Dynasty Magazine - Issue 07

We

all have been here before right? Struggling with INSTAGRAM, is a very scary nightmare and today we have some steps on how to help grow your instagram.

1. Post con-

sistently (at least once a day) Visual marketing tool Tailwind studied more than 100,000 Instagram profiles in 2017 to understand how posting frequency affects follower growth and engagement rate.

They found that the more often you post, the more likes and followers you get.

According to the study, profiles that posted seven or more times a week (or at least once a day) get more likes and gain more followers faster than those that post less frequently.

The key takeaway: Post consistently on Instagram. Brands that get into a regular flow with Instagram posts tend to see the best results.

With Instagram’s algorithmic timeline, consistency feels like a key element to getting your posts seen and appearing at the top of the timeline.

If your posts are shared on a regular basis and picking up good engagement, then our hunch is Instagram’s algorithm may place your posts near the top of your follower’s feeds

2.

Try videos, live videos, and Stories While Instagram started as a photo-sharing network, it has grown beyond just photos. With features like videos, live videos, and Stories, brands can now create many different types of content to engage their fans and grow their following.

Here are a few compelling reasons to try posting these new content types: • The average engagement for videos is growing faster than the average engagement for images3 • When you go live on Instagram, you will appear right at the front of the Stories feed4 • Fifty-seven percent of brands believe that stories have been “Somewhat effective” or “Very effective” as a part of their social media strategy.

3.

Study and use quality hashtags We’ve explored hashtags a lot on the blog, but it seems that nowhere on social media are they quite as important as on Instagram. The right hashtags (and location tag) can expose your image to a large and targeted audience, and Instagram users don’t seem to get hashtag fatigue in the same way they might on other networks.

Due to its popularity, it’s even possible to follow a hashtag now!

Simply Measured did two studies and found that Instagram posts with both hashtags and a location tag get the highest average engagement6 . In other words, hashtags could be your best bet for growing a fast following on Instagram.

While Instagram allows for a maximum of 30 hashtags per post, TrackMaven found that nine hashtags seem to be the optimal number for getting the maximum engagement7 .

With free Instagram tools like Display Purpose, Focalmark, and AutoHash, you can easily get quality, relevant hashtags for your Instagram posts. For instance, with Display Purpose, simply type in a few words about your image and

it’ll recommend the top hashtags to use.

4.

Share user-generated content In a year, we grew our Instagram following by almost 400 percent – from 4,250 to 21,000 followers.

And a large percentage of this growth was a result of us embracing and sharing user-generated content.

The easiest way to think about user-generated content is this: brands taking the best-of-the-best user content from around the web and featuring it on their own social media or other platforms while giving credit to the original creator (user).

At Buffer, we started the hashtags #BufferStories and #BufferCommunity to showcase the unique stories of our users. These hashtags have opened up a huge variety of content options from curated stories of digital nomads to social media tips from marketers.

Besides growing your following, digital intelligence firm L2 Inc found that user-generated content also increases the likelihood of an Instagram follower becoming a customer8

5.

Collaborate with others Another great way to extend your Instagram reach and grow your following is to collaborate with others, either through partnerships or sponsorships.

For example, we once collaborated with Brian Fanzo, founder and CEO of iSocialFanz, by taking over each other’s Instagram Stories. Through the partnership, we were both able to provide value to our own audience and reach a new audience.

If you have the budget for social media sponsorships, then influencer marketing might be suitable for you. Swedish watchmaker Daniel Wellington is a classic example. They grew their Instagram following from 850,000 to 2.1 million followers in one year by sponsoring Instagram influencers9 The Instagram influencers tag Daniel Wellington’s Instagram account in their sponsored post, which drives people to check out Daniel Wellington’s profile. Through this strategy, Daniel Wellington has amassed more than four million followers so far.

If you wish to explore influencer marketing, here’s a quick five-step influencer marketing guide to get you started.

6.

