An active social media presence is important for businesses to survive, and your social media marketing strategy is incomplete without Instagram. The platform is becoming the go-to for advertisers, brands and consumers. It attracts over 800 million active users, and 500 new accounts are added daily.
If you have already set up an account, you are on the right track. However, an Instagram profile alone isn't enough to drive sales, boost engagement and increase followers. It would help if you had a solid Instagram marketing strategy to take your business to the next level. Luckily, here are a few tips that will nudge you toward that direction.
Post Regularly
Posting regularly is one of the best ways to be active on Instagram, and it can help boost engagement rates and attract followers. It ensures your feed stays relevant and fresh, and you have more chances to grab your audience's attention. When posting consistently, the sweet spot is one to two posts per day.
It is also important to know the best time to post, especially when dealing with the platform's algorithmic timeline. Post times may vary between 8 AM to 9 AM or 2 PM to 5 PM. It depends on the demographic and audience you're trying to reach.
Reply DM's To Connect And Interact With Your Customers
Instagram DMs or direct messages are the easiest way for your customers to connect with you if they have concerns or questions. Nowadays, customers like to directly reach out to brands to resolve an issue instead of contacting the customer support executive.
Brands must reply to direct messages and not keep their customers waiting. Preferably, DMs must be responded within an hour, and once the conversation starts, you need to reply even quicker. If you respond to them and handle their problem properly, they will highly recommend you to their friends or followers on Instagram.
With the recent platform updates, it is also possible to respond to DMs from your Mac and even enable notifications, so you don't miss out on any messages. You can learn all about it at https://setapp.com/.
Optimize Your Instagram Profile
When using Instagram to take your business a notch higher, you need to consider your profile as a homepage. You will get one hundred and fifty characters, a few action buttons and a link to win over prospective customers. You must ensure to make a lasting impression with your profile.
First, you need to switch to an Instagram business profile because business accounts provide extra features that enable brands to track content performance, expand their profile and even sell on Instagram. Moreover, Instagram business profiles have access to Action buttons, such as Contact, Book Now, View Shop, etc. These action buttons are a fantastic way to add more links to your profile and make it hassle-free for your audience to interact with your brand.
Second, you have to write an attractive Instagram bio, which includes a brief description of what your business does, your industry or category, contact information and a link. The bio's tone will show off the personality of your brand.
Third, do not forget about the grid. When potential customers visit your profile, they will see all the recent posts in grid form. You must avoid sharing visually similar posts so your grid always looks attractive.
Use Hashtags To Reach New Audiences
Hashtags enable Instagrammers to discover accounts and content to follow. On several social media platforms, hashtags have become the universal way to categorize the content. So, ensure to use hashtags to enhance the engagement rate.
Experiment With Instagram's Different Content Types
Instagram may have started as a photo-sharing application, but it has come a long way since. Today, there is a wide range of content types that you can experiment with on the platform. Some of them are Stories, Video, IGTV and Reels.
If you want to boost engagement and increase your reach on Instagram, it is crucial to share a mix of content types. You need to research and find out the content types your target audience interacts with regularly. For instance, if they like and view Stories and Reels more than other posts, they are likely expecting their favorite brands to post more Reels and Stories.
Since each content type has advantages, it is best to use them all to maximize your engagement and reach.
Summary
Instagram is a powerful tool that must be used by all businesses, regardless of the industry. It is a great platform to connect with potential customers and grow your brand awareness.