There’s a very good reason why business are always being told to promote their brand on social networks. Today, everyone has an online presence. People keep spending more and more time on social media each day. There are many social networks which you can use as part of your marketing strategy, however Instagram is currently the top one social network that everyone is using. Sometimes Instagram can be difficult to use for businesses that don’t necessarily fall within the esthetics category like fashion, baking or design. If you’ve been having difficulties using Instagram for your company, read our tips on how to make the most out of this wonderful app.
1. Reach Out to Your Community
Though we strongly believe in being social and not promotional, at the end of the day Instagram is a marketing strategy which you use to connect to your community and engage with others.
Use captions to start conversations. Write active and inviting captions to open up conversations with customers about your posts. Be direct and interesting enough to get their attention and to get them to participate. This is also a great way to receive feedback on your brand and let your followers know you appreciate their input.
Create contests inviting people to use your hashtag. Give away a product by challenging customers to post photos and use hashtags of your brand. Not only will you earn more followers and increase their engagement, you will also reward your most loyal consumers. If you’re new to Instagram, start enhancing your account by purchasing followers quick and easy.
2. Be Creative With Hashtags
Come up with your own hashtag for your brand. Pick something that represents you and your business and always use it when you post images. If you want to show the environment in your workplace, you can use hashtags like culture or lifestyle along with your business name.
When you create a hashtag that represents your business, you’re showing people how you see yourself. Keep in mind that your hashtag will represent the majority of the posts your company will be making.
Besides using your own hashtag, it’s important to use other ones as well. Hashtags allow users to encounter your brand outside your account into communities linked by the keyword you use. Five hashtags are just enough for users to engage with your brand, so make sure the ones you related to your products and business.
3. Present Your Brand
Unfortunately, many businesses out there use their Instagram posts like ads you see on TV. They post photos of their products, their campaign and promote sales without giving it any sense of a proper presentation. Instagram is an app where you show a certain lifestyle, not simply post photos of your products. This means that your posts have to show the real you, they have to show your office, the people you work with and your overall environment. Showing your workplace on Instagram means showing your values and your culture. As the saying goes: be social, not promotional. Take photos of meetings, events and other company activities to let people know what you’ve been up to. Don’t let your profile look boring and full of ads.
4. Enhance Your Photos
Creative photos are crucial social media posts. Don’t just take generic boring photos of your brand, but instead promote it with creative, professional and attention-grabbing photos. Take photos of your employers working, grabbing lunch or even having a laugh. However, make sure people in your photos look natural and not like they’re posing. Also, always take their permission to post images of them on your profile.
Instagram offers a range of filters which you can use to enhance the colors of your photos. Resize your photos for professional quality and use filters to stand out. Lighter, brighter images get much more likes than dark images. Stay consistent with your photos so that your brand can get instantly recognized by your followers. Read our article for this year’s social media images cheat sheet.
5. Track Your Success
Social media, like all marketing, is useless without analytics. Social media management tools can be used to measure your followers, their engagement and click ins. Based on your content results, keep improving your photo and video posts. If particular types of images or hashtags drive tons of engagement, keep using those types of posts. If posting content during specific times of the day gets you more likes and comments, keep on posting during those times of the day.
Some people debate whether using such data is ethical but when when using third-party sites like Instagram, any information you have access to has already been agreed upon by its users. The more information you have about the content your audience engages with, the more you can improve your business’s Instagram strategy, so make sure you’re keeping track with your audience.