Post at your best times After looking at more than five studies on the best times to post, I learned that there isn’t a universal best time to post on Instagram.

Instead, every brand has its own best times to post. You have yours, too!

Timeliness of a post is one of the major factors in the

7.

Use your analytics One of the key ways to grow your Instagram following is to post high-quality content that your followers like and would engage with.

How do you know what your followers like? Again, Instagram Insights provides the data for you to understand which posts your followers like the most.

• In the Instagram app, tap on your profile photo • Tap on the Instagram Insights (bar chart) icon • Scroll down to the “Posts” section and tap on “See more” • Do you notice any trends?

• Does a certain type of image get more impressions or engagement? Post more of those images and see if your followers

continue to like and engage with them.

• You can even dive deeper into the data by selecting a post and tapping on “View Insights”. For example, I found that, with one of our recent posts, we reached more than 1,700 people who weren’t following us. If they like that post, there’s a high chance that they might end up following us for more similar posts

8

. Engage your fans In the the Explore tab, reaching even more people. And possibly gaining more followers.

A great practice is then to engage your followers by liking or replying to their comments to your posts. Since they took the effort to check out your posts and commenting on them, it feels great to reciprocate by continuing the conversation. Here at Buffer, we use Buffer Reply to easily and

quickly reply our fans on Instagram (Facebook, and Twitter).

10. Cross-post Finally, make sure your existing fans know you’re on Instagram through cross-posting. Instagram makes it simple to share your posts to Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr, which could be a great tactic to get some extra exposure.

And there’s a great advantage to cross-post! A Buzzsumo study of

more than one billion Facebook posts from three million brand pages found that images posted to Facebook via Instagram receive more engagement than natively published images10 One last tactic: How to drive traffic from Instagram?

One of the challenges of marketing on Instagram (and possibly a part of its joy for users) is that you can’t quite add links for your viewers to click.

If you want to send your followers to a specific link, it’s becoming a common practice to change the link in your Instagram profile and add the comment “link in bio” to a corresponding photo or video.

You could also use a tool like Campsite to create a mobile-friendly page where you can list multiple links and associate the links to the respective Instagram post (which you can then link to from your bio) Article by: Courney Seiter

A

rgentine football legend Diego Maradona has passed away at the age of 60 after suffering a heart attack.

The Gimnasia coach had been hospitalised at the start of November, days after celebrating the landmark birthday, after complaining of low spirits and fatigue.

Tests at the La Plata clinic revealed a blood clot on the brain, which doctors later revealed was operated on successfully.

Maradona was subsequently released from hospital as an outpatient to continue his convalescence, which he carried out in his dwelling in a private neighbourhood near Tigre, northern Buenos Aires.

But on Wednesday morning he suffered cardiac arrest, and paramedics at the scene failed to revive him.

The Argentine national team's oďŹƒcial Twitter account confirmed the news on Wednesday, paying tribute to one of the nation's favourite footballing sons.

"You will be eternal in every heart of the football world," the message stated as it bade farewell to the superstar.

Argentina Football Association president Claudio Tapia also expressed his "deep grief "

after learning the news.

Maradona began his professional career with Argentinos Juniors at the age of 16 and went on to be considered one of the greatest players ever to step onto a football field.

The diminutive left-footed forward went on to represent Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli, Sevilla and Newell's Old Boys as a player, and the likes of Racing Club, Dorados, Gimnasia and the Argentina national team later as a coach.

It was with the Albiceleste, though, that his name was immortalised.

Maradona was instrumental in taking Argentina to their second World Cup triumph in that 1986, captaining the team prevailed over West Germany in the final under the stewardship of Carlos Bilardo.

He scored five goals over the course of the tournament to finish second behind England's Gary Lineker in the top scorer rankings, with the pair meeting in a quarter-final match which has entered the annals as perhaps the most iconic, and certainly most controversial, in the World Cup's 90-year

R. I. P 1960 - 2020

history.

