How many people use social media? Great question. Statistics suggest nearly 4 billion worldwide, with 1 billion of those being Instagram users.
If you are involved with digital marketing, then Instagram is undoubtedly one of the main popular channels for brand exposure and creative audience engagement.
Whether owning a salon, spa, fitness centre, restaurant or cafe, Instagram’s growing popularity presents the platform as a game changing marketing opportunity. You may post images, videos, stories, embed all sorts of interesting details, and directly allow for your audience to like, comment, and share the material. With such strong engagement potential, new customers can be found on the run, with your business consequently facing a continuous and much desirable growth pattern.
Did you know many companies nowadays owe their successes to Instagram? Let’s dive into specific tricks and methods that you can use to make the best out of this digital channel!
Using all Available Features
Like every other social media platform, Instagram is run by clever algorithms that prioritize the exposure of certain content. The purpose of this is to encourage diversity and interest.
Here’s what you can do to take advantage of such robotic analysis:
Instagram for Business
Instagram gives you two options: a regular, personal account, or a business format. If your brand still hasn’t adopted the business model, then this might be a great asset to begin with.
In opposition to a personal account, the business view provides extra analytics, a professionalized look & feel, and access to ads. You may also add a ‘contact’ button to drive traffic into a desired page or product.
Is Instagram Business for you? Well, here’s what to consider:
If…
- You have over 10k followers
- You use Instagram for marketing purposes
- You make great use of Instagram stories
- You could greatly benefit from a ‘’contact’’ button leading to a certain page
- You would potentially like to run ads on Instagram
…. Then switching to the business version is a great idea. If however Instagram is more of a personal thing to you and a private account is preferred, then there is no need to change the personal format.
Different Kinds of Content
Instagram offers diverse methods to engage with your followers. Making use of every possibility further increases your algorithm advantages.
Methods include:
- Videos
- Stories
- Images
- Carousel posts
- Ads
- Highlights
Keep your content fresh and make use of this availability! Did you know that statistically, videos have a higher engagement rate than other methods?
Jump into ‘’Marketing Guide: How To Create A Business Boosting Linkedin Profile’’
Are you Using Instagram Analytics
With a business account, it is possible to have a closer look at follower locations, gender, and insights of particular posts.
If you are a real marketer, then you know that no form of data passes by uselessly! Utilize this information with a comparative mindset and see what truly works out best in your individual situation.
Check out ‘’Marketing: A Guide To Customer Data Collection’’
Daily Instagram Stories
Interestingly, it is statistically easier to generate engagement with stories than feed posts. Limited to only 24h hour view, this method generates curiosity and gives space for constant novelty to appear.
Users who do not make use of daily instagram stories often face a sinkage in engagement rates, so keep that in mind when planning your daily Insta schedule.
Making use of uniquely communicative features such as story polls might help you get to know your audience a little better. You may ask questions such as ‘’Do you prefer A or B?,’’ or any customized inquiry that could benefit your professional innovation.
Planning your Feed
Speaking of planning, have you heard of the Preview app? This additional tool connects directly to your Instagram feed and allows for organization of content prior to posting. If you are looking to form an exceptional feed aesthetic, integrating this application might be a useful idea!
Video Material: Feed & Stories
Using both formats ensures the most successful engagement rate.
Contrary to Instagram stories, feed videos are fixed and permanent unless deleted.
In business, feed videos are great for: product launches, tutorials, major campaigns, or anything you wish your followers to share with their friends and possibly come back to.
Story videos are ideal for fleeting occasions, such as showcasing events, momentary announcements, and a few sneak peeks to the insider experience.
Don’t forget to use hashtags so your content is searchable and easily accessible by the interested public.
Good Timing to your Advantage
In marketing, timing of messages is a commonly discussed concept. As you may have guessed, the idea extends into social media. There is a particular hour and time of the day that generates the most viewability and engagement.
Here’s what you can do:
Research what is the most popular hour for your particular audience and schedule your publications accordingly. For some, Sunday afternoon might work out best, while for others, Thursday night may show exceptionally higher results.
Considering this is subjective to your niche, the most reliable conclusion comes through personalized tests and evaluative comparison.
Check out ‘’Key Points Of Content Engagement: Marketing Effectively’’
Don’t Post Too Much… Or Too Little!
Truth is, social media is intriguing, tempting, and perhaps to some, even a bit addicting. When it comes to successful marketing, we must maintain a sense of balance. How much is too much? Are you overloading your followers? Are you providing enough material to generate interest?
The key is to post with consistency, not too much at once, or too long apart. To find out what works best for your particular field, test with logic and intuition, letting each result guide you into an evolved strategy. Once a week is a common minimum, while several times per day is usually over the top.
Learn more ‘’Digital Marketing: Why Content Consistency Is Necessary’’
Conclusion
In this guide we covered several tricks to improve engagement on Instagram.
- Use all available features
- Switch to Instagram for business
- Check out the analytics section
- Be diverse with your content publication
- Utilize Instagram stories DAILY
- Plan your feed with Preview
- Ideas for video material
- Advantageous timing
- Content consistency
By Julia Arguello Busch – Ninja Partners
