How to use Instagram for Effective Marketing?
Content may still be king, but great images have become a very worthy queen! In today’s age of visuals and sharing, Instagram is quickly outstripping other social media platforms when it comes to engagement, especially among the younger demographic.
Statistics from September 2015 indicate that 400 million people use Instagram. There’s one obvious conclusion – brands today need to maintain a clear and active presence on this platform, and capitalize on its sheer reach and engagement levels to maximize their marketing effectiveness.
Helpful Tips to Maximize Your Instagram Presence and Engagement
With Instagram, your strategy should be about personally engaging with your audience and creating genuine interest in your brand, rather than using it for sales and promotions.
Post Only the Best Photos and Videos
Instagram is for photos and videos. Consider the kind of product you’re dealing with and choose whether an image or a video would be more relevant to your brand and your audience and post accordingly. Post frequently but not so much that you flood peoples’ timelines – aim for when your followers are most active. Above all, make sure it’s of excellent quality, with relevant content and hashtags to round it out!
Use Hashtags
Hashtags are a crucial part of your Instagram post, as it is the quickest way in which users can search for and find content they’re looking for. Use as many hashtags as is relevant to your post’s content, especially existing hashtags, to draw the right audience to you and encourage them to follow you. Check out what’s popular in your industry. Instagram allows up to 30 hashtags, but go for quality over quantity.
Stay updated on the trending hashtags; if they’re relevant to your brand or your content for the day, make use of these time-bound opportunities to make your content discoverable.
Connect with Other Social Media Platforms
Share your Instagram posts across your other social media accounts like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, etc. to widen your reach and make your content accessible to your entire universe of contacts. This will also lead your contacts from one platform to join you on others.
Use an Editorial Calendar
While you can view content and engage with your followers from a laptop, actual updates require a smartphone or tablet. Especially when you’re used to laptops, transitioning to posting updates from a mobile device (more so if you have multiple Instagram accounts) becomes easier when you schedule it with an editorial calendar.
Engage with your Followers
Now that you have them, make sure that you keep them. Start conversations, follow them back and respond to their comments. This shows that you’re paying attention to what they have to say and that you care that they’re following you and looking at your content.
Capitalize on User Generated Content
Boost engagement with your followers by involving them in your campaigns. Ask them to post images relevant to your brand (like them using your product or visiting your store) with matching hashtags. Not only does it create content for you that is also visible to their followers, it serves as a great way to show your followers you value them.
At the end of the day, remember you’re engaging with a young, energetic, demanding audience. Keep it real, keep it fresh, and have fun with it!
Sources:
• 10 Tips For Successful Instagram Marketing
• 13 Instagram Marketing Tips From the Experts
• 5 Simple & Effective Instagram Marketing Tips for Businesses
On Target provides social media marketing consulting and campaign management to companies in diverse sectors, including education and training, healthcare, online retail and hospitality. To find out more about how we can help you with your social media campaign, contact us now!
