Becoming active on social media is the hottest trend these days, but for those of you can’t tell your hashtags from your hash browns, it might be intimidating at first when setting up your business’ social media pages. While most companies have caught on to Facebook, and even Twitter, a lot of people are missing out from tapping into the potential of Instagram. Instagram is a platform that allows people to share content that is only visual in nature – photos and videos.
“And, Instagram is massive – There are 3.5 billion likes taking place per day and 80 million pictures being uploaded daily on Instagram.”
Instagram has over 400 million users according to CNN’s 2015 report. People simply prefer to process information in a visual format these days. Your business could benefit a lot from tapping into this huge Instagram user base, and contrary to popular belief, Instagram is NOT a platform for just fashion or food related interests. So, how exactly do you get started with promoting your business on Instagram? We shall reveal all!
Baby Steps – The Beginning
Once you have created an account name, that is preferably your company name so it is easy to search for, you need to upload a crisp profile photo which could certainly be your company logo or relevant symbol, which will show up as a 150 x 150 pixel circle on most phones. Then, go ahead and add a concise bio, and add your Website’s link. Familiarize yourself with the platform. Check out which photo editing tools and filters you prefer on Instagram, and check out what hashtags and type of content your competitors are using when devising a strategy of your own.
Be Strategic
It is important to have clear goals regarding what you want to accomplish for your business on Instagram through posting photos and videos, and to also have clarity regarding what sort of brand image you want to project because that will dictate the cohesiveness of your content. Make sure you are consistent and that your social media outreach doesn’t start with a bang and then fizzle out a few weeks or months into the process. Have a plan as to how often you will post and what sorts of posts you will use. Do not overdo it by posting more than twice a day, or reposting the same images and videos repeatedly. Audiences usually respond to a mix of content that includes product, lifestyle, events and user-generated posts. After all, variety is the spice of life.
Creative Content
Make sure you post original photos on Instagram. Posting a lot of unoriginal content makes your brand seem less genuine, and it could lead to potential copyright issues if you accidentally share an image that isn’t under creative commons. It is important you also invest time in sharing high-quality images instead of blurry, pixelated photos; no one wants to see boring product shots on a white color background all the time. You need to have a unique visual format you follow that is in line with the brand image you want to project. But, don’t forget to also incorporate smart captions along with your images as a supplement. Instagram is all about being visually stunning and concise with your words.
Mix It Up; Don’t Be Boring
Again, building upon the importance of creative content, make sure you steer clear of becoming boring. That doesn’t mean post random content not related to your brand. Stick to your brand, but try to offer an interesting mix. For example, you can incorporate photo-based contests and reward followers with promotions from time to time to maintain their interest. Don’t try to oversell your products or services with in your face posts. No one likes blatant self-promotion and advertising. You can show off your products and services in a more innovative manner, by involving employees on Instagram, showcasing behind-the-scenes of how your products are made or what is taking place at the office, asking customers to share pictures, too, and by posting exclusive deals, inspirational quotes and alternating between solo photos and collage based image uploads.
“Collage based images get 19% more likes and 22% more comments than non-collage uploads.”
Try experimenting with both filter effects and no-filter images. Do not add links in your Instagram posts in the place of captions or hashtags, because links do not work on Instagram – gotcha, didn’t they? Ha! Don’t be afraid to try out all of Instagram’s features such as geotagging, as well as mentioning and tagging other people.
Hashtag Do’s and Don’ts
Instagram allows people to search for content by keywords/interests, which are known as hash tags (#). When posting content, make sure you pick relevant hashtags that are in line with what you are posting, your industry and brand. Although Instagram has a limit of 30 hashtags, that does not mean you should go ahead and pick 30 tags – that makes you come across as very desperate actually, and that is not a good impression to give. Try to limit your hashtags to 3-5, and don’t you dare use the wrong hashtags. For example, if you are selling a product, don’t use #ThrowbackThursday or #TBT. Social media users are very savvy these days and don’t have much tolerance for deception. Do not underestimate their intelligence.
The most popular tags are – #love, #instagood, #me, #tbt, #cute, #photooftheday, #instamood, #iphonesia, #picoftheday, #igers, #girl, #tweegram, #beautiful, #instadaily, #summer, #instagramhub, #follow, #iphoneonly, #igdaily, and #bestoftheday.
Know When to Post
Every second, there are 575 likes and 81 comments happening on Instagram, on average. But, it isn’t as random as you think. Statistics indicate Monday at 5pm PST and Wednesday and Thursday at 3pm PST are the best times to post on Instagram. Photos are most active within the first 3 hours –in fact, 69% of comments happen within this duration.
Be Social on Social Media
Simply posting content isn’t going to get the job done. If you are on social media, you need to be precisely that – social. Don’t forget to interact with Instagram users, both your current followers and potential followers whom you can track by searching through the hash tag filters we discussed earlier. Engage your audience by commenting on your own posts and posts of others. If you comment on other people’s photos they are more likely to follow you by 401%. Follow some of your followers back, too – that also increases the number of likes and followers you’ll receive in return. It is very symbiotic, you see.
Advertising Options: Instagram has three advertising options-
1) sponsored photo ads
2) sponsored video ads
3) carousel ads (multiple photos can be swiped through instead of just one photo in the advertisement)
Integrate: Don’t forget to link your Instagram account with your company Facebook page, and to also embed your Instagram posts to your Website. Roughly 20% of Instagram users are on Facebook, too, and there is at least a 3% chance of Facebook friends following you if they see an Instagram post on your Facebook page.
And, there you go – now you have your very own Instagram guidebook to make your social media outreach efforts simpler. While you can dedicate a team to focus on social media marketing, as you can see there are a lot of nuances that go into harnessing social media platforms to the best capacity. And, it is time-consuming. Small businesses often don’t have the bandwidth or expert know-how to incorporate social media into their plans effectively, which is why full service advertising agencies offer cost-effective packages to take away the burden of training and setting-up an in-house social media team. Feel free to get in touch with us and find out how we can help your brand and promote your business strategically.
