Before I deep dive into Instagram marketing and strategies, here’s a quick story you might find interesting.
Let’s jump back to March 2010 when Kevin Systrom was busy rejoicing the launch of his brainchild, Burbn. Yes, you guessed it right! The name symbolized his love for Bourbons and fine whiskeys.
Initially, he meant it to be a location-based check-in platform but soon had to pivot to a photo-sharing app. 14 years later, the same app is now known as Instagram and boasts approximately 2.4 billion monthly active users. And if you’re wondering how many Instagram users in the US, the right answer would be 169.65 million!
Now, with such a massive user base, marketing on Instagram has become even more crucial.
This blog post is a step-by-step guide to Instagram marketing and will help you leverage this powerful platform to achieve your marketing goals.
Instagram marketing is the process of leveraging the platform’s social networking abilities to improve a brand’s visibility, promote products or services, and generate sales.
For brands and creators, marketing on Instagram can be done in several paid and non-paid ways:
Additionally, Instagram keeps coming up with new features to enhance consumer experience and allow marketers to reach their desired audience easily.
According to the latest Instagram statistics, the platform’s monthly active user base is all set to cross the 2.5 billion marks by the end of 2024!
That implies over 35.71% of the world’s total smartphone users spend time on the application one way or another.
So, if you’re running a business, it is highly likely that a huge portion of your target customer group is already active on Instagram. And what better way to reach them than by creating content and running ads on the platform where they are already engaged?
Marketing on Instagram is also crucial to stay updated with the latest market trends, analyzing your competitors’ strategies, and building meaningful relationships with your consumer community.
When it comes to Instagram account types, there are three options: Personal, Business, and Creator.
Switching your brand account to a business profile is the first step to getting started with Instagram marketing. Apart from giving your profile a legitimate look, it will enable Instagram advertising options and allow access to analytics.
(Note: Business and Creator accounts offer nearly the same functionalities. The only difference is that business accounts get the additional benefit of scheduling posts via third-party applications and creating shoppable posts.)
To get started and initiate your Instagram marketing efforts, you need to follow these steps:
Step 1: Go to your Instagram profile and tap on the menu button in the top-right corner.
Step 2: Scroll down on click on Account Type and Tools.
Step 3: Tap on Switch to professional account.
Now, Instagram will begin the onboarding process and walk you through all the available professional tools.
If you’re further interested in setting up Instagram shopping, check out our detailed guide here.
Simply posting content and running ads isn’t enough if you social media strategy isn’t watertight. Generally, businesses don’t start with a long-term plan beforehand, and this leaves them with noticeable voids in the overall output.
With over 2 million active businesses on Instagram, creating an impactful marketing strategy becomes more crucial than ever!
Here are 4 pointers to help you kickstart your Instagram marketing journey:
All marketing efforts start with defining business goals and deep-diving into your audience’s preferences and behavior. If you don’t know who you’re creating content for, your social growth is likely to have a rocky start.
To understand your target audience group, start asking questions like:
To get these answers, you can access Instagram Insights.
Another important step to focus on is your Instagram profile. It is what the users first see when they search for you on Instagram or click on your profile image.
To leave a lasting impression on the user’s mind, you need to have all your branding elements right. One thing to keep in mind is that you have limited space, so focus on smartly integrating SEO keywords.
Here’s an example to help you understand what a properly optimized profile should look like.
There are several challenges in the content creation journey! Brainstorming and scheduling posts are just the starting points.
Thinking of new post ideas can be quite a hassle and to streamline this task, you must create a social media content calendar. Doing so will help you maintain a proper workflow, especially when you have multiple accounts to handle.
Your content calendar can be as simple or detailed as you want! Here’s an example to get started:
Imagine you’re based in the US and most of your followers come from European countries. So, if you’re posting content according to your geographical region, it isn’t likely to perform well in a different time zone.
Instagram Insights shows when your audience is most active, but it doesn’t necessarily tell you the best time to post for different weekdays and content formats.
Try out Vaizle’s free Best Time to Post on Instagram tool to find out the best days and times to post for maximum engagement.
Bonus point – Getting started is really easy. All you need to do is sign in with your IG account, select an account to analyze, and voila! The free version will tell you the best time to post on Instagram for the next 3 days. Now, you can easily schedule your posts in advance.
Once your IG profile is up and running, you will eventually be able to build a follower base and gain visibility amongst your competitors.
But that isn’t necessarily enough! Numbers on your profile won’t automatically convert into sales.
