Are you interested in learning how to use Instagram for business in 2021? Then, this is the right place because, in this article, I will tell you how to use Instagram to run a profitable business.
In recent years, Instagram has been a great tool not only to connect with people but also to market their businesses.
As in this creator economy, there is huge opportunity for you to grow your personal brand on Instagram.
So, let’s dive right in.
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Use High-Quality Photos
Instagram is all about clicking amazing visuals. It’s also very significant to choose interesting, colourful, high-quality photos and videos to post.
There’s nothing to worry about if you’re not a real pro when it comes to taking perfect Instagram images. You can just use apps to edit your pictures to help you cut out small photo defects.
2. Be creative with imagery
When you are just starting out on Instagram, it can be very critical to build up a following and get people engaging with your posts.
Although, there is a way that you can make the most of people who already know and love your brand over on other platforms like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn by highlighting the fact that you are over on Instagram too.
You have to be very creative and imagery in order to promote or use Instagram for Business in 2021.
You can also use Instagram Templates to beautify your creatives.
There is a very great chance that a large percentage of your followers on other social platforms have an Instagram account too, but perhaps didn’t know that your business did.
Let people know where they can find you on Instagram and watch your follower count steadily begin to rise.
3. Don’t go post mad!
It can be very tempting when starting a new social profile like on Instagram to go mad with the number of posts. Although, this can overwhelm an audience and lead to a few of those dreaded unfollows!
You have to experiment, to begin with, to see how well your audience engages with the posts you publish.
However, there are no magic tricks for the number of times you should post, as this can vary considerably based on industry sector and target audience, so consider starting with a couple of posts a day that you vary the time you publish on.
In this way, you’ll be able to get a good idea of when most of your followers are using Instagram and when to start introducing a couple more posts on, particularly active days.
4. Ensure you interact with your followers
Your followers want to see that you are taking very active interest in them too, so if someone takes the time to leave a comment on one of your posts, take just a few seconds to thank them for it.
This thing will make them feel good, and show to everyone else that you take an interest in what they have to say and therefore may lead to more comments on future posts.
Always remember to ask queries of your audience too in order to get them involved and encourage sharing. One great way is to ask your followers to tag three friends who would love this.
This strategy creates natural sharing and as the ‘friend’ has been introduced to your profile by someone they know and trust, the reluctance to follow you will be reduced as they will know that the person they tagged must like and trust what you put out there.
5. Do your hashtag research
Hashtags are the way to get your posts in front of a large audience on Instagram. Before publishing anything, make sure you’ve spent some time researching hashtags that are trending in line with the theme of your post so you can jump on the back of this existing popularity.
Creating your own brnaded hashtag and using it on every post can also stand you in good stead as the more followers you get, the increased likelihood that they will use your hashtag if and when they publish something that relates to it and wants you to see.
6. Keep users on the edge of their seats
If you sell any type of products, you could also create a hashtag that customers can use to tag photos of themselves using the product in question.
This strategy can be again a great fun for your customers and business alike, and you could even run a competition where the most creative photo featuring your product wins a prize at the end of the month to encourage even more customers to get involved.
It doesn’t matter where you run a marketing campaign, you ultimately want to keep users interested and coming back for more.
Through your Instagram page, why not reward your followers with exclusive news and information on new products, competitions or events?
You could create a series of initial posts leading up to the big reveal to keep them coming back, before providing that exciting information exclusively to them first.
This tactic would make your Instagram followers feel very special and overwhelming and keep them coming back to your profile to see what the latest sneak-peek is, the most recent product you’ve added to your collection or that cheeky behind the scenes video of what goes on within your business.
Instagram has created a lot more opportunities than before in the creator economy.
You can also use some of these beautiful Canva Instagram Posts.
7. Diversify Your Content
Instagram isn’t just about sharing photos, although image-based content, of course, can be super effective.
Instagram is an ideal and best platform for sharing brief clips of marketing videos. From there, users can be directed to your YouTube channel, where they’ll further engage with your brand.
Along with, don’t hesitate to take advantage of Instagram Stories, which is ideal for the type of time-sensitive, unfiltered content you might also share on Snapchat.
All of the biggest of brands use video on Instagram, and there is a good reason. Check out this simple video that has almost double the views and engagement of any of their static images:
8. Work with Influencers
Influencer marketing is one of the best marketing techniques out there.
You can reach any Instagram influencers to work with them. In order to promote your product, you can give away your product for free and ask them to promote on your page.
Social Media Influencers can be one of your most effective resources on Instagram; statistics published on Social Media Today claim that influencer marketing provides 11 times the return on investment of other forms of digital marketing.
Some of the biggest brands like Gucci or Zara are using influencer marketing strategies to promote their brands.
9. Use Calls-to-Action in Your Posts
Instagram users often notice your bio and if yo have a great call to action then probably they are likely to get coovert.
Once they star to browse your posts and photos, they’ll move on to another page – unless you lead them on a worthwhile mission.
This technique could be as simple as directing users to Instagram Stories, where they can see updates on special events or limited-time sales.
Otherwise after all, request that users sign up for your email list, visit your YouTube channel, or tag a friend in the comments section – anything that will take them from being a passive follower to an active voice for your brand.
10. Craft Your Brand’s Narrative
What better than to attarct your followers than by telling your brand story?
The common and popular thread between the biggest brands on Instagram is that they have some sort of narrative.
Through imagery photos and videos, they’re able to speak to the interests and desires of their audience, receiving tons of love in the form of comments and likes.
You don’t need to be a master storyteller to create a narrative, you just need to remember let your pictures and captions do the talking and rest is all set.
11. Show Off Your Products
At the end of the day, mastering on Instagram for promotion of the business is ultimately about, business.
That is why, promoting whatever it is that you have to sell it doesn’t matter whether it’s a digital or physical product.
As mentioned by some of the brands above, there are a ton of ways to show off your products without totally shoving them in your followers’ faces.
Creativity does counts on Instagram unlike any other platform because it is a visual platform. Try Diversifying your content strategy while also promoting your products should be your endgame, and below we’ve highlighted some awesome ways to make it happen.
Of course, it’s very straight-up promo posts to announce your latest launch, contest or giveaway are staples of modern Instagram marketing.
12. Tap into the Power of Instagram Ads
At last but not least, let’s briefly talk about the growing “pay to play” nature of Instagram and other social media at large.
Unlike Facebook, it’s much easier to get in front of people organically on Instagram because of wider reach than facebook.
Although, the numerous Instagram ad types out there coupled with the platform’s robust targeting is tempting for brands with the budget the experiment with ads.
From videos to stories to reels and beyond, sometimes paid real ads is just what you need to pop up in your ideal followers’ feeds.
