4 Tips to Help Small Businesses Grow on Instagram

Our most recent blog post, “Which Social Media Platforms are Right for YOUR Business,” focused on helping your business or organization evaluate the top social media platforms and decide which one(s) are best for your clients (and potential clients) and markets. This blog will focus on Instagram and how to use it effectively to promote growth of your brand and/or business or organization.

Instagram allows for fast, efficient, and easy photo and video sharing. Using the analogy in our Social Media Cheat Sheet for #Marketing, Instagram could be described this way: “I take trip pictures & videos of bacon.” Instagram allows you to take or import photos and video, apply filters, and share across multiple social media outlets. Instagram continues to grow and be the leader in the image- and video-sharing realm of social media. Currently, it has an estimated 700 million active users, with 500 million of those considered daily users. An estimated 95 million photos are posted to Instagram per day.

These four strategies can help you maximize the strengths of the Instagram platform, while recognizing its limitations for your use:

1. Make the most of your Instagram profile. Your profile name and image should be recognizable. Convent your account to a business profile which is different from a personal profile. A business profile allows you to display additional information and also provides some tools for analytics. Use the bio section effectively; this is the only location where the link allows you to direct users from Instagram to your website or landing page. Focus on the message: Who are you? What do you offer? What do you want followers to know right now about your business or organization?
2. Use hashtags and mentions effectively. As a business, spend some time thinking about and creating a hashtag Instagram users can use to interact with your brand. Brand-specific hashtags can be an ongoing strategy or only used temporarily for a specific time or event. Hashtags related to seasonal or popular events may be worth jumping on to post your own content or make a statement. However, “If topic surrounding the hashtag is completely irrelevant to your products and services, or it’s controversial, avoid it.” (See article below.) Tagging other users can grab their attention and give credit to another user who has provided value to you.
3. Tell you story. The quickest way to get your posts to the top of Instagram feeds is to tell stories. Posted stories will “live” at the top of Instagram feed for 24 hours making them perfect to push fresh content which will not exist forever (unless you archive the stories). People love to see brands – using photos – out in the real world. Consider going rogue and sending out a team member to take photos of your product, service, or organization in different locations or environments. Think creatively!
4. Run promotions. Instagram promotional campaigns are a great way to turn followers into customers and increase results without paying a lot of money for ads. Some ideas include hashtag contents, personality quizzes (also great for learning more about you audience of followers), and “pick your prize” giveaways.

And, remember, Evolve Impact Group is here to help! Whether it’s re-branding your business or creating a digital marketing plan, we want to be the partner that understands your business and makes its products and services work in the best possible way for you and your clients. Check out our website today!

Resource:

Danberg B. 4 Critical Instagram marketing strategies for your small business. ShortStack [online]. 8 Feb 2018 [cited 21 Sep 2018]. https://www.shortstack.com/blog/instagram-marketing-strategies-small-business/