In the year 2016 Instagram was the social network that had the most growth, in June it published in its corporate blog that exceeded 500 million users, of which 300 million enter at least once a day. In the same text reported that 80% of users are outside the United States, which shows that the application is used worldwide. But not only people use Instagram, corporate account growth was reported by 55%. This means that in any digital strategy it is of vital importance to have this social network, which is even surpassing the number of Twitter followers.
This growth is due in large part to the constant changes that have been made since 2010, when Facebook decided to buy the company for a billion dollars and some shares. One of the most significant changes occurred last year when Instagram Stories was launched, which is the direct competition to SnapChat, the social network of ephemeral messages most used by Millennials. Another important addition is that it allowed creating profiles for companies in order to have the most important statistics of the accounts such as: number of impressions, people reached demographic data and location. Something of vital importance for companies to buy custom instagram comments.
The growth of Instagram has allowed a democratization of photography, now anyone with a cell phone with a good resolution camera can upload powerful images and be seen by thousands of people. It is also the social network preferred by celebrities, many celebrity characters show part of their private life through Instagram, something that the public loves.
Here are some tips to implement in the digital strategy for Instagram:
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Optimize the Instagram profile
Unlike the other social networks, Instagram only allows you to use the avatar’s photo and does not include a cover, you must take into account that the photo is shown in a circle, that’s why the company logo or the main image must be in the center. If you manage the profile of a company you must change the person-to-company account, this profile allows you to include a contact number and email.
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Choose the hahstags very well
Form a list of hashtags according to the business sector, analyze them before using them and observe what type of content they publish with it. It is important to use them because frequent use increases the possibility that it appears in the Instagram search engine, it also helps filter potential new followers. I recommend using between 5 and 15 hashtags in each publication.
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Use Instagram Stories
More than 50% of Instagram users are young people who like to consume ephemeral content, that is, it disappears in 24 hours. It’s not in vain that Instagram has copied the same Snapchat features. You should take advantage of this tool to upload different content, it is important to use the elements it offers such as brushes and stickers. In this part there is more freedom for creativity, you can upload short stories or 6 photos and videos that have a logical sequence. Another advantage is that when uploading a story the profile image appears at the top.
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Make emotional and fun publications
Instagram is one of the most emotional social networks there is, that is why it becomes very important to publish images and videos with emotional and fun content. It is important to explore different formats and themes to achieve these purposes and identify which of them generates more interaction on the part of the audience.
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Create valuable content in your Instagram account
In order to create content of value for your audience, it is essential to know it very well. This allows you to identify the type of content of your interest. The content of added value to the audience is recognized because it has great interaction, it is important to note that you should avoid that these contents have commercial messages. An example of content of this type for a travel agency is for example: tips to plan a trip, are images where in each publication a tip would be written.
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Post phrases
Phrases work very well on Instagram because they have an important emotional component. It is essential to select the right topic for the phrases, for example if it is a brand that sells chocolates you can use phrases of love for chocolate.
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Show the human side of your company
Show photos and videos of the workers of your company, this allows presenting the human side of this. Some recommendations for these photos are:
- That the collaborators are smiling.
- That they are fresh and casual, that is, avoiding formal and stiff poses.
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Share the important moments of the company with videos
Taking advantage of the 60 seconds of video, you can make your followers know the relevant moments for your company up close.
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Interact with possible followers
Until now in the strategies of pattern, Instagram does not allow the obtaining of followers, for that reason it is important to interact with the people that we would like them to follow us, for this we can “Like” their publications or comment in some of them, that’s why the list of labels is based.
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Concentrate in a single market
Talking about many topics may confuse followers and they may prefer to stop following the brand. To maintain a good reputation, it is recommended that 90% of publications are related to the issues that our company handles, so it can become much easier to become a reference. If they follow us is because they are interested in what we show, it is very important to be innovating in the content.
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Use photos and videos
It seems logical, but many brands only upload photos to social networks, and for a long time the network allows uploading videos of up to 1 minute. In the last month I create another form of presentation, and they are the galleries, the user can choose up to 10 photos and videos that when uploading create a gallery. It is important to be aware of the Instagram changes, because they do it very frequently.
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Demonstrate the importance of your product
Instagram is the best platform to show the added value of your product or service. Publish all the benefits that users may have when they contact you. It is often difficult to explain how a product or service is used, but if we do small tutorials, the possibility of obtaining new clients will be increased.
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Show the human side of the company
Show that behind every brand there is a group of people who work and strive to make sure everything goes well. Encourage followers by telling them who makes it possible to grow the company and the tasks they perform. This will give relevance to the content showing an unknown side to the public.
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Create contests
You can implement contests through Instagram using labels. This will increase the number of followers; also reward those who generate more interactions. One key is to link the Instagram account with Facebook and duplicate the content of the contest.
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Label influencers
Label companies and people with many followers that have some relationship with our brand. They cannot be labeled in any post, only in those that have a relationship, for example, if you use our product or if you visit us. This will help new users find our brand. Also look for the way they label us so that all their followers see our user.
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Use analysis tools
In order for any digital strategy to work, it must be measured, which is why it is very important to have analysis tools. Although in the profile of Instagram companies some data is shown is not enough. There are many payment tools and free to see the metrics, among the best known are MetriCool, Seekmetrics, Gabstats among others. This will help us present reports and show the progress we have made.
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See the help for Instagram for Bussines
Instagram has a portal with all the necessary information for the use of Instagram for companies. In the portal you can find topics such as:
- Instagram use guide for companies.
- Use of advertising on Instagram.
- Success stories in the business use of Instagram.
- Creative ideas to use Instagram.
- Blog
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Follow accounts that may interest your company
Identify accounts that may be interested in the information your company shares and follow them. A strategy that usually works quite well is to follow some followers of brands and accounts that have audiences similar to your company’s.
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Use Facebook to promote Instagram
Most companies have more followers on Facebook than on Instagram because it is an account that was created more time ago. With the aim of promoting your Instagram account from Facebook, you can use the Woobox.com tool, which allows you to add your Instagram account to a Facebook tab for free.
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Have contests and activations on your Instagram account
Design contests and activations that are specially designed for your audience. To be successful in competitions, keep in mind:
- The tool to administer the contest must be mature to prevent a fraudster from winning.
- The prize must be chosen in such a way that it is of interest to the audience.
- There must be a lot of clarity in the rules and conditions of the contest.
- You must comply with the rules of Instagram for the development of contests.
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Promote your Instagram account using e-mail
Add the address of your Instagram account to the e-mail signature, which will allow you to increase your visibility.
If you already have a database with permission to send emails, you must create a campaign to communicate the existence of your Instagram account.