You know I love talking about YouTube Ads… but today I want to take you onto a different platform that's quietly become one of the fastest ways to generate leads & build real relationships with your ideal clients: Instagram.
I recently sat down on the Marketing Minds Podcast with Harrison Colly, a B2B go-to-market expert who has generated over 1 Billion views across his clients on Instagram & 8-Figures+ in revenue directly from the platform.
We “nerded out” on the exact playbook he installs for businesses doing anywhere from $3M to $500M+ per year… & I walked away with so many golden nuggets that I had to break them down for you right here.
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Here's a Sneak Peek at What's Inside This Email:
✅ The “Capture, Keep & Convert” Framework for turning content into clients
✅ How to set up your Instagram Profile to build instant trust & authority
✅ The exact Content Cadence to post (Reels, Carousels & Stories)
✅ Why selling in the DMs “prints money” – & the simple 4-Step DM Framework
✅ The “Trial Reels” hack that gives you FREE advertising on Instagram
Alright, let's Dive In…
Watch The Full Video on YouTube:
Why Instagram Plays by a Different Set of Rules
The first thing Harrison helped me understand is that Instagram & YouTube are fundamentally different machines.
YouTube (& Google) are search-based, intent-driven platforms. Someone looks something up, & your content shows up to answer it.
Instagram is the opposite. It's an interest-based, interruption-based platform. Nobody is searching for your Reel – it just appears in their feed, & you have a split second to stop the scroll.
That changes everything. Because Instagram isn't a search platform… it's a reputation platform.
It's shorter, more human & more relational. Over time, you're not just posting content – you're building a world & a reputation that people come to know, trust & want to be a part of.
That's the lens to keep in mind for everything that follows.
The “Capture, Keep & Convert” Framework
Here's where it got fun, because Harrison's signature framework is almost identical to the one I teach for YouTube (it's amazing how the best marketers independently arrive at the same core principles).
He calls it Capture, Keep & Convert – & it applies to every single piece of content you post:
✅ Capture – Your hook. The first 3 seconds. This is where the majority of your effort should go, because if you don't stop the scroll, nothing else matters.
✅ Keep – The body of the content. Why is someone staying? What are they actually getting in return for their attention?
✅ Convert – The action. Do you want them to follow, comment, DM you, or click? (& yes – a like or a share counts as a conversion on short-form content too.)
Every post should live inside one of these three buckets… & ideally, a great piece of content does all three at once.
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Optimize Your Profile FIRST (Your “Business Card”)
Before you create a single piece of content, Harrison says to start with your profile – because it's the “business card” everyone sees first. Three pieces matter most:
Your Bio. Don't try to sell here. Instead, clearly state three things: who you work with, how you help them & your authority for helping them. A simple call-to-action like “DM me [keyword] for my free playbook” works far better than a hard pitch.
Your Link. The link in your bio should build trust, not sell. Point it to your YouTube channel, an authoritative website, or your Trustpilot reviews – anywhere that makes a new visitor think “oh wow, this is the real deal.”
Your Story Highlights. This is where most businesses leave money on the table. Harrison recommends three types:
✅ A “Public Journal” – your honest thoughts on your industry, market & customers
✅ Social Proof – case studies, client wins & transformations (remind people you're a winner!)
✅ Your Story – how the business started, why you do what you do & what makes you different
The magic? These Highlights compound over time into “asset libraries” & time capsules – so a new follower can watch years of your growth in 2-second snippets.
What to Actually Post (& How Often)
This is the question I get asked constantly about every platform, so I made sure to pin Harrison down on a real cadence. For a B2B brand, here's the balance he recommends:
✅ Reels – Every Day. This is your main content engine.
✅ Carousels – Once a Week. Treat these like a mini sales letter with high production value. They're excellent for lead gen (more “time under attention”) & they run great as ads.
✅ Stories – 3x a Day. A simple formula: two social-proof posts & one reflection/thought post. Do this every day for a month & your audience starts to think “wow, this person is winning ALL the time.”
& for your Reels, there are really only two types you need to make: clipped content (slices of podcasts, videos, or conversations) & talking-head content (scripted to a teleprompter OR casual selfie-style – whatever fits your brand).
The best part? Harrison argues Instagram is actually the least overwhelming platform. You don't need to dance like on TikTok or produce like on YouTube. Pick your style, decide what's sustainable (start with once a week!), & put the majority of your energy into the Hook.
Why Selling in the DMs “Prints Money”
This was one of my favorite parts of the conversation. Harrison is a master at DM selling, & his reasoning is simple: it's relational, personal & high-trust… which is exactly what you need for anything B2B or high-ticket.
Unlike a sales call, the DMs give you a strong feedback loop AND the ability to curate every message (you can even have a manager review responses over your shoulder). It's the best of both worlds.
His simple 4-Step DM Framework looks like this:
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Introduce the Subject – “Is this something you actually want to talk about?”
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Qualify – Are they the right type of person for what you offer?
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Identify the Problem – “We help people solve X… does that sound like your situation?”
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Offer the Solution – help them solve the problem they just told you they have.
Done right, the prospect never feels “sold.” They just feel like they had a genuine conversation about solving a problem you both care about. (One client of his is generating over $800K/month off DM leads alone using this approach.)
“Trial Reels” = FREE Advertising
If there's one tactic from this episode that blew my mind, it's Trial Reels.
A Trial Reel is an Instagram Reel that's only shown to people who DON'T already follow you. It doesn't appear on your main profile – it goes straight to a brand-new, cold audience.
Why is this such a big deal? Because you can post 10, 20, even 30+ versions of a piece of content without “punishing” your account or fatiguing your followers. Then you simply find the winner & promote it to your main page with a few clicks.
It's essentially free advertising & free split-testing rolled into one. Harrison uses it to test different hooks & edits, get raw feedback from an unbiased cold audience, & pick up new followers along the way.
As Harrison put it, Trial Reels are “a paid advertiser's understanding of organic content.” & as someone who lives & breathes paid ads, that's exactly why I love it.
A Few More Golden Nuggets
Because we always reward the people who read all the way through, here are a few more gems Harrison dropped:
✅ Pin 3 Posts at the Top – one for who you are, one for what you do & one for who you work with.
✅ The Hooks Working Right Now – “Situation-Based” hooks (“If you keep fighting with your kids, here's what I've learned…”) & “Disqualifier” hooks (“If you're not already doing $50K/month, this isn't for you…”). The old ICP call-out hooks are fading.
✅ Use ManyChat + ChatGPT – build an automated DM survey that scores & qualifies leads, then routes them to a payment link or a sales call automatically.
✅ Know Your DM Math – because sales is math. If 1,500 DMs = one $10K sale, you suddenly have a predictable, repeatable game plan.
Watch the Full Episode on YouTube:
Harrison & I went WAY deeper in the full conversation – including his journey from photographing small-town hotels to advising businesses doing up to $500M+ per year, his honest take on AI clones (& where he's bullish vs. bearish), & the “trinity” of traffic every business should be building (word of mouth, paid & organic content working together as one unstoppable flywheel).
This is a true masterclass on Instagram for B2B, & I can't recommend it enough:
Watch the Full Episode on YouTube! (Click Here)
Watch The Full Video on YouTube:
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