Introduction
There is no doubt that Instagram is the most popular social media platform in the world, trailing only Facebook, Youtube, and Whatsapp. As Instagram has nearly 1.5 billion active users, it is a top-of-the-line strategy for increasing your company's bottom line over Reddit, Twitter, and Pinterest combined. As we move forward into 2022 and beyond, Instagram will be a powerful marketing tool for small businesses that will bring in many new customers.
Instagram has already proven its power to you. There are numerous features that the platform offers small businesses, from customer complaints to viral products, leveling up the playing field. The good news is that because it's been around for a while, you can find tons of information about how it can be used by brands. Here, we explain how to use Instagram for your small business, from maximizing the platform's features to increasing your digital footprint.
Getting customers for small businesses has become easier with digital marketing. But if you don't know a lot about tech, all the opportunities can make your head spin. There may be questions in your mind, such as, "Do I need a website?" Is blogging a smart idea? How you can grow a small business on Instagram?” What is the most effective way to grow a small business on Instagram? ” Here we will give you all the answers to your marketing questions.
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The Dream Runner campaign marketing strategy
The Dream Runner campaign from Old Spice from 2016 is a good example. It asked its audience to create a post of their own instead of just liking and commenting on posts. They asked people to run a route in the shape of one of Old Spice's prizes and track it on a map using GPS. Entering the contest was as simple as uploading their picture to Instagram and using the hashtag #runoldspice. With the help of major influencers relevant to its niche, Old Spice promoted a newly launched product line and raised brand awareness. All of this was achieved by Old Spice's marketing team by tapping into humans' natural desire to belong to a community.
A social media community is what makes it so popular, and Instagram provides a creative outlet for your audience to engage with you. Instagram is a powerful tool for engaging your ideal customer base and growing your follower count quickly, regardless of whether you are an insta-veteran or an insta-novice.
Now I will give you some pro tips that will help you grow your business on Instagram.
Some Instagram Growth Tips for a Small Business
1. Understand your Platform
To maximize Instagram's potential, it's imperative to be familiar with all of its features. The growth of Instagram is driven by content creation and distribution, just like all other social media platforms. Although it is heavily dominated by image and video-based content, you can be extremely creative in how you utilize it.
1.1. Instagram Reels
An Instagram reel is a short video overlayed with augmented reality, music, and captions. Single reels can last anywhere from 15-60 seconds, and they can even be prepared ahead of time and uploaded later.
1.2. Instagram Stories
Stories are the main feature of Instagram. The difference between Reels and Instagram stories is that Reels only allow you to share video content. In contrast, Instagram stories allow you to share written content, such as posts and links. But sadly, stories expire after 24 hours: they are no longer available after that time.
1.3. Instagram Live
Instagram Live allows you to broadcast live videos to your followers in real time. Just above the main Instagram feed, live videos appear next to Stories. Instagram's live feed jumps in front of every story when you go live. You won't have to worry about the algorithm bumping your post because you can grab your followers' attention.
1.4. Instagram Post
The majority of Instagram content is Instagram posts. You will see these traditional square photos and videos in the feeds of your followers. The ideal Instagram post length is between 138 and 150 characters, as of 2023. The captions for Instagram posts can be as long as 2,200 characters. Instagram posts have a long shelf life. Because they remain on your profile forever (unless you delete them), they tend to get more views over time.
2. Optimize and get Verified
You can insert links into your reels and stories to generate external traffic to a website or online store. However, if you want to expand your brand, you'll need a verified account and a well-optimized profile.
Verification is quick and simple with a reliable online presence. Just press the "request verification" button from the account menu by clicking the settings button under the profile tab. By becoming verified, you can protect your business and let followers know they aren't dealing with fraud.
Optimizing your profile is very necessary for you:
- Remember that your username is not the same as your account name. Choose an SEO-friendly term for your name field that describes what you do.
