Do you have a business Instagram account that has been sitting dormant for months? Do you struggle to find strong visual posts? Don’t worry! Many businesses find it hard to create new and innovative content on social media. Often if you don’t have a dedicated social media manager within your company, platforms like Instagram are not seen as a priority, and they aren’t maintained.
This can happen with both start-ups to big-brands; I’m sure we’ve all been guilty of not updating our social media platforms in the past. However never forget the impact that an active platform with an engaged audience can have, as engagement leads to greater website traffic, sales and brand awareness.
Are you aware that Instagram has some pretty impressive stats with 800 million active users*, plus the latest figures show that last year 30% of Instagram users purchased a product they discovered through the Instagram platform.*
Enough of stats, here are my top tips for Instagram.
Top Tips
Be consistent!
If you want to become good at anything you need to be consistent, musicians, sports people and athletes all train and practice every day to hone their skills and improve their performance and you need to work just as hard to create a successful Instagram account.
- Post at least once a day
- Post at the same time each day
- Create a look and feel to your posts, so followers instantly recognise your brand style.
- Write thoughtful captions that capture your brand’s personality.
Tell your brands story
Every brand has their own unique personality let your ethos shine through in your posts.
- Feature your staff in photos
- Create Behind the scenes videos
- Explain the benefits of your product
- Promote your way of life
Ask Questions
When you’re writing your Instagram captions, don’t forget to ask your followers questions. As by asking a question you’re prompting them to leave a comment or response and the more comments you receive, the better your engagement rate will be.
- Use Instagram polls
- Ask their advice
- Ask for top tips
- Ask them to share photos
Like and comment on other people’s posts
Instagram is a social platform, and your followers will want to see that you’re engaging with them and their posts as well as asking them to like and engage with yours.
- Don’t just leave an emoji as a comment – Actually, write something meaningful and personal.
- Spend 10-20min each day liking and commenting on your follower’s posts.
- Don’t be afraid to share or Regram posts you love.
If you liked this blog post then why not up to your Instagram game by signing up for Jane Moscardini’s beginner’s course on 21st February at 9.30am >> Introduction to Instagram.
Stats from;
- *www.yotpo.com
- Sprout Social
Written for nesma by Jane Moscardini
Jane Moscardini set up the marketing agency Listen & Like, with her long-term design collaborator Jay Bushby in Jan 2017. Before moving into social media, Jane graduated with a 1st class honours degree in Fashion Promotion. Then went on to work as a successful fashion, beauty & homes editor in London on titles that include Hair, Wedding, Look, Real Homes and More. While working at these publications, Jane created original editorial shoots & articles. Her most recent position in London was delivering community management for Schwarzkopf hair care. Since moving back to the North, East Jane has been working with local companies such as Beamish, Culture Bridge, East Durham Creates and The Forge. With her varied background and innovative approach, Jane’s social media talks and courses on social media marketing are always interesting and engaging.
Other nesma short courses by Jane that you may be interested in –
Introduction to Instagram for Beginners – Newcastle – 21 Feb
Thursday 21st February, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Introduction to Pinterest Course – Newcastle – 21 Feb
If you would like to discuss whether this course is suitable for your needs or talk about adapting it for a bespoke in-house session please call Lucy on +44 (0)7734 222 254 or email hello@nesma.co.uk.
