Instagram

There seems to be a tasty little shift in small business marketing at the mo.

I’m seeing small business owners tryna show up on social media consistently, jumping through the various hoops and spinning. all. the. plates. All for a billionaire to flick a gnarled finger and boom, the platform changes, or the platform is banned, or the algorithm changes, the ethics change. (Not to mention all your pretty content gets messed up ruining literal years of careful curation.)

I’m seeing lots of posts about small businesses stepping away from social media all together, focusing on just one platform, or just (justifiably) complaining about it all.

I’m also seeing lovely service providers offering workshops and programmes in long- form writing. (I’d love to do this in the future because I’m honestly great at teaching* and looooooove writing blogs and newsletters**, but now’s not the time.)

Since you “own” your blogs and email lists, investing time and money into things you have control over (rather than social media marketing) is a really good idea.

As well as delicious long- form writing, there’s another marketing solution which cuts down on social media: the fixed- 9- grid on Instagram. My favourite thing online since that little girl said “it’s always Halloween in my soul”.

*not a brag, I was a teacher for 10 years and literally taught teachers to teach.

**Also can we celebrate women confidently voicing what we’re good at, like Ilona taught us.

Why I personally opted for a fixed- 9- grid on Instagram

I too find social media marketing a bit tricky, for all the reasons above, but also because I’m not really social media-y. I really overthink what to post and when. I don’t respond quickly enough to “trends” so I often feel left behind. I enjoy creating content, but I become bogged down in perfectionism. I’m kinda set up to fail since I don’t have a business which lends itself to video production. There’s no jazzy products or events- it’s just me and my laptop and my unbrushed hair.

Back in 2023, I realised I was not enjoying showing up online. I was spending A LOT of time and energy making really pretty carousels and overly thought-out LinkedIn posts only to get 2 likes and a “love this!” comment. I wanted to use that time reaching out to dream agencies, or going to networking events, or writing blogs for myself, or working on client copy. We only have so many hours in a day, after all. (*cough* Molly Mae comment *huge eye roll*)

Inspired by other fixed- 9- grid Instagrammers, I made my own fixed- 9- grid. I loved it then, I love it now, and I haven’t looked back.

Why social media marketing can feel like an unwinnable game

I’m not saying everyone’s experience is like this, of course. But I think lots of small business owners do feel like this, at least sometimes.

• I’d feel resentful own how much time I’d spend hunched over my phone creating content, posting content, scheduling content, and engaging with others’ content. I became a copywriter to, well, write.
• I’d feel disheartened after spending all that time into creating content to get maybe get a few likes, a couple of emojis as comments, or even spammy “send on @botaccountname!”.
• If a post didn’t do “well”, it’s inevitably my fault. If my post had had a better hook in the caption, or the right hashtags (lol, remember hashtags?), or a better image, or if it was more honest, or educational, more controversial, or more vulnerable, then it would have performed better, right? I just wanted to write for people, not create content.
• It’s pretty frustrating to love a post I’d made, or know that it was valuable and useful, only for it to disappear after a few days. Instagram needs fresh content, like vampires need fresh high school students.
• I found it demoralizing to carefully create content to represent my business and expertise which was shown to no one. And then a random post about dinner was shown to thousands. There’s no rhyme or reason or control.
• It was irritating for me to learn the ‘latest tips and tricks’ of Instagram hacks only for them to never really make a difference.
• It’s unreliable AF- blurry images, misaligned carousels, cropped pictures, glitchy reels, un-synced audio, lost drafts, and generally annoying shenanigans
• I did not enjoy being at the mercy of a mythical algorithm. It’s unpredictable, deliberately unclear, and has one agenda- to keep people consuming content and creating content on the app for as long as possible. That way they see more advertising, and make the owners of Instagram more money.
• It’s a highlight reel which adds pressure of putting a positive spin on everything, meaning its hard to show up authentically, professionally, and honestly
• Comparisonitis is real- there are accounts with more followers, slick content, consistent posting which you can unfavourably compare yourself to.
• Not posting because of overwhelm or being busy or because I was sick of it, but then panicking or feeling guilty that I was dropping balls. A constant pressure that I “should” be posting.

It wasn’t fun and it wasn’t working.

Also, I want to mention, that getting low or no engagement doesn’t mean no business. Lurkers might not comment or like, but they still take notice. They might still buy from you or book you and never show up in your “insights” or notifications. It showed me how much emphasis I was putting on social media data when it’s only a fraction of the picture.