- Fill your bio (but don't load it) with relevant hashtags. Not only is this a smart strategy to increase the visibility of your account, but it also allows you to expand your audience by forming relationships.
- You can only include a link in your bio, so make it as useful as possible. With the help of this link, you can drive your audience to your homepage or website. Or you could also use it for an event or promotional page, depending on your current Instagram activities.
- Be sure not to overlook messaging! Getting into someone's DM's isn't just a convenient way to interact with celebrities; it can also work for answering customer questions and requesting feedback.
3. Have a consistent Aesthetic
Your brand must look the same on all platforms. It will not only establish trust with your audience but also make it more memorable. A memorable brand means more money for your business.
What do you do to keep your branding consistent across all your platforms? In addition to having the right logo icon, color palette, and font type, it is essential to have the right brand message as well. It must feel memorable, just as the Golden Arches of McDonald's instantly let you know what it is (and how it can satisfy your hunger).
It's critical to consider how your messages appear on your emails, website, and social media platforms. Whenever you post on another channel, remember to use the same filter you use in your style guide. Many online free tools can help you to add quality image effects to your posts.
4. Share-User-Generated Content and write User Stories
Your Instagram posting frequency can change based on how many followers your account has. It is recommended that businesses with 1,000 to 250,000 followers post at least 2-3 times per day.
It can become tiring after a while. The most effective way to build up your portfolio of content - and increase engagement - is to post and share content generated by your audience. In this case, it is not necessarily user-generated content (although it can also be a goldmine), but stories that show your product in action from the perspective of a customer.
A shoe store, for example, can post a video of someone running the Boston Marathon in their shoes. An off-roading shop may post videos of its clients conquering Moab. On the other hand, a software company may make a reel highlighting the efficiency advantages of its product from a real-life business.
5. Follow the thirds rule on Social Media
If you are managing your social media account yourself for creating your content, you will have to keep in mind "the rule of thirds."
- It is recommended that one-third of your content be promotional in nature, featuring your own content or products.
- Another third should be about curating other posts, like industry news, or featuring any user-generated content.
- Lastly, you should ask and answer questions from your customers, and engage in conversation.
This is a very simple rule that helps save your Instagram feed from becoming too promotional and sterile.
6. Make use of micro-influencers
Instagram has played an extremely significant part in creating a newly-created type of celeb called “influencers.” In history, these people would have been known as “endorsers,” but the modern-day title influencer reflects their capacity to “influence” an audience’s purchasing decisions of an audience.
If a famous influencer speaks about your brand, it will be very beneficial to your business. You'll put your brand in front of a lot of new users and it will be worth much more than the influencer's expenses.
However, upper-echelon influencers may be expensive. Instead of these, you can choose "micro-influencers" that have substantially fewer followers than top-echelon influencers. But if you hire more than one "micro-influencer" they will equal the level of "upper-echelon influencers." You do not need to worry about finding "micro-influencers", because you can find “micro-influencers” with small audiences easily.
When searching for people to promote your business on Instagram, don’t just look at their number of followers but also look at their engagement rates. You have to check that people comment on their posts. How is he engaging his/her audience? What type of content is he/she posting on social media? Does he/she reply to audience comments and questions?
7. Pay attention to social media metrics
Benchmarks let you know exactly where your business stands right now. However, they also provide you with written objectives for where you would like your business to be in the future. A brand ignores them at its peril, as they are the measuring rod for its success. "What gets measured gets managed," said Peter Drucker.
On your Instagram account, the "Insights" tab provides a wealth of information that can be tracked and improved. Try different posting times and content strategies to see what resonates with your audience, and adjust accordingly.
These are key metrics to measure:
- Average engagement rate
- Post reach
- Growth of followers
- Link clicks
8. Run Contests and Giveaways
A contest is difficult to beat if you want to grow your followers as rapidly as possible. With a small investment, you can increase your reach and audience engagement in a couple of hours. If done correctly, you will see an increase in engagement, which can have a knock-on impact on your other posts. It's not just about bloating vanity metrics, but also about finding similar audience members who are currently unreachable. You will reach new audiences by sharing your content with your current audience.