The Argentina No.10 scored twice to take down England in a 2-1 victory, the first goal scored with his infamous 'Hand of God' and the second after dribbling around several opponents in what would soon be dubbed the 'Goal of the Century'.

Maradona also helped his nation reach a second consecutive World Cup final four years later, only to fall to West Germany

T

he last time Pep Guardiola took his Manchester City side to Old Trafford in March, he didn’t have a single top-class centre-back to choose from.

With the latest derby just two days away, the Catalan now has three talented defenders performing the top of their games, pushing for a start in a match in which all the focus will be on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his need to get a result after Manchester United's disastrous Champions League exit at the hands of RB Leipzig.

Across the city, it's far more relaxed. City breezed into the last 16 as they made it 475 minutes, and more than five matches, since Guardiola's side last conceded a goal.

Wednesday night’s 3-0 victory over Marseille was their fifth successive clean sheet in Europe, as they qualified from the group stage with a best-ever total of 16 points.

It's a healthy turnaround from last season, when their inability to shut out opponents effectively cost them a shot at Champions League glory, as well as a third successive Premier League title Guardiola could have rotated his entire first team against Marseille, with United on the horizon, but opted to give some players another opportunity to push for a place in the Old Trafford starting line-up.

Aymeric Laporte made his first start in five games against the Ligue 1 outfit after an unusual hiatus for the 26-year-old, who has been City’s most consistent defender since he joined from Athletic Club in January 2018.

The French defender has been left out of the side since the 2-0 defeat to Tottenham in November, which only shows the strength of the options now at Guardiola's disposal.

Ruben Dias has added some leadership and steel to the backline since arriving from Benfica during the summer, with City finally finding their long sought-after replacement for Vincent Kompany.

However, it is the re-emergence of John Stones that has given Guardiola a real selection headache for the clash with United.

The England international was facing an uncertain future at the Etihad Stadium when his form and consistency dipped last season and he lost his place in the national team after high-profile errors in the Nations League.

Against Marseille, however, he came on as a first-half substitute for Eric Garcia and immediately showed the confidence and quality that many previously thought would make him the perfect centre-back for a Guardiola team.

Shortly after his introduction, he strode out of defence with his old belief, shrugging off two

challenges and playing a crisp pass through the lines that immediately turned defence into attack.

Minutes later, he was alert to put in an expertly timed challenge as Valere Germain looked to score from eight yards out, and when City finally edged ahead, Stones and Laporte comfortably kept the French side quiet.

With Nathan Ake also pushing for a start after coming back from injury, Stones believes the competition is driving improvement.

On the eve of the Red Devils' biggest game of the season, their star midfielder's agent came out and declared his client's desire to leave the club Manchester United had just landed in Germany when Mino Raiola’s inflammatory comments dropped.

"It's over for Paul Pogba at Manchester United,” the agent told Tuttosport. “Paul at Manchester United is unhappy, he is no longer able to express himself as he would like and as expected of him.”

We’ve been here in the past with Raiola but the timing in the release of the interview has made it more contemptable than before. The squad were preparing for their biggest game of the season so far, a matchday six, group-stage showdown with RB Leipzig.

Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer requires focus, togetherness and fight from his team to progress through to the knockout stages of the competition. The last thing he needs is one of the squad’s

most high-profile players all but handing in a transfer request.

Less than 48 hours before, Pogba had declared to the club’s in-house television channel: “I’m a team player. As long as the team wins, that’s the most important.”

Of course, it was not the player who gave the interview to the Italian newspaper but he has not said a word since to distance himself from the comments made by his agent. Moreover, those viral Raiola words are not indicative of a player who is committed to doing the best for his team.

United would not comment on Raiola’s latest in a long line of distasteful interjections but the timing of the release of the quotes - on the eve of a decisive Champions League clash and ahead of this weekend’s Manchester derby - has not gone down well with the club’s hierarchy.

