A successful marketing strategy can ensure that a product or service generates revenue. However, coming up with a successful strategy is more challenging than it looks. Instagram is a competitive market with nearly one billion users globally. With other businesses advertising alongside others, it can be hard to get ahead of the herd.
That being said, a strong marketing campaign can help boost a companies chances of success. Establishing and laying out goals can help clear a business’s pathway to rise above other companies. With so much to customize, it can also become confusing on what marketing schemes work.
This guide will teach you how to put together a marketing strategy that is proven to work. Implementing a marketing strategy using in-built app features, externalInstagram tools such as Followersid, and ads early on will help get your business on the right track, continuously grow your follower count, engagement rate, build customer loyalty, and then convert followers into customers. Keep reading if you’re interested in knowing more about how to create an Instagram marketing strategy.
Set Up a Business Account
The very first step to do is to set up a business account. A business account varies from a standard account. Instead of a description and URL, business accounts will use an industry label with their account.
What that label does is allow Instagram users to find a business in a specific market. For example, a site selling apparel will be listed under ‘clothing brand’ etc. The label gives a good indication for app users to find a product in a specific niche while browsing through the ‘clothing brand’ label.
Other benefits of using a Business Account include:
- Being able to utilize Instagram Insights
- Using Instagram Ads
- Ability to create an Instagram Shop
- Messages allow Primary and Secondary Tabs
- Addition of a Call to Action button and Contact Info on ProfileÂ
How to Set Up a Business Instagram Account
Step 1: Download App for iOS or Andriod
Head to the app store on an iOS or Android device and search for Instagram. Download the updated version and allow the app to download. Once downloaded, open up the app.
Step 2: Create an Account
Open the app and tap the button that says to create an account. Next, enter your information and create a username and password. After doing so, the app will automatically redirect to a profile where a company can fill out its profile information.
Step 3: Set Account to a Business Account
An Instagram account starts as a standard user account. To set up a business account:
- Head to the profile and tap the icon on the top right.
- Click on settings and then open up Account.
- From there, click on ‘switch to a professional account.’ The app will then provide prompts.Â
What to Do Before Advertising
Once a company has a business account set up, it’s time to move onto the pre-advertising stage. Pre-advertising is a stage before marketing a product. Listed below are the steps a business needs to take before they begin advertising or marketing their products or services:
1. Define Your Niche
Every business targets a single part of the market, aka, a niche. A niche is a specialized category in the market. For example, T-shirts would be classified under ‘clothing’ or ‘fashion.’ Finding a specified niche helps the business’s target audience find the shop.
To get an idea of what niche the business will be, compare competitors’ products and services. If another company is offering the same products or services, the same niche will likely work. Otherwise, categorize the niche that suits the products and services best.
2. Find Target Audience
A target audience is going to influence who is attracted to the company highly. Selecting the wrong target audience can make sales dwindle and will less likely sell the product or service. To find a target audience, think hard about what the product offers.
Questions to ask include:
- Who would benefit most from this product/service?
- Who is more likely to spend their money on this product/service?
- What gender is more likely to use the product/service?
- Is there a particular use per age?
- Who can afford to purchase said product/service?
- What niche would the product/service be in?
3. Optimize Profile
A Business Instagram profile allows a business 150 characters in its bio. We recommend creating a witty yet welcoming bio that encompasses a brand’s personality. The bio is the first thing users will notice when they read a profile. So, condensing a good bio into only 150 characters is crucial.
Other parts of a profile that are optimizable are:
- Profile Handle
- Website URL
- Niche Category
- Contact Info
- Call-to-Action Button
4. Establish a Look
Once you have the niche down, the next step is to decide what look the company has. Other businesses have a brand aesthetic that is easily recognizable from other companies. Therefore, a business should have a unique aesthetic with specific color influences and logos to help users recognize the brand.
The aesthetic should be consistent across all platforms and posts. That way, there is no confusion on which company is posting what content. For example, a food company may use the same color plates, silverware, and cookware when displaying their food.
5. Upload Profile Photo
A business profile photo should not include people unless they are the brand’s face. In most cases, profile photos should have the company logo. A logo is a symbol or a design to help identify an organization.
Symbols should be copyright-free and be explicitly designed for the use of one company. Hiring a designer to create a logo is highly recommended as it assures a business will get an original logo that isn’t copyrighted. Just make sure that the logo includes the theme and colors that the Instagram page will consist of.Â
Important Key Factors to Marketing Success on Instagram
Now that the business Instagram profile is set up, it’s time to learn how to market a brand. Marketing a brand is a bit complex if you’re starting. A company needs to know what factors influence a marketing strategy.
Below, we’ve listed the different steps one needs to take to create a good marketing strategy on Instagram successfully.
