Instagram has long become a pioneer in social media and displaces competitors such as Snapchat and Facebook. Especially the younger generation uses Instagram for sharing pictures and videos. The network is bursting with tremendous reach.
The number of active users was announced in June 2018 with 1 billion active users, even though Instagram has only been around since 2010. For advertisers, Instagram is extremely attractive. We explain how you get Instagram followers for your advertising purposes.
How does Instagram work?
The standard Instagram format is 1: 1, so (almost) all pictures and videos in the newsfeed are square. For the photos and videos, there are descriptions that can be up to 2200 characters long. However, only the first three lines appear in the feed. To make the best use of the few characters available, Instagram users mainly communicate via hashtags. These also make it possible for videos and pictures to be found via the search and filter function or to be proposed to new users.
Hashtag content search does not differentiate between companies and private users. In addition, the structure of the various profiles is always the same. Company profiles look just like the profiles of private users. This means that ads are noticeably less negative than, for example, Facebook, where users are quickly annoyed by advertising. Instagram, on the other hand, lives a bit of advertising, which makes users like to be inspired to buy.
How to use Instagram as an entrepreneur
Tip 1: Make the most of the descriptions
the aforementioned descriptions of the photos and videos will particularly irritate you if you put the most important information right at the beginning of your description. Just make sure they appear in the feed as well. An optimal opportunity for companies is to place links in the descriptions. This will redirect users to other channels you suggest, or even your own website, and generate more clicks.
Tip 2: Use hashtags correctly
for the hashtags, it has been proven that rather few but meaningful and considered hashtags should be used. For each upload, a company should not use more than five hashtags. Also, think about a hashtag that you can use for each picture or video so that all your uploads can be found via this search tag using the search function.
Tip 3: Finding the right content
with your corporate channel, you have many opportunities to create content. This allows you to focus on individual products, post-Do-It-Yourself videos or highlight job offers. Practical tips and charity campaigns are also extremely popular on Instagram. Instagram also offers you a great opportunity to introduce your company from another site. On Instagram, you can showcase your corporate culture by showing yourself, your people, and the work environment close and personal, giving your users a behind-the-scenes look. Dare this or that storytelling experiment!
Tip 4: Generate Interest in Auto play Mode
In the newsfeed view, the videos start in auto-play and without sound. In order to arouse the interest of the users, many companies provide their postings with subtitles. Some users even look at the videos completely in the newsfeed. The sound of the video is therefore rather secondary. Ideally, however, you will be able to make the initial images of the video and the first pieces of information you pack in the subtitles so well that the user opens the video in a single view. Then you have his entire attention.
Tip 5: The right length for your Instagram videos
An Instagram video can be up to 60 seconds long. But since the attention of the users is usually much shorter on just one upload, you should not exhaust these 60 seconds. It’s usually enough if a video for Instagram is only about 15 seconds long. What attracts a lot of interest over a longer period, are series. Think about a topic and create several short videos that you post regularly and, above all, advertise on a regular basis.
Tip 6: Integrating influencers
you can increase your reach very quickly if you include influencers. These have often already established a huge community. The right fans of the influencers look at everything, where they are involved, including your video, in which you have included an influence. However, caution is advised when integrating influencers, because there are also many false accounts with a reasonable range.
Tip 7: Communicate with your users
Instagram is a platform where you can be close to your followers and it’s worth it. Answer questions from the community, also in video format, and show that you are happy to respond to the needs and wishes of your followers. Then the followers become more active and in turn respond to your answer. An interaction develops that quickly results in a greater range.
Tip 8: Increase range
the range is not only increased by the interaction, but also by competitions that you specifically use. You can use giveaways to create followers. If you use hashtags like #exercise or #contest, users will notice your profile, which otherwise would not have been displayed. If your prizes and the rest of the content are also interesting, you’ll win one or two new followers.
Conclusion
Using Instagram for your business is not hard and extremely effective. To try it out, it is enough if you generate short videos with a Smartphone and common editing programs. In the case of photos, on the other hand, you should pay a little more attention to sufficient quality and aesthetics; otherwise, they will simply be scrolled off too quickly. Instagram offers you optimal technical conditions for easy upload of your content. If you use Instagram as another tool in your marketing mix, you will be able to build proximity to potential customers and attract many new prospects.
