If you’re at all tempted to dismiss Instagram as a marketing tool because it got its start as an app for sharing mobile photos, don’t. The truth is that Instagram marketing is growing, and the companies who use it reap huge benefits from their efforts there.
To begin, it may help to know just how big the potential rewards are for using Instagram as part of your marketing strategy.
- As of the end of 2016/early 2017, Instagram has over 600,000 actively monthly users. 400,000 of those visit the site daily.
- As of 2016, 48.8% of all companies were using Instagram for marketing purposes, a number that is expected to increase by nearly 50% by the end of the year.
- Brands that use Instagram for marketing post an average of 4.9 times each week.
- 75% of all Instagram users take action – such as visiting a website, clicking a link, or making a purchase – after viewing Instagram marketing posts.
- Posts that include at least one hashtag perform 12.6% better than posts with no hashtags.
There is no doubt that marketing with Instagram supplies a way for businesses to connect with existing and potential customers. The high level of engagement makes Instagram particularly effective for businesses to reach consumers directly.
Do you want to get things going on Instagram? Here’s a quick checklist to get you started.
- Download the Instagram app onto a mobile device. While you can view Instagram on a computer, you need a mobile device to upload content. You can download it from the Apple app store, Google Play, or the Windows App Store.
- Tap “Sign Up” to enter your email address, or else use Facebook to sign in.
- Choose a profile picture. Make sure to choose a professional and striking image that looks good as a thumbnail.
- Complete your bio. You have only 150 characters, so you may want to avail yourself of the vertical formatting option and use bullet points (or emoji) to describe who you are and what you do. Make sure to add the URL of your website since this is the only place you can include a clickable link.
Once you have finished these four simple steps, you’ll be set up and prepared to start marketing with Instagram.
The next step is to build a following. Here are a few ideas to help you manage that.
- Include an Instagram follow button on your website and blog
- Share a link to your Instagram feed on Facebook, Twitter, and any other social media platforms you utilize for marketing
- Comment on Instagram posts shared by influencers in your industry or even by your fans
- Host a contest or promotion and make sharing your post a criterion for entry
- Share your Instagram posts on Facebook
- Comment on posts shared by other local companies
The general thing you need to do to grow a following is to increase your IG visibility. People might have no idea that you’re on Instagram. But if you share content regularly, keep it relevant, and comment wherever it’s appropriate, people will locate you.
Like Twitter, Instagram allows the use of hashtags to help users find relevant content. Hashtag use is really an art form and it’s important for businesses who market on Instagram to use hashtags effectively. Here are some pointers that can assist you.
- Join in on community events such as #ThrowbackThursday or #ManicMonday to make you a member of the Instagram community. An example of a business throwback might be an early prototype of one of your best products or a snapshot of your grand opening.
- Create a brand hashtag to use on all of your posts. Some companies simply choose the name of their brand as a hashtag, but don’t be scared to get creative with it. One example comes from candy company Kit Kat, who uses the #HaveABreak hashtag on all of their posts.
- You can highlight photos and content that’s especially important to you by tagging it with #PicOfTheDay or #PhotoOfTheDay hashtags.
It’s also an excellent idea to develop campaign-specific hashtags for special promotions and contests. For example, if you wanted to sponsor a contest that requested for your followers to take photos of themselves using your products, you might create a cool hashtag to allow you to track entries – and to allow your fans to view all the entries with ease.
One final tip: you may want to examine trending hashtags and use them, but be cautious. It’s easy to come off as callous if you try to use certain hashtags as a way of promoting your products. For example, you can definitely post a patriotic photo with the #NeverForget hashtag on September 11th, but it would be a huge mistake to attempt to make such a post about your product.
In late summer of 2016, Instagram added a new feature that’s perfect for marketing purposes: Instagram Stories. It’s similar to a feature on Snapchat that allows users to add content (in this case, images or videos) that last for only 24 hours. The content doesn’t appear on your normal Instagram feed, but creating a story can be an effective way to engage with your followers.
- At present, stories appear to get priority, allowing companies a way to “beat” Instagram’s algorithms and connect with a large percentage of their follower base.
- Stories can be used to showcase the development of a product, give your followers a peek behind the scenes of your business, or provide live coverage of an event.
- Stories don’t allow regular commenting, but you can incentivize the people who check out your story to send you a direct message to pose a question or encourage them to visit the link in your bio.
- You can choose one image from your story and post it on your regular feed to attract traffic to your story.
Instagram stories provide a fun and unique way to connect with followers and bring traffic to your website. Many businesses have yet to adopt Instagram Story as part of their marketing strategy, but you can be an early adopter and reap the rewards right now.
Chasing Results
Instagram might have begun as a fun mobile app, but it has transformed into an extremely valuable and powerful marketing tool for companies that understand how to utilize it. If you create a compelling profile, use hashtags properly, and take advantage of new options like Instagram Stories, you can use Instagram to build brand awareness and attract new customers.