1. Research Competitors Strategies
A successful marketing strategy will implement researching other competitors in the same market. Not only is this mandatory for success, but it also allows a business to speed up its progress by not repeating the same mistakes another company has made. Start by scouring the Instagram Marketplace for businesses selling similar products or services.
After finding a few companies in the same niche, look at their strategies. Think about the following when looking at competitors pages:
- Are they marketing their company using user engagement?
- What type of content are they posting?
- How often are they posting?
- What time are they posting?
- What kind of hashtags are they using?
Watching competitors in the market can help improve methods that aren’t working for a current business and help adjust its marketing strategy. Using online tools such as SocialInsider to help track competition can also highly benefit a company.
2. Optimize A Post’s Hashtags
Before creating any posts, be sure to learn how to optimize hashtags. Hashtags are tags that help categorize content posted on Instagram. For example, if a business uses hashtags for ‘#drip’ or ‘#OOTD,’ it’s likely marketing to a clothing or fashion niche.
Using the right hashtags can help attract the right consumers. So, it’s essential to know what type of hashtags are trending in a specific niche. On the other hand, using hashtags that aren’t meant for a niche can do more harm than good.
3. Add Genuine and Unique Captions
Captions are limited to 2,200 characters which is more than enough space to write a meaningful post. Make sure to write a caption that fits the brand’s image. For example, if you are marketing for a friend’s niche business, then definitely use an instagram captions for friends to make it more relevant. Creating a brand voice is vital if the company wants to stand out.
Even though Instagram is geared towards visuals, it’s also crucial to pay attention to the captions. The most important part of a caption is the first two sentences. The first two sentences are displayed on a post with a picture.
The rest of the text will be displayed if a user clicks on the photo to read more. Any business should focus on making the first two sentences enticing to read more. Otherwise, users will only skip, and this will lessen user engagement.
Captions should be informative, on-brand, and provide some valuable information. Do not use captions as a sales pitch. A company can use captions for announcing discounts or coupons. Still, the overall post should be aimed to provide the reader with something of value.
4. Start Posting On a Schedule
After understanding what type of posts the business should do, it’s time to create scheduled posts. According to Hootsuite, the golden number of times a person or company should post on Instagram is 2-3 times per week. However, a business should also post less than once a day so that it’s not over-saturated.
The reason why it’s crucial to monitor posts is that Instagram uses a unique algorithm. Instagram’s algorithm selects content to push towards certain users, which most businesses need to capitalize on. The more likely the algorithm picks up on a businesses account, the higher the chance to attract long-term consumers.
5. Use Carousel Posts
Not only is posting necessary but also utilizing carousels. Carousels can chain together multiple photos or videos viewed by users when they swipe right on a single post. Taking advantage of these should be a companies top priority.
The more a company can show in one post, the more likely a user will become intrigued and know more. With the average user visiting one of the 200 million businesses per day, it’s best to capitalize on this.
It only takes a minute or two to watch a whole reel of carousels, while it takes more time to view individualized posts. So, to make it more enticing and convenient for viewers, consider grouping together posts and showing multiple services or products.
6. Track User Engagement
Once a business has picked up traction online, it’s best to start monitoring user engagement. User engagement is a term used to describe how many app users interact with a profile. Instagram Insights can help give a precise business number on how many users engage with its content and posts.
Tracking user engagement is crucial because it explains if a business’s current strategy is working or not. If the number is low, then adjustments to the strategy can help benefit the company before it’s too late. Although, having a solid foundation of what can help attract users in the first place can help avoid low engagement numbers.
7. Adjust and Adapt Marketing Strategy
Once the company has a firm grasp on its engagement rates, it will be time to adjust strategies to reach specific goals. If a company wants to get a particular profit margin, changing its marketing strategy can help boost its chances of achieving that goal. Of course, aiming realistically is also key to improving that goal.
If user engagement fails, it’s good to look at competitors and what’s trending in the business’s niche. Adjusting a marketing strategy that is proven to provide results can help a business reach new goals. However, copying outright isn’t always the best solution.Â
Instagram Marketing Strategy Checklist
Listed below is a quick checklist for a marketing strategy that can be used for a company:
- Define Niche
- Select Target Audience
- Optimize Profile
- Establish a Look
- Upload a Profile Photo
- Research Competitor Strategies
- Optimize Hashtags
- Add Captions
- Start Posting
- Use Carousel Posts
- Track User Engagement
- Adjust and Adapt Marketing StrategyÂ
Conclusion
Implementing the strategy mentioned above will help a newly created business be on the right track to making profits. Adapting is also vital in furthering gains once a company is established. With over 130 million users tapping on shopping posts each month, it’s always essential to keep up to date with successful strategies and closely monitor Instagram Insights.
Article Submitted By Community Writer
