How to use Instagram to promote a business?
The first and foremost thing is to ask yourself that, whether your business should have an Instagram business account or not? Well, you can find the answer from the below stats.
Here are a few jaw-dropping stats you should know about Instagram in 2020:The total number of monthly active users is 1 billion+
⚫ There are 500 million+ active users per day
⚫ Over 50 billion+ posts are being shared to date.
⚫ The average least and most time spent on Instagram ranges between 28 – 53 minutes per day.
⚫ About 70% of hashtags are brand hashtags on Instagram.
Now, you have got the answer to the question of having an Instagram business account or not. The answer is yes, if and only if you would like to promote your business online in this fast-moving technological world.
“THE ONLY STRATEGY THAT IS GUARANTEED TO FAIL IS NOT TAKING RISKS.”
-Mark Zuckerberg, founder, Facebook
If you do not have an Instagram business account yet, then create one and join the 25+ million businesses on Instagram. Try to be that one business profile and start your first step in promoting a business on Instagram, as over 200 million users view at least one business profile per day.
Now, let’s directly dive into: how Instagram can be used for promoting a business: 9 proven formulas
⚫ Formula 1. Optimized business account
⚫ Formula 2. Post-high-quality content regularly
⚫ Formula 3. Add link in bio
⚫ Formula 4. Reach the right audience using hashtags
⚫ Formula 5. Build an interactive session
⚫ Formula 6. Host an online event
⚫ Formula 7. Make shoppable posts for your products
⚫ Formula 8. Post stories daily
⚫ Formula 9. Promotion via Instagram celebrities
Formula 1. Optimized business account
Build a profile that you never miss to mention clearly who you are, what you do & the business category. Add your business website if you have one, official address & contact details like email address, phone number. Also, make use of the action button to your business profile based on your niche. For example, if you are running a restaurant, then the action button can be “Book a table”.
Formula 2. Post-high-quality content regularly
Always post on the latest and trending topic around your business as Instagram has a 4 – 5% higher conversion rate from the user-generated content. Try to create and post IGTV (Instagram tv) videos which can be longer to 10 minutes and an hour for a verified account for better user engagement as video posts have two times more engagements than image posts on Instagram. The best-recommended video time should be under 5 minutes for better performance.
Formula 3. Add link in bio
It’s a bit surprising that adding a link is only possible once that too in bio. Everyone likes to have a specific URL for a specific post. You can add a caption and link for the posts but the link is not clickable. Now, the question is how to drive traffic to the different URLs of a website for your different posts on Instagram at any point in time. It can be possible by using some third-party websites or apps like later.
Formula 4. Reach the right audience using hashtags
Make your posts more noticeable, using proper hashtags for your posts based on the type of content that’s relevant to the post as posts with at least one hashtag have better engagement I.E., about 13% when compared to a normal text post.
Formula 5. Build an interactive session
Ask open-ended questions like what’s their opinion about a product or service which can create a great connection with the audience and can help build your business correctly with their feedback. Always find and engage with trending content.
Formula 6. Host an online event
Hosting an event on Instagram according to your business seasonal sales. For example, for businesses like clothing, fashion accessories or any apparel business can ask users to participate in the event by sharing their looks using your products with their event hashtag on their post and get a chance to feature on their page or anything similar to it that you can repost user post on your page.
Formula 7. Make shoppable posts for your products
More than 100 million Instagram users per month tap on shopping posts to learn about products. Instagram is the best review platform for shopping freaks to discover a product. About 70% of them check products on Instagram. So, set up a shop section for products and create a product tag in your posts. It is more helpful for e-commerce businesses to boost sales using Instagram.
Formula 8. Post stories daily
Of all the most-viewed stories on Instagram, about 1/3rd is from businesses IG stories. So, make use of the Instagram story feature which lasts for 24 hours from the time of posting. Here also, you have a chance to interact with the users. In this, you can have a poll which helps for a survey, quiz on your products or services, questions where any users can ask their queries and much more interesting things. There is also an option of adding a link to the story and indicate it by “See more” or “Swipe up” emojis to redirect to the website (option available only to the business accounts with 10k+ followers).
Formula 9. Promotion via Instagram celebrities
90% indicated that for influencer marketing, Instagram plays a vital role in all social media platforms. Approximately 25k users posted their posts using #ad hashtag. So, it’s proof of influencer marketing on Instagram. 500k active influencers are on Instagram who are helping SMEs and other big brands to promote products online on their feed and stories. Nearly 50% of influencers’ stories are for the sponsored posts. For this, you should be ready to pay them, the amount can be varied according to their Instagram followers because higher the reach higher the amount. Most importantly, choose the right influencer. It is better to choose an influencer who is related to your business products or services.
All of the above are proven formulae that can surely help your brand to shine among all. Many established brands have been using the above tactics to promote their Instagram business accounts. So, start using these skyscraper techniques to grow your website traffic, boost your sales, and improve branding for your business on Instagram.
Check this out : How Social Media Lift Sales For Your FMCG/Fashion Accessories Brands?