Freepik, an image editing software, held a design contest with a $1,000 grand prize. Participants had to follow Freepik's Instagram account, make a design from the link in Freepik's bio, and then share the image with the hashtag #WithFreepikCreate. This was part of their contribution.
They got very positive results. More than 1000 pieces of user-generated content increased following and engagement. Running a contest is nearly impossible to fail. Brands that use giveaways to build their accounts grow 70 percent faster than those that do not use giveaways. If you are completely opposed to the idea of a contest, consider posting a post that offers a discount to give your brand a quick boost.
9. Use Hashtags
In case you're not familiar with hashtags, they are a way to categorize content on social media. In general, Facebook and Twitter use hashtags, but Instagram is particularly effective, where the right combination of hashtags can make your content "trend". As your content trended, it would be featured in other people's Instagram feeds, leading to a wider reach for you without needing to spend any money on advertising.
Instagram allows you to add up to 30 hashtags on a regular post and up to 10 hashtags in a story. When you Google the most effective hashtag number to use on Instagram, you will find a lot of conflicting data. These data suggest that 8 to 14 hashtags are the ideal hashtag number. The research and case studies that have been conducted suggest 11 hashtags are the magic number, since engagement increases as you add up to 11, but declines afterward.
You don't have to just fill it with hashtags, but you can add specific hashtags so that it looks natural.
The five main types of hashtags are:
- Using location hashtags
- Use of branded hashtags
- Industry-related hashtags
- Using community hashtags
- Descriptive hashtags
There is a broad hashtag for each of these categories (such as #texas in the case of geography), as well as a more specific hashtag (such as #easttexas). Ideally, you should use a combination of larger and more general hashtags, along with more specific ones that are relevant to your niche.
It is always a smart idea to use hashtags that are specific to your industry. As an example, if you sell video-based safety equipment such as dashcams or panic buttons in your eCommerce store, you can utilize hashtags such as #dashcams and #drivesafe. Keep up with the latest industry trends by following the hashtags for your industry.
Don't be afraid to experiment with the latest hashtags, even if you want to stick with the most popular ones - i.e., the ones other people are actively searching for. If you can catch one that is just beginning to gain traction, you might be able to ride that wave to a broader audience. In addition, you may wish to consider adding additional hashtags as the first comment on your story to gain a few additional slots.
10. Engage, engage, and engage
The purpose of social media is to build relationships, and Instagram is no exception. Authentic and regular engagement is the "secret sauce" for catapulting your account to stardom. The fact is that if you are interested in your community then it is demonstrated by your interaction with other people's posts and comments. It is helpful to tag popular users and give shout-outs to loyal fans to strengthen their loyalty.
It is no secret that Nike excels at Instagram marketing (as well as virtually every other form of marketing). There is a blend of inspirational stories, product demonstrations, and behind-the-scenes imagery in their posts. As a result, people feel free to comment on the posts as well as share them with friends, which drives virality.
When you're running a business, how do you engage with your audience? Make it a habit to answer comments and questions every day at the same time. Second, don't use canned answers; they scream disinterest and will drive your audience away. You'll have more time for engagement if you use a social media scheduling tool.
11. Use Calls to Action
Make the most of the space in your Instagram post captions by adding a call to action (CTA). Depending on the purpose of your situation, there are a variety of ways you can go about doing this. Under your post, you may ask a question to encourage people to leave comments with their answers or opinions on what they think about it. You could also publish a carousel of photos and ask them which one they like the best out of them all. As a result, your profile's activity will increase and users will spend a lot more time on your profile.
Alternatively, you can direct the audience to your website by simply adding a link to your website in the bio of your post that leads them to your website. As well as encouraging your followers to tag their friends in your post, you can also ask them to share it with someone who might find it helpful. This is because they might be related to you. If your business is a small one, you might want to experiment with CTAs to see how they affect your Instagram account.
