From a platform to just share artsy pictures, to a platform to grow your business, Instagram has picked up pace faster than any other social media platform out there. It has become the new norm to ask people for their Insta handles instead of phone numbers – a testament to the popularity of the platform.
Don’t have an Instagram account for your business?
It’s never too late!
Don’t know how to begin or how to grow your existing business on Instagram?
Worry not! We, at Buffalo Soldiers, have got you covered!
Go through these 21 short tips and hacks for better brand management, the Instagram way!
Source: Thomas Trutschel/Photothek/Getty Images
“Who is our audience?”
Define your target audience. Define your target audience. Define your target audience. As you can see, we can’t emphasize this enough. Knowing which niche of the audience set you want to cater to will help you understand their behavior of the platform better. This indirectly determines your content specifics.
Your bio is everything
The first impression is the most important one. Your Instagram bio is one easy and necessary digital strategy you have to make use of for your business. “Who, what, why?” Answer these in with a perfect balance of casual and professional, use proper punctuations, make sure it sounds attractive, and you are good to go!
Source: IStock
Make sure your account is a business one
Even if you’ve worked on your page for long but it isn’t a business account, don’t worry! You can make the change in your settings, and can also mention the category under which your business falls. This will help your followers know a bit more, and help to gain attention from your target audience.
Visualize your grid beforehand
It is only natural that one looks at your Instagram feed as a whole before creating an opinion about your business. Stating the obvious, knowing what your grid will look like is important. Here’s where you need to bring out your aesthetic side and concentrate on the whole look a tad bit more!
Source: Dreamstime
Giveaways and contests are important
Hold contests. Interact with your audience. Reward them. These three steps done together is an Instagram hack you will forever be grateful for. As more people tag their friends in the contests, the number of your followers increase. And that’s the reward your business deserves!
Consistency in posting
Yes, laziness and procrastination happen to be our common foes. But we’ve got to fight them, no matter how tough. Make sure you post regularly. Plan a week ahead, and trust us, implementation will be a cakewalk! Your audience needs to know that your business is your priority.
Structure your social texts
Captioning your post well matters more than you think it does. Someone can love the content of the post, but the social text can completely change their mind. Punctuating the text correctly, with the right spacing and the right number of hashtags creates a long-lasting impression; make sure you note this!
Usage of Calls-to-action
The whole point of calls-to-action is to make a shift from having passive followers to active ones. And this isn’t tough. All it takes is for you to use words that make them want to engage with your brand more. Even a simple “tag your friends” is good enough!
Source: Schneps Media
Content on your internal team
Another Instagram hack to help your process of brand marketing is to create content based on your internal workings as well. A few examples of the same are celebrating birthdays, announcing additions to your team, and appreciating your team in the open. This makes your audience feel connected to you and also motivates your employees.
Make the most use of Instagram stories, Lives, and Videos
Using Instagram stories and lives make your audience feel more connected, as they offer a more organic touch on a more natural level, unlike the posts on your feed. Stories also come on top of one’s Instagram, eliminating the confusion of whether one would scroll endlessly. Don’t forget to use stories to give sneak peeks, leaving your followers curious to know more!
A theme and color palette is important!
Everybody wants their brand voice to be remembered and we want the same for you. So take our word for it, and work towards having a solid and strict color palette and theme. These factors matter so much that when someone mentions your brand, the colors will flash in the minds of people.
Source: Freepik
Make. Use. Of. Instagram. Insights
Instagram’s feature that allows you to understand and analyze post based performances is a gem. Use the information of your reach and impressions to your complete advantage to grow your brand and to improve your digital strategies.
Use appropriate hashtags
Keep no doubts that using hashtags, and appropriate ones, are extremely beneficial to your business. Not just in terms of increasing your audience, it also helps pull the relevant audience to your page. Remember to limit the number of hashtags to what is needed; many hashtags can sometimes hamper the image of your brand.
Source: Newswire
Create trending content
Apart from posting about your products or services, another important Instagram hack to attract more people is to follow trends or even create them. Cover important news topics, and also include memes, because who doesn’t enjoy a good laugh?
Select the right influencers
When someone says Instagram, ‘influencer’ is one of the words that come to our minds instantly. Make sure you use the right ones; the ones who cater to a similar audience, the ones whose values are similar to your brand. This Instagram tip can make all the change you want and need!
Source: Mc Shane Communications
Use boosters
Another Instagram tip that will help amplify your brand voice is using the boost feature offered by Instagram. This requires you to pay, and in return, your content will be displayed to your target audience, irrespective of them following you.
Reminder: use the shoppable feature for your products!
Update your audience about feedbacks
In today’s world, with everything moving online, a very important Instagram business tip in 2020, is to let your customers know about your products or services, from other customers. Posting regularly about positive feedback will help potential customers trust your brand more than others!
Make sure to up your communication game
Replying to comments and direct messages in the best way possible not helps those who want to acquire your product or service, but also portrays your brand as one that prioritizes their customers; giving your brand an upper hand over others.
Source: Freepik
Keep track of tagged posts
One Instagram tip that we think you should know, is how the posts you are tagged in drives people towards or away from your page. It is not unusual to get tagged in irrelevant posts, but it is important to get rid of them. The tagged posts you should keep are client ones!
Ps: People. Always. Notice.
The highlight feature is like your brochure
Apart from posts and stories, using the highlight option on Instagram can really help in marketing your brand well. Take it from us, these highlights can change the complete image of your brand. For someone who does not want to scroll through your feed, this will give them an idea of your business, thus preventing them from just leaving your page instead. Oh and, work on highlight covers, they matter!
Source: Freepik
Avoid monotonous content
To reach a suitable digital marketing strategy, this step is to be noted. Keep breaking your content, bring the freshness in, and don’t let people get bored. For example, if you realize your page has too many image posts, try a boomerang or even a reel! Always keep them wanting more, wink!
See! It’s as simple as that. Treat your Instagram page like it’s your own baby, and create magic with these small and easy tricks and tips that we at Buffalo Soldiers have to offer.
Take these into consideration, trial and error your way through it, and reach a suitable digital marketing strategy for your business.
We’re sure your efforts will pay off. For more such social media related blogs, visit Buffalo Soldiers.
