Day 16: The complete guide to Instagram marketing

Why Instagram matters to marketers

Listen up, Instagram is revolutionising the visual web as we know it. The platform, bought by Facebook in 2012 for a nice 1 billion dollars, is a simple app that allows its users to share artsy photos in an instant.  With over 200 million active users and 60+ million photos shared each day, it’s evident that consumers can’t get enough of it. In turn, brands like L’Oreal, GE and Warby Parker have achieved success marketing on Instagram. The number of businesses exploring using Instagram, as a means of marketing, has grown exponentially over the last decade.
So, how can you tap into Instagram to strengthen your brand awareness? This guide offers research backed best practices for developing an Instagram strategy. we explore examples from top brands that are using Instagram to win over their audience.

1. Peel back the curtain on your life at your company
Post images of your desk, the view from your office, or post a video at the company Christmas party. Let your followers feel like they know what’s happening at your company.

2. Think DIY
Educate your audience by creating a collage of product images, or show the creation process of your service/product through a video.

3. Show travel motifs
Instagram users love landscapes and photos of the open road. Find stylish ways to showcase your products in the natural environment.

4.Make bitesize versions of existing content
From a snippet of a TV interview or a quote from your latest blog post.

5. Think outside the box
Don’t just post a plain picture of your product, think of creative ways to showcase your products.

6. Food Pictures
Post overhead pictures of your meal, trust us, people love food.

7. Hashtags #
Use relevant hashtags to help people find your images.

8. Post content featured by your consumers.
We’ll talk more about this later.

Monitor metrics

  • How Much traffic is the link in your bio getting? Gather Social referral data from Google analytics.
  • What is the average/ current range of likes that your photos receive?
  • What is the average number of comments that your photos receive?
  • What is the ratio of comment and likes for you photos?
  • How many followers do you have?
  • Evaluate your branded hashtags. How frequently are they used?

Quick tips

Keep in mind that all photos uploaded must be of a high quality, don’t just post for the sake of posting.Instagram has a variety of filters to choose from within the app. The Mayfair filter results in the most engagement, whereas the Toaster filter results in the least engagement.
Don’t feel limited to those 20 filters. Many brands opt to edit and capture photos outside the app itself. Furthermore, don’t limit yourself to only uploading pictures. You should also use other features, such as Instagram stories, to connect with your audience.

Build community and affinity through consumer engagement

Our study found that top Brands’ Instagram posts generated a per follower engagement rate of 4.21%. that means Instagram delivered these brands 58 times more engagement per follower than Facebook, and 120 times more that Twitter,” Nate Elliot, Forrester.

A Brilliant way to boost engagement is asking questions to your audience. Take a picture of two products and ask them which one they like better.

Remember to keep the conversation going. Don’t forget to reply to your followers’ content. Participate in popular hashtags that are relevant to your business.

Top 5 hashtags

#love
#instagood
#me
#tbt
#follow

Harnessing user-generated content is quickly becoming one of the most effective tactics used by social media marketers.

Consumers share and trust real pictures and content more than direct brand outreach. Plus, you reduce the amount of work dedicated to producing all those images and videos, while drastically increasing your engagement rate.

At least half the photos that Ben & Jerry’s shares through their account today are from community member – Instagram business blog.

Post content from your Instagram profile to your Twitter account

Cross posting straight from the app can look messy on Twitter. Instead, upload the image separately to Twitter for easier sharing. Link your Instagram account to your Facebook page. Share your content directly to Facebook.

Share photos with blog posts

Does your brand have a blog? If not, you should. Read why here. You can embed Instagram photos and make it easy for fans to follow you, no matter where they find you. Use the Instagram app to pull photos right from Instagram

We hope you found this guide useful and good luck with your Instagram Marketing!

Social Media marketing agency

Incorporating social media into your marketing strategy can raise brand awareness and online presence. If you feel you need support in getting your business noticed on social media, then get in touch with Smart Cow Marketing to discuss your needs further.