It is hard to feel any level of sympathy for a France international who, through his outspoken agent, has consistently placed the club in awkward positions. Earlier in the year, just before a big game against Chelsea, Raiola tweeted about comments made by Solskjaer in a press conference.

In 2018, ahead of a derby, Pep Guardiola revealed he had been offered the chance to sign Pogba through Raiola.

There have also been multiple occasions in which Pogba has gone on international duty and cast doubt on his future at Old Trafford. France manager Didier Deschamps has plenty to answer for in that respect too.

The Music Meastro

www.sirnova.co.za and www.rejuvenating-sounds.podomatic.com, on the last Friday of every month. The show is the platform he uses to exhibit his talent as a deejay and releases the best mixes that are available for streaming as well as downloading proudly mixed by Sir Nova himself.

Most of you are asking who is Sir Nova?

Well we have a mini exclusive about who he is and what makes him tick.

Social Media Sir Nova is the founder and managing Social director of Rejuvenating Sounds(Pty) Media Ltd as he is a deejay that hosts a show on www.sirnopodomatic called Rejuvenating Sounds va.co.za www.

Show which is on rejuvenating-sounds. facebook.com/ podomatic.com, The show is the platform he uses to exhibit his talent as a deejay and sirnovafanpage releases the best mixes that are available for www.instagram. com/realsirnova streaming as well as downloading proudly www.instagram.com/ done by Sir Nova himself. His journey as rejuvenatingsoundssa a deejay started 2011 and in the space of www.twitter.com/ 1 year he started deejaying professionally realsirnova www. during his matric year(2012 where he was appointed to be a resident Deejay at Lapeng twitter.com/rejuvenatingsa Contact Lifestyle in Kriel were he shared the stage Details sirnova@ and opening sets for house giants such as Black Coffee, Culoe Da Song, Black Motion rejuvenatingsounds.com 081 and many more.

543 6426 He has also ventured into having a weekly show called, Turn up Tuesdays where he invites local deejays to come and play a set and it is recorded live on social media, and the show has featured names like; Mac Dee, Zito, Leeroy, JusDaz and Terry. There is no telling what the future holds for this young music magician, but we are sure that it is nothing short of REJUVENATING. The “Rejuvenating Sounds Show� is a feature that is hosted by Sir Nova on

By Edward K. Brown As the world enters the Fourth Industrial Revolution of artificial intelligence, robotics and the internet of things, the challenge for Africa is providing its youth with the knowledge and skills needed for the emerging world of work. The continent has one-fifth of the world’s population aged under 25 and a working-age population that could reach 600m by 2030 – the largest in the world and the youth will form 37 per cent of that population (a bigger proportion than in China). With the right education, training and job-creating policies, this fast-growing population could be a great asset for socio-economic transformation.

But to harness this potential demographic dividend, Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA) must make rapid progress in seizing opportunities and overcoming challenges. At the dawn of a 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) that will feature artificial intelligence, robotics, 3-D printing and the “internet-of-things” (IoT), Africa is far from being ready for the new challenge. This revolution will affect jobs in all sectors, but in phases and to different degrees. Africa is not going to become automated suddenly, but the coming global impact of 4IR makes more urgent the economic transformation SSA already needs in order to maximise its advantages and realise its potential.

The basic policies for transformation include diversification, export competitiveness, higher productivity and technological upgrading. Progress will depend on committed governance, stronger institutions, and how quickly SSA can produce a much better educated and skilled workforce and create decent jobs that keep pace with workforce growth. All this has to be achieved in the new context of climate change and in some parts of the continent an actual climate emergency, demanding policy attention and public investment to sustain progress in all areas of socio-economic activity.

