Is your small business on Instagram? It should be!
- I’ve always believed Instagram has great potential for boosting small business brands that have a naturally visual product. Food related businesses, the fashion industry, and photographers of all stripes are all perfect matches for Instagram’s image focused platform. So I’ve always advised clients with these types of offering to get on Instagram ASAP and take advantage!
- The owner at Silver Trumpet Jewlery experienced a big jump in sales after she started posting thematic product shots on Instagram. She already had a large and devoted following on Facebook – but Instagram took her reach to a new level. Isn’t this a gorgeous shot?
- But it isn’t just product- focused businesses that can market effectively on Instagram. When done well, Instagram galleries can help your audience understand your brand story, get a feel for your business and build a connection to your organization.
- Something about Instagram’s simplicity makes it easier to build engagement- brands feel even more like people on Instgram than they do on Twitter or Facebook, which makes fellow Instagrammers more likely to like, comment, and follow. Social media analysts consistently cite Instagram as having the highest level of engagement.
- Here is some “instadvice” for using Instagram to promote your business:
1) Get Personal
- Instagram allows people all over the world to peer into each other’s lives and discover like- minded individuals who appreciate, love and enjoy the same things. Whether it’s being up at sunrise to open your shop or shared moments with clients over coffee- Instagram photos are a great way to humanize your brand by letting people see you at work doing what you love.
2) All Hail the #Hashtag!
- Far more than facebook, Instagram is highly searchable, so hashtag the heck out of your posts- using keywords that link to your business and engaging terms that describe what you do. I discovered this for my own business recently when on a whim I posted some branding work I had done a few years back, and hashtagged it like I would on Twitter- with branding and marketing related words. I was so surprised by how fast the response was!
3) Build Community, Be Authentic and Post Consistently
- What doesn’t look good on Instagram? A business with thousands of followers that doesn’t follow anyone in return. Buying followers is a waste of time because it’s obviously fake, and your posts are not being shown to anyone who actually cares. Earn your followers by following others and use hashtags to attract interested audiences. Keep followers coming back by posting regularly– business instagram galleries with nothing in them don’t look good either!
4) Captivate with Content
- Don’t flood your feed with pushy ads, links to your site and annoying promotions. Offer compelling content! Mix it up with funny posts, thoughtful pics and slice- of- life images. Just make sure every pic you post is on brand and sends a positive message.
- Instagram is an effective and fun way to promote your business. I hope you found my advice helpful! Come follow me on Instagram ~ Erica Halvorsen. If you need help with developing your brand identity, you can learn more about my services at ericajane.ca Have a great day!
