EASY WAYS YOUR SMALL BUSINESS CAN MAKE A BIG SPLASH ON INSTAGRAM

The importance of social media and marketing cannot be understated. Social media marketing allows you to interact with your audience directly and target ads to segments of your audience while establishing brand identity. In the current social media marketing arena, Instagram is a major player and a force that must be reckoned with. In fact, Instagram’s audience is projected to make up 55.8 percent of social network use in the United States, and has more than 1 billion monthly active users.

If you have been limiting your social media marketing to just Facebook, now is the time to expand on Instagram. So how do you market your small business on this behemoth and stand out above the competition? The following three tips will help.

No. 1: Post eye-catching content. This means content that is relevant to your target audience, such as product-centric content including images and videos that showcase your products. If your small business already has a loyal following and customer base on Instagram, consider posting photos and videos submitted by them as to engage them on a personal level. Keep in mind that Instagram, perhaps  the most visual social media platform in existence, is ideal for strategic digital content creation, so quality counts. 

No. 2: Use Instagram ads. This is the best way to reach your target audience. If placing an ad, again, use eye-popping images and target specific groups to maximize your ad. Furthermore, you’ll want to launch multiple ad campaigns for the various groups you’re targeting. Create specific landing pages that match your ads and direct potential customers to them in order to increase actual conversions. Additionally, Instagram ads allows you to choose a call to action that links to the appropriate place for clients to make a purchase. 

No. 3: Hashtag, hashtag, hashtag. Do not be afraid to use hashtags on Instagram, a lot of them. The more, the better, as hashtags greatly increase interactions. In fact, interactions are highest on posts with 11 or more hashtags. Before going too hashtag crazy, however, keep in mind that 30 is the maximum you can use per post or comment. Targeted hashtags on posts is one of the best ways to get discovered by new audiences on Instagram. If you are a Realtor, for example, your hashtags might include #uniqueproperty, #stunninghome or #greatdeal. By using these types of hashtags, the image is cataloged so other Instagram users who are searching for real estate can easily find it.