As of this month, Instagram has approximately 500 million monthly active users, and counting. The app has quickly become one of the most popular social networks for sharing photos and videos. With such a huge user population, it is an excellent platform for businesses to upload creative content and attract people to their brand.

Some marketers might think: I’ll just pick a cool photo, apply one of the app’s filters to it, be it Valencia or X-Pro II, add a fitting caption, and I will achieve the perfect photo that my customers will love. Well, not quite. There is a lot more involved in making sure you are projecting your brand’s image strongly, and your photos are being seen by the right people, at the right time, and in the right context. You just have to be very careful about the content you’re posting. But believe that it’s all in your hands! Here are some ways on how to effectively market your brand on the oh-so-popular Instagram app.

Let’s get to it!

1: Make sure your photos are creative

If you think about people scrolling through their Instagram feed, it can be assumed that people are more likely to stop and stare at a photo that is visual and eye-catching, as opposed to one with a load of black text. Instagram’s visual culture rejects boring, and so should your posts. Beyond using the in-built editing features, your photo has to speak for itself, and be presented in an authentic way. As is commonly said, a picture is worth a thousand words, so use this old adage to hook customers. The photos you post should stand out on a person’s feed, and should clearly represent your brand.

2: Use the right hashtags

Hashtags are extremely important. It is essential to use these carefully, so as to lead the right people to your page. Make sure the hashtags you add to your photos are specific and targeted, and relevant to your business.

3: Closely watch the performance of your content and your competitors

Analyse your post engagement thoroughly, and answer questions such as: what times are most people on Instagram? What days get the highest post engagement? This way, you will better understand how to target your content to the right audience. Beyond this, look at your competitors and engage with their audience! Be subtly intrusive!  

4: Use Ads to drive better results

Ads are key. They allow you to share content with an engaged audience. Ads not only help to promote a brand, but could also lead to conversions.

As a business on social media, you have to be as unique and as social as possible – this should be at the center of your functioning, and could be the difference between thriving and declining online.

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