12. Post at Peak Times
As a small business owner, it can be challenging to reach new audiences organically on Instagram, even with all the efforts mentioned above. There is no doubt that a bit of paid advertising can have a big impact. In Instagram ads, you can target very specific audiences. This means you can reach out to people who are most likely to be interested in what you have to offer. This will increase your exposure to them. It is proven that this strategy generates excellent conversion rates and, as a result, it is often a wise investment.
13. Announce new posts in your Stories
It is critical that while we are discussing how to effectively use Instagram Stories to advertise your small business on Instagram, you do not forget to announce each upcoming post on your Instagram feed in your Stories as well. In some cases, your customers may watch all of your Instagram stories, but they might not see all of your Instagram posts in their feeds. This is even though they watch your Instagram stories. This is an easy Instagram marketing tip for a small business to increase engagement on a post by sharing a new post on your Instagram Story, it's an easy way to get more engagement.
14. Post about Current Events
There is no doubt that one of the most effective Instagram marketing tips for 2022 is to post about current events on your profile. In the past, brands might have felt it was not necessary to get involved in politics. However, nowadays brands need to take a stance on current events and post about them. No matter what kind of brand you are, whether you are a large corporation or a small company, this is imperative for your Instagram marketing strategy in 2022.
15. Keep an Eye Out for Trends
It is also imperative to stay engaged with your followers and watch your competitors and influencers so that your brand remains relevant and hot on social media. Staying on top of trends in social media can help your brand remain relevant and hot. It doesn't matter if it's through a meme, a hashtag campaign, or just certain types of content. You can do a lot for your small business by adding your voice to the conversation. This is for marketing or branding purposes. Here's a video covering Instagram marketing strategies tailored for small businesses.
16. Give sneak peeks
It is one of the simplest and most effective Instagram tips that a small business can use to market its products to its followers. This is to give them a sneak peek at what to expect. It doesn't matter if it's an exclusive sneak peek at an upcoming product or a tour of your workspace. Your followers will appreciate getting an inside look at your company's operations and it will give them another reason to keep following you.
17. Post consistently
If you are just learning about Instagram marketing, our number one Instagram marketing tip for 2022 is to post regularly. You will be able to keep your followers engaged by posting regularly and consistently. Your content will continue to be displayed in your customers' Instagram feeds if you upload frequently and consistently.
18. Use Highlights
Using the Highlights feature, you will be able to choose from a variety of collections of stories to display right on your profile page. This is a great way to show the world what your business is all about. It also allows you to capitalize on the excellent content you post on your Stories to get more mileage out of them.
19. Post important updates often
A small business' Instagram account is a convenient way to get updates about your business regularly, which is a worthwhile reason for people to follow your account. Would you like to know, for instance, if your store hours have changed? Is there a sale currently on in your store? As a small business owner, you need to make sure your customers are aware of these updates when you post about your small business on Instagram. I highly recommend that you post these updates regularly.
20. Have fun!
I would like to end by reminding you that you should have fun while doing this! When it comes to using Instagram as a marketing tool for your small business, there can be a great deal of work involved. The good news is, however, that you don't have to sacrifice it all just because you want to have a great time doing it! There are some situations where you don't have any interest in posting about your small business on Instagram anymore. Therefore, perhaps you can try to change up your schedule so you will still be able to post consistently but fewer times each week. If you think that you need some help with some of the social media marketing tasks that you have, it might be time to hire someone to assist. In this way, you will be able to ensure that you are only focusing on Instagram marketing strategies that you are interested in.
If you want to grow your small business, there are a lot of things you can do with Instagram. This platform has a lot to offer - from short sneak peeks of your upcoming product launches in Stories, to full-on advertising campaigns made possible by an integrated ad manager, on the platform offers a lot.
I would recommend that you try out the tips listed above to discover your most effective Instagram features for growing your small business.