Challenges and opportunities Africa’s approach to the future of work has to begin with current realities. These include “jobless growth”, infrastructure deficits, limited use of modern technology and a workforce that is over 80 percent active in the informal sector, with women overrepresented. Agriculture remains dominant in many countries. In others, services take the biggest share of gross domestic product (GDP). Missing from the usual structural transition is the non-extractive industry, especially manufacturing, which in SSA provides only 6.5 percent of total jobs and in many countries, less than 10 percent of GDP. Workforce quality is another issue – less than a third of adults have finished primary school (compared with nearly all adults in industrialised countries). While around 30 percent of lower secondary school age children enroll, just 35 percent of them complete it (and these averages mask big differences between middle-, low-income and conflict-affected countries). In the school system, there is low proficiency in reading and mathematics, low enrolment in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) and a low proportion of university students per population.

Students are among the 10-12 million youth who enter the SSA workforce each year, yet only three million formal jobs are created (AfDB, 2017). For those who get a job these days, there is often a mismatch between their skillsets and employers’ current needs. In future, this mismatch will get worse, with more job-seekers even less prepared for jobs, which, with technological change, require high levels of critical thinking, writing and other soft skills.

The list of Africa’s challenges is long. The focus, therefore, must be on the strategies, planning and implementation that will transform economies and create decent jobs. Agriculture may be the easiest path to industrialisation through agro-processing, with the abundance of low-wage labour and land. Modernising agriculture means boosting productivity and strengthening linkages with other sectors to improve food security, reduce food imports and increase exports.

Modernising agriculture also stimulates production and service activities along the value chain, providing jobs for young people and higher incomes across the economy.

The advent of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) should spur SSA to capitalise quickly on its opportunities. The continent may have a

decade to boost manufacturing before the cost of robots falls enough to replace human labour in some sectors. Even then, SSA will need to grow and maintain labour-intensive production into the future. With the value of SSA food and beverage markets projected to reach US$1 trillion by 2030, countries can already make inroads into lucrative regional markets by raising production and productivity with upgraded labour-force skills, technology and infrastructure. Basic conditions for the above include better access to land, security of land rights and access to credit and technology.

Besides agro-processing, there is growing opportunity in wood products, garments and leather for labour-intensive local and regional market-focused manufacturing as AfCFTA develops. Automation will come faster in the automobile, electronics, extractives and construction subsectors. These are capital intensive but can create indirect jobs through stronger links to other sectors and promotion of local content and value addition. For example, manufacturing can provide inputs for the extractives sector and spur entrepreneurship and job creation.

SSA has been advised to attain universal lower secondary education, then prioritise the quality and relevance of upper secondary and TVET, before gradually expanding uptake to meet labour demand. It is also recommended that trade-offs must be identified and adapted to specific country circumstances.

Africa’s youth are both an asset and a time bomb. At current trends, nearly half of these vibrant young people will be unemployed, discouraged, or economically inactive by 2025. A well-publicised fraction is migrating, often by dangerous routes, to search for jobs.

More disturbingly, some 40 percent of youth joining rebel and terror groups reportedly cite the lack of economic opportunity as the key motivation.

The lessons for SSA are clear. The demographic dividend is not automatic; it requires strong institutions, policies to create productive jobs and a workforce with appropriate skills. SSA needs to create about 20 million jobs each year until 2035, double the number created in the last five years. It will also need to boost female education and higher labour force participation by women in formal sector jobs as these help lower fertility rates and spur the demographic transition. Currently females are over represented among youth not in education, employment or training.

Africa must prepare for two game-changers: climate crisis and technological revolution. Overcoming the challenges and taking advantage of the opportunities will demand new and higher levels of clarity and commitment from national and regional leadership.

Services may benefit most from 4IR. Already the fastest-growing sector for job creation in most African economies, it could grow by 3.8 percent each year to 2030. But the sector needs modernisation, with upgraded skills and infrastructure to promote 4IR-induced and ICT-based job opportunities, from mobile payments and vending to customer service, sales and human resourcing jobs. 4IR may also hasten formalisation. Fast-growing mobile banking opens up opportunities for self-employed workers and makes it easier for them to access credit and make payments, including of taxes. ICT platforms can also help develop business models amenable to increased youth participation. Examples include linking farmers to markets and service providers (rental of tractors and other equipment) and assuring the packaging and food safety standards that enable access to lucrative international markets.

