Is Instagram The Ideal Platform To Showcase Your Business? Let’s Find Out
Instagram is fast becoming a platform which many people use on a daily basis.
However, it is more than just a place to share “food porn” or snaps of your latest holiday. It also represents an incredible digital marketing opportunity for businesses.
Instagram is well established as an effective tool for B2C companies – businesses that sell directly to the public – because it is great for reaching new audiences, expanding your customer base and building your brand. However, there has been an increase in B2B businesses – those who sell to other businesses – using the platform to engage with their customers and sell more products.
So how do you know if Instagram is right for your business? And, if it is, how can you use it to grow your business?
Why Your Business Should Use Instagram
Recent figures show that there are now more than 1 billion active users on Instagram, and more than half of them use the platform every day. Thus making Instagram the second most popular social media platform worldwide, after Facebook. This vast network of daily users makes this a great place to connect with a wider audience and promote your goods and services.
Aside from its sheer size, there are other characteristics of Instagram which make it advantageous to a range of businesses. This visual nature of Instagram means it is very effective in building your brand, as you can use rich visual elements to paint a picture of who you are, what you represent, and what you offer.
Additionally, the majority of users do not only browse content from those already in their network but instead explore certain hashtags (more on this later) which means you can continuously reach large numbers of new people, including potential customers.
How To Use Instagram Effectively
Of course, it’s not as easy as signing up for an Instagram account and waiting for the sales to roll in. Like any digital marketing tool, to get the most out of this social media platform, you need to use it effectively.
To do this, having a strong content strategy is key. One mistake that businesses make, particularly when they are new to Instagram, is simply posting some nice photos without an overall plan in mind. To get strong results, you need to be more tactical and plan an overall strategy for what you will post.
Some things to consider when planning your Instagram content strategy include:
1) Who is your target audience? That is, who are you trying to reach? What kind of content will they find interesting, engaging or useful?
2) What is your brand? How can you best demonstrate your brand values to your audience?
3) Consider a theme: often accounts get the best engagement on Instagram when posts have a common theme running through them, such as a certain type of photo or common visual element.
How To Make The Most of Instagram’s Tools
Once you have finessed your content strategy, you’ll also want to make sure you’re making the most of Instagram’s many tools and functionalities. In particular, to get the best results for your business, be sure to use hashtags and use them effectively.
Hashtags can be included in the description of any Instagram post and help bring your post (and your business) to the attention of people who are interested in that topic.
Be as specific as possible to reach potential customers who are interested in that topic. For example, if your business sells natural cosmetics, rather than using the very general #cosmetics or #makeup, use #naturalcosmetics and #naturalmakeup.
Keep on top of trending hashtags to see what users are searching for and include these when possible. On the other hand. Be careful not to overuse hashtags: make sure you only use those which are relevant to your business and your customer, to make sure you are reaching the right people.
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