Even knowing this I couldn’t help feeling if I was putting tons of time, creativity, and energy into my content I wanted the dopamine pay-off of engagement.

The pros of the fixed- 9- grid on Instagram

So, with weight of social media marketing negativity weighing on me, I realised I had to make a change. I’ve spent quite a bit of time in therapy (thank you, grief) and one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that I can walk away from anything which isn’t serving me. Self- protecting boundaries aren’t nice to have, they’re essential. And, they don’t happen by accident, they happen with intentionality.

What do I want? What does that look like? What are the steps I need to take to create that reality?

When it came to setting some boundaries with Instagram, I strongly considered walking away from it entirely. But, I do enjoy posting on stories, and seeing other small business owners’ stories. I do get enquiries from Instagram, and I believed I could find a balance.

This is where the fixed- 9- grid on Instagram really appealed to me. All the examples I saw had the same things in common

• They are pretty AF
  Well- designed and attractive, the fixed- 9- grid has a main “mood board” vibe over the 9 posts, but then each square was its own design too.
• They are on- brand
  The fonts, the colours, the pictures, the attention to detail, the tone of voice in the captions- they’re a perfectionist’s dream. What a way to show off a business!
• They are interactive
  Personally, whenever I saw a post on my “For You Page” which was clearly part of a fixed- 9- grid I instinctively wanted to see the rest of the posts.
• They are very high- quality
  Instead of the hamster wheel of producing 5+ posts a week, there are “only” 9 posts to make. The business owner can take their time to really polish the design and the copy.
• They are mini- sales pages (kinda)
  Each individual post works with its neighbour. Not just visually, but as you read through each post, they get more persuasive and informative. Each fixed- 9- grid on Instagram is like a little sales funnel.
• They are easy to navigate
  Have you ever tried to find a great post you once saw? If you forgot to save it, you’ve got no choice but to scroll through all months of posts. Not with a fixed- 9- grid. Everything’s right in one place.
• They were DONE
  Perhaps the best positive of them all. Nine lovely, detailed posts and then no more. No trends, no new tricks, no new hoops to jump through. Just some effective content, and a big tick on the ‘to do’ list.

The best thing I’ve found with choosing a fixed- 9- grid on Instagram is the peace. I am no longer constantly coming up with interesting ways to photograph myself typing, or trying to make semi- colons sound interesting in a “how to use” carousel, or trying to explain complex copywriting knowledge (like tone of voice) in squashed little captions and jazzy little graphics. Every bloody week.

The cons of the fixed- 9- grid on Instagram

You could call me Casper because I’m transparent AF. A fixed- 9- grid on Instagram is not all easy peasy.

A fixed- 9- grid means you aren’t going to reach new audiences, and you aren’t going to get much engagement. Unless you create reels (which you don’t have to post to your profile) and stories, your account’s going to be stagnant. This is a good thing if you want those boundaries I mentioned earlier. This is not a good thing if most of your business enquiries or sales come from Instagram.

A fixed- 9- grid on Instagram might NOT be for you if:

• You regularly launch products or services
• You rely on boosted posts or ads
• You make and/ or sell gorgeous products, since you’ll always have new products and seasonal angles to post about.
• you have a physical shop, because you have the perfect setting for capturing content and posting about your location is important, so people find you
• You host events. There’s so much opportunity to capture fresh content. You also need to promote these events so people come to the next one.
• You’re in the wedding industry. There are always new trends, unique couples, great (professional!) photography and video, and seasonal changes to post about.
• You’re a florist. You have a huge amount of knowledge of seasonal flowers to share, as well as advice on how to work with flowers. You probably have a shop and sharing your location is a great idea. Simply recording your hands assembling flowers is going to get traction. The best thing is that flowers are so pretty. There couldn’t be anything as wonderful to capture! A little caption saying “get these delivered by heading to our website…” or “today in [specific shop location] it might have been raining outside but then sun was shining inside” with a shot of some sunflowers… DREAMY.
• You run classes or workshops. Again, you have loads of chances to get footage and to show exactly what happens at the sessions. The location, the equipment, the accessibility. You need people to come along so promoting this on Instagram and tagging people who attended is a great opportunity to get engagement.
• You are an artist what you do is naturally visual and will stand out amid all the pictures of brunch and the lip sync dance reels. Capture footage of your hands working, post about your inspiration, show works- in- progress, reveal complete pieces, share when you go to galleries, talk about your upcoming shows/ discounts/ sales processes.
• You’re a photographer. Like artists, photographers have a huge advantage with content on Instagram. Everything you do is the highest quality- you’re literally an image expert. Show off before and after editing, little galleries of recent shoots, posing advice, little videos of shoot days, and intros/ explanations of your equipment.
• You have a podcast, it makes sense for you to post regularly on your grid. You’re already using your time to record your voice. Set up a camera and capture some clips. Bingo! Instant reels. Use text- to- speech software to create your captions. You want more listeners, right? So, post your clips/ reels to your stories with a Spotify link.