Keys to the Future for Africa’s Youth The key to unlocking Africa’s potential is a better educated and more highly-skilled workforce. This requires systemic changes from kindergarten onwards. The essential ingredients include: greater access to early childhood education; an empha-

sis on ICT skills and critical thinking from primary level onwards; much higher participation in STEM; much higher participation in upgraded technical and vocational education and training (TVET); and investing in well-paid teachers trained to work with modified curricula to prepare students for the new world of work. Teachers also need training to provide gender-sensitive pedagogy to keep girls in schools.

Countries need to work towards the African Union Agenda 2063 target of 70 percent of high-school graduates entering tertiary education, with 70 percent of them graduating in science and technology related subjects (compared with the current SSA average of 8 percent). This means raising the quality of early STEM teaching and the number of teachers, and expanding access to cost-effective online learning where ICT can deliver STEM subjects through virtual laboratories and simulations, instead of resource intensive, on-site labs.

TVET reform is also critically important, not as a standalone, but as part of a wider economic strategy that focuses on priority sectors and needs, with clear implementation plans that include monitoring and evaluation.

Efforts are underway to

improve TVET in SSA in terms of modern facilities, better pedagogical skills and more practical experience among TVET trainers.

Private sector engagement in designing and delivering TVET is crucial for quality and relevance. TVET must be demand-driven and responsive to market situations. Besides industrial attachments and apprenticeships, students need entrepreneurship training and business literacy. Governments are also looking to the private sector to help fund TVET costs through taxes and levies. The goal is to prepare better-educated youth for productive, formal and informal self-employment, especially along the agribusiness value chain.

Let me confess something to you. I have an unconditional love for color, that is not affected or wavered by what's in trend. I wear whatever colors I feel like, but I do find that looking through the top fashion color trends inspires me to try out different colors with my outfits and at the end of the day, the colors on the runway make it to the stores where we shop from... Also, I must say the spring summer 2020 color trends blew me away and I can't wait to fill my closet with them.

1

. Really Bright Red A beautiful bright scarlet red was seen a lot on the runway. We all love to see it in evening gowns, but what about summer dresses and jumpsuits? I'm on board with this one.

2. Sky Blue Who doesn't love pastel blue or a beautiful sky blue shade? It's also a common color we saw on the runway and it came in different shades and undertones.

3.

Green in all its different shades Ever since last year, green has been so popular in fashion, with all of its many shades and tones. This year a deeper leafy or olive green was seen a lot.

If you struggle with styling green, these outfit ideas are unconventional but totally wearable!

4.

A Soft Coral Pink We're obsessing over this shade. It's such a chic, feminine soft shade of coral that is really flattering on many different skin tones. It is also really practical for casual wear, formal wear and evening looks.

5

. Lavender Another gorgeous shade, especially in pastel.

It's great for spring and perfect for girls that are fans of more muted tones of purple.

6. Classic Blue Pantone's 2020 color of the year was Classic Blue. We're so happy to see all the different interpretations of it on the runway for spring summer 2020.

If you're wondering how to wear Pantone's color of the year...take a look at this .

7. Pastel Yellow These quiet soft tones are really beautiful and easy to find. How stunning is this shade of yellow?

8. Purple Fashion This color is popular with everyone with its different shades and attractive tones, and this year you will find it popular in most stores. You can read this article to learn how to wear it elegantly with various ideas for coordinating the color purple.

9. Beige Although it is seen more as a winter shade, beige is actually turning its head towards spring and summer this year. It's great for a mono-

chrome look or paired with spring shades like light blue hues and definitely denim.

10. White Fashion!

White seems to be very popular in fashion for spring and summer this year. It's a hopeful, fresh neutral that can be worn in endless ways Images by :NOWFASHION Instagram : @thestylestalkercom