With time, you will want to use social media to grow your business and persuade these followers to become paying customers.
Here are a few ways to do so:
Resisting a good discount offer is always hard! Especially when the brand is successfully able to create a sense of urgency in the consumer’s mind.
Promotional posts are also a good way to gain first-time customers.
For example: consider this brand offering a 75% discount on selected items for the Cyber Monday sale!
Contests can help bring attention to your brand instantly! Similarly, giveaways are ideal for consumers to try your products before becoming permanent customers.
Here’s how @crazyshirts is allowing people to try a couple of their products in exchange for a follow and tag.
The live feature is a game-changer for brands on Instagram! Also, it has been noted that brands going live often have noticed an average engagement increase of 10%.
To launch a new product or feature, you can go live on Instagram and help users connect with your brand in real-time.
To further keep this data saved on your feed, you can also create informational posts in different content formats.
Check out Grammarly’s carousel post about a new feature launch.
That was all about Instagram’s marketing strategy and ways to promote your business!
Now, let’s jump to quick hacks and ways to supercharge your Instagram profile and keep the audience entertained with content.
Instagram provides business & creator accounts with an array of extra features that can help marketers track content performance, run ads, create shoppable posts, and a lot more!
However, most of the time, these features aren’t sufficient for someone with multiple Instagram accounts to handle.
In such cases, one might look towards third-party tools or apps to make the Instagram marketing journey seamless.
Here are some top notable picks you might want to consider for Instagram marketing:
To access ads account analytics and social media insights free of cost, you need Vaizle!
Vaizle is your one-stop marketing analytics suite for all social media and ad platforms. With an array of free tools provided, you can access detailed account analytics, along with conversion overview, day-wise, and content-type analysis.
To get started, simply log in with your account credentials at Vaizle’s Free Instagram Analytics Tool.
To further access exclusive features like audience demographic analysis, top-performing posts, and best times to post, you can upgrade your plan. Start a 7-day trial only for $1 before switching to a full-cost plan!
Once you have the analytics sorted, it is time to focus on actual content creation.
Canva is a free design platform that offers templates, easy-to-use editing tools, and a vast library of photos and graphics.
Simply hop on the platform and head to the social media section, where you’ll find ‘Instagram’ listed separately. Here, you will be able to create static posts, reels, ads, and stories in appropriate dimensions.
If you’re not about to create content from premade templates and want to include your own media, Adobe Lightroom is a must-have tool in your kit!
Sure, there are tons of editing software out there. But Lightroom allows you to edit multiple photos in a single batch, thus saving crucial work hours. Additionally, it also offers a range of advanced editing tools that go beyond basic filters.
Normally, Instagram only allows you to add one clickable link in the bio section.
This makes it hard for business owners or social media managers like you to figure out which link to add: your website, amazon product page, other social media channels, etc.
In such cases, it is advised to add a Linktree link to your bio, from where the user can be redirected to a page with multiple clickable links.
If you sign up for Linktree’s paid plan, you can also track clicks on each link to understand what content resonates best and make changes in your strategy accordingly.
Here’s how to create a Linktree for your Instagram account!
For all brands and creators willing to penetrate the Gen Z and millennial consumer market, Instagram is a platform worth exploring!
Instagram marketing is a great way to convey your story to the world, launch new features and products, and find potential customers. However, getting started with Instagram marketing isn’t as simple as you’d think.
To succeed in a highly competitive landscape, you need a solid Instagram marketing plan that includes all the latest trends. Also, you need to constantly monitor your content and ads performance to spot any shortcomings and growth opportunities.
Vaizle can help you keep track of all the latest insights and make data-driven decisions for your Instagram marketing campaigns easily. Get started with the free Meta Ads Analytics tool to optimize your Instagram ads campaigns, which in return will maximize your ROI.
To write an impactful Instagram caption, you need to focus on keeping the text easy to understand and straight to the point. Also, you should include a clear CTA that won’t be hidden behind the ‘See More’ button.
To use hashtags on Instagram, you should keep in mind the following points:
There are 5 types of Instagram posts. They are as follows:
To promote your Instagram marketing efforts, you can run ads, boost your posts, offer special discounts, and run promotional deals. Additionally, you can also cross–promote your posts on other social media platforms.
Total number of Instagram users from the US is over 169.65 million.
Mamta is an SEO Analyst with 2 years of experience. Currently, she is spending her time on content roadmapping to drive organic growth and engagement for SaaS businesses. Mamta is also an avid cinephile who spends her spare time watching latest action and sci-fi flicks from around the world.
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