Have I forgotten any? What other types of business are naturally aligned with consistent content creation? (i.e., not businesses like freelance copywriters who sit still at their laptop all day, wearing a dressing gown and either typing away or staring out the window thinking and ignoring the once- hot cup of tea next to them…)

How I made my fixed- 9- grid on Instagram

Cards on the proverbial, it was a lot of work. But then once it was done… I could just forget about it for 6 months.

Here’s my quick how to, but lemme save you some time straight away. If you don’t love design or you don’t feel excited about making your grid, please considering hiring a designer. Since you’ll only have 9 posts, they need to be gorgeous and make the best first impression. Likewise for the copy, hire a copywriter if you aren’t sure what to write about. This is about making your life easier, remember?

1. Do some research and note down what you like and dislike about fixed- 9- grids. Screenshot your favourite few. Not to copy, obviously, but for inspiration.
2. At this stage approach a copywriter and/ or designer if you’re going to. If you’re going solo, choose your favourite design software. Canva, Studio, or Adobe, if you’re well good.
3. I recommend you begin with paper and a pen. Draw your fixed- 9- grid and work out what the overall image/ concept is. (my concept is a realistic open notebook with handwriting, scribbles, post its, polaroid photos, washi tape, highlighted sections, and paper clips. It’s basically a Instagram version of my real desk.)
4. Write the captions for the individual posts. Think about which will be carousels, which will be reels, and which will be single photos. You’ll want some version of:
   1. Who you are/ why you are qualified
   2. What you do
   3. Where you are
   4. Who you do it for
   5. What difference you make
   6. What makes you stand out
   7. Pricing, if you can share it (or at least your approach to pricing)
   8. Some social proof/ evidence you’re really good at your job
   9. Next steps
5. Create the overall image in your design software, making sure each section link to what the caption will be. For example, a bit of your design which shows a photo of you naturally links to the “about you” caption.
6. Tweak, edit, tweak again. Here’s where you get the design and copy just right. Ask some trusted small business owners for their opinion.
7. Use an image splitter to cut your finalised design into 9 individual posts.
8. Post the image and the relevant caption to Instagram, starting with the last image in the fixed- 9- grid. The one in the bottom right corner.

That’s it! Couldn’t be easier, right? I think the first time I created a fixed- 9- grid on Instagram, it took me about 3 months. There were many designs, many versions. That was June 2023. The second time I did a fixed- 9- grid it was January 2025. It was an updated version of the first one and it took a couple of days. Ideally, I’d update it every 6 months or so.

Overall, here are my thoughts on the fixed- 9- grid on Instagram

I reckon my fixed- 9- grid on Instagram is fab and I’m really happy I have one.

It fits with my type of business, and it means I have time and energy focus on other types of promotion. Ultimately, I want my ideal audience (lush small business owners) to come to my website and read the copy before booking a call with me. Writing blogs are a far better use of my time than posting a jazzy graphic which’ll get lost in a sea of other jazzy graphics.

I know exactly how to get “results” on Instagram. In 2023 I spent about three months posting 5 times a week. I spent hours batch creating content in a spreadsheet and I paid a VA to schedule it for me. As you would expect, my account grew, my engagement was high, Instagram showed my account to lots more people. I got Instagram “results”. But… Real results are not likes and comments and followers.

Real results are business enquiries. And I didn’t get any more of those.

I know getting results from content creation is about the long game. Way longer than three months. But I believe if I’d spend those three months writing blogs and newsletters, pitching to agencies, and attending networking events, I would have had far more business.

The fixed- 9- grid on Instagram gives me the best of both worlds. I have a “presence” on Instagram where are the lovely small business owners are AND I have the headspace, time, and energy to promote my copywriting business in other, more effective ways.

Pop me an email if you have any fixed- 9- grid questions, or a DM on Instagram! I’m always happy to help.