How To Use Instagram Collab Posts in Social Media Strategy?

Did you know that 68% of weekly Instagram users open the app only to interact with creators? 

Now, as a digital marketer, it is paramount for you to reach this audience and promote your brand to them. This begs the question – how? 

The answer is an Instagram collab post. With this feature, you can partner with other influencers and brands to leverage their popularity. 

In this article, we will discuss all about how to collaborate on Instagram and different ways to incorporate such posts in your digital marketing strategy! 

Table of Contents –

1. What is an Instagram Collab Post?
2. What are the benefits of Instagram collab posts?
3. How to collaborate on Instagram?
4. Examples of Instagram collab posts.

What is an Instagram Collab Post? 

Back in June 2021, Instagram launched a collab feature allowing two users to co-author a single post. The shared post appears in the profiles of both authors and is visible to their combined followers. 

Here, the original author can invite the second account for a collaboration. Once the invite is accepted, the post goes live on both accounts. At any given point in time, the author can also remove the collaborator. 

An Instagram collab post shows the same comments, likes, shares, and performance statistics as the tagged profiles. 

Seeing the increasing demand and usage, Instagram has now increased the number of collaborators to three! It further allows small businesses and brands to increase their content reach by partnering with creators. 

What are the benefits of Instagram Collab Posts?

According to Vishal Shah, VP of Product at Instagram, “Collaborating is a huge part of how people connect on Instagram.” 

If you’re wondering why and how to make a joint Instagram post, keep reading! 

• Partner up for better exposure: Conventionally, brands collaborate all the time to leverage the benefits of collective popularity. An Instagram collab post is the digital version of this partnership and even allows beginners or small brands to reach a wider audience. 
  
• Notice a spike in follower count: When you collaborate on Instagram, your discoverability automatically increases. With more eyes on the profile, you can surely expect a hike in followers. 
  
• Gain more engagement: Usually, the impressions and reach of an Instagram post depend on the total number of followers. But with overlapping follower spheres, the content is likely to get more likes, comments, and shares.
  
• Build trust with the audience: An Instagram collab post can automatically be seen as an endorsement from the author’s profile. Simultaneously, it will also help build connections with fellow creators and brands in the same niche. 
  
• Eliminate Duplicate Content: Without the collaboration feature, multiple accounts will separately post the same content to their followers. Not only does this reduce engagement, but also boosts redundancy.  

How to Collaborate on Instagram?

If you’re wondering how to collaborate with someone on Instagram, the process is incredibly easy and takes a few seconds! 

However, before beginning, ensure that your profile setting is set to public. Private accounts can post an Instagram collab post, but it won’t be pushed to user feeds of people who don’t follow you!  

Here’s how to collaborate on Instagram in 4 simple steps: 

• Step 1: Post your content as you normally would. Select the post from the gallery, make the required edits, and add the caption and hashtags. Now, click on ‘Tag People’ in the new post window. 
• Step 2: Instead of tagging people, click on the ‘Invite Collaborator’ option. 
• Step 3: Type the handle name or username for the profile you’re willing to collaborate with! 
• Step 4: Now, Instagram will send the other profile a DM request. The prospective collaborator can either accept or deny the request. 

Examples of Instagram Collab Posts

Now that you know how to collab with someone on Instagram, let’s look at a few ideas worth trying out! 

But before proceeding, have a look at How to Create high-quality content for Instagram to ace the creative game. 

Find Influencers in the Same Niche

As a digital marketer or influencer, your primary goal is to get noticed by your prospective customers or followers. You can do that by partnering with popular accounts in the same niche. 

For example, if you own a gardening supplies company, look for popular faces in the plants and gardening niche. 

Another example can be @twistedgreen collaborating with @plantfuture. Both accounts are focused on sharing plant-based recipes and can therefore benefit from this partnership. 

Host Giveaways With Other Brands

Organizing giveaways is a sure-shot method of getting instant audience attention. Even better if you collaborate with other similar brands. 

In the example below, you can see Lip Lab and Freck, two cosmetic brands collaborating for the occasion of Pride Month. 

Setting giveaway entry conditions like follow, comment, and share, can also get you noticed by people who normally wouldn’t. 

Strategically Pick Creators

Normally, one would look forward to collaborating with a creator in a similar category. While it works quite well, you’re also left with a limited number of prospective accounts. 

You can step out of this bubble and strategically pick creators with a matching target audience. For example, look at this Instagram collab post between @scotiabank and @spencer.barbosa. 

Here, the bank aims to promote its services to young adults on the brink of financial independence. 

Practice Self Collaboration

If you’re working for an umbrella organization that manages multiple sister brands, collaborate with them. Here, you can effectively avoid content duplication, which is usually not favored by the Instagram algorithm. 

In this example, @adidas has collaborated with @adidasfootball. Even though the primary brand is the same, they’re promoting content to its sister account without resulting in repetitive posts. 

Conclusion

Social media is all about networking and what better way to do that than collaborate with creators on Instagram? 

An Instagram collab post lets two or three people co-author the same content without posting it separately. It is visible on the main profile of all accounts and has the same performance metrics. 

If you want to maximize engagement by co-creating quality content, get on the Instagram collaboration bandwidth now!