18 May How to Kick Ass With Instagram Marketing
Think your business doesn’t need to bother with Instagram marketing? Well, think again. It’s likely your audience is on the platform.
According to Instagram, over 400 million people use the app every day, and 70% follow a business on Instagram. So let’s talk about how your small business can kick ass on Instagram as we continue our Social Media Marketing for Small Business Series (you can find our previous posts on Facebook here and Twitter here).
Go “behind the scenes”
If you’re a service provider, you might be at a loss as to what to share on Instagram. After all, you don’t have products or a storefront to show off in fabulous photos. But you can share behind-the-scenes images of your business. Believe it or not, people like getting an “insider” look at all sorts of companies.
Use trending hashtags
Want people to find your grams? Click on “Explore” and look through the posts. If you spot trending hashtags and they’re relevant to your brand, use them. Yes, this takes some effort, so try it a few times and see if it boosts your visibility.
Create hashtags for promos
Running a special promo or contest? A brand-specific hashtag is a super fast way to see what kind of engagement you’re getting – and whether or not people care about your promo or contest.
Share videos
In a six-month period, Instagram found that the total time people spent watching video on its platform increased 150 percent. Give video a shot! You’ll have to experiment to see what works, of course, but it’ll be a short learning curve. People will either love a video, or they won’t.
Use the “Stories” feature
Stories lets you share small moments in your day that you don’t necessarily want to keep on your profile. You can post both photos and videos, which will appear together in a slideshow format. All stories will disappear after 24 hours (yes, it’s very much like Snapchat).
Take advantage of apps
There are a lot of Instagram apps out there that can impact your Instagram marketing. Here are a few to check out:
- Have2Have.It is an e-commerce app that sends people to a virtual storefront where they can make a purchase.
- Social Insight tells you the number of followers gained and lost, average and max engagement by post, most engaging filters, and even the best times to post.
- SocialRank uncovers your most valuable/engaged followers, brand advocates, and influencers.
Post regularly
You don’t have to post as often as you do on Twitter; treat it more like Facebook. Posting once a day is a great place to start. You’ll also want to track what time your posts get the most engagement.
Interact with people
Ask questions in your captions. Tag other users. Reply to comments. Be social, interact, and keep conversations going.
And for Pete’s sake, follow people in your network and interact with their posts. I would advise against going to their profile and liking/commenting on every single post from the past month. That’s a little stalker-y. But liking a couple and adding a comment to one is a great start. You’ll instantly be on their radar.
Share photos from other accounts
Use good manners and tag the original poster, but feel free to add your own comment. What makes this photo speak to you? What does it say about your brand or philosophy?
Try sponsored ads
Social ads are always a good idea to try … at least a few times. Just like on Facebook, you can promote posts on Instagram or create specific ads. Everything you need to know about it can be found here.
If you have any other questions about Instagram marketing, definitely reach out. We’re happy to help!
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