Tips and Tricks Every Business on Instagram Should Know

1. Switch over to a business account!

One of the first things any business should do on Instagram is switch over to a business account. It’s free of charge for anyone to do this and comes with a lot of benefits that are helpful for any business.

• • By switching to a business account, you gain access to Instagram Insights. This is a service which gives you information on your reach, your interactions, and your audience. This can be an easy way for you to gather information on your audience, which will also show you how to appeal to them more.
  • You can tag products in posts. This lets you get some quality marketing into your social media while providing your audience with a simple way to find and purchase the product you’re advertising. It couldn’t be easier.
  • You can set up advertising. Being a business account allows you to run ad campaigns on Instagram, which can be extremely simple and efficient. Keep in mind that while switching to a business account is free, running ads on Instagram isn’t; you have will to pay to show sponsored advertisements.

2. Make sure your profile is optimized for Instagram!

There are certain profiles which just do better for businesses. Of course, you should also think outside the box and give things your own creative spin, but as a starting point, here are some of the basics things to know about setting up a profile.

• • Make sure your profile picture is identifiable. You want your audience to know it’s you at a glance! There are a few ways to do this, like for example, using unique colors, or perhaps imagery related to your company, such as the logo or a mascot representing the company.
  • Include your industry. You will notice that Instagram has a section where you can list what industry your business is a part of. It’s important to fill this in, particularly for small businesses where people’s first introduction to you may be through Instagram. Filling this in tells your audience what exactly it is that you do, with no room for guesses.
  • Put thought into your page’s description. It should include an explanation of what your business does, but a very good description will show something more. For example, Angstrohm Digital’s description is ‘Good marketing. Period.’ Not only does this show what we do, marketing, but the phrasing also adds a certain tone to the brand.

3. Include a wide variety of posts!

Instagram offers a wide variety of post formats to choose from. Let’s take a look at some of them.

• • Static posts. This format of post consists simply of still images. Incorporating static posts into your upload schedule allows for faster turnout times, since they’re easier for your team to make.
  • Reels. These are videos which are a maximum of 90 seconds long. These take a little longer to make, but are typically worth it as they come with a higher engagement rate, among other benefits.
  • Stories. These are temporary posts that only last 24 hours before disappearing. It may be tempting to skip doing stories because of how they will disappear so fast, but the benefits of doing them can easily outweigh this! Stories are an easy way to boost engagement with your audience, as well as to boost your brand’s reach while telling your audience all about your brand’s personality.
  • IGTV. This format is relatively similar to reels, although the video limit has been increased from 90 seconds to 15 mins if you’re posting from a mobile device, and 60 minutes if it’s from desktop. IGTV’s usage may be more limited than the previous formats, but it’s still something worth considering. Long-form video content can be valuable, and it’s another great way to boost engagement.

4. Have an identifiable aesthetic!

Speaking of posts, there is a way to post and a way not to post. Instagram is an extremely visual platform; how your business looks to your audience matters, too. You have an aesthetically pleasing, consistent theme among your posts. There are a number of ways to do this.

• • Use a color palette. This is when the majority, if not all, of your posts on Instagram are of a similar shade of color. Having a color palette for your business is a good way for your posts to maintain a nice visual aesthetic while building brand identity. While picking the colors you want to use, remember that colors have symbolism, too!
  • Follow a theme. Vibes, feelings; this can all fall under a theme of your Instagram. This can help you build a personality for your brand. It shows your audience what your business is all about, right down to the feeling.

5. Be sure to engage with your audience!

There are so many reasons for a business to want to engage with their audience. Let’s go over some of them.

• • Be ready to act as customer support. As social media becomes increasingly prevalent, more and more people are using social media as a replacement for customer support services like online forums. Not only that, but people have come to expect fast replies at all times. If your business can take note of this, you will be seen as a lot more reliable by the customers trying to reach out to you.
  • Respond to comments. It’s a perfect way to show your audience that your business cares about them and their perspectives, increasing customer loyalty. You can respond to negative comments too, as doing so can also display a sense of care for the community, though be sure to keep a helpful tone and do not get defensive.
  • Make good use of engagement prompts. There are many forms of engagement prompts you can make good use of on Instagram, such as through polls and interactive stickers in your story, or asking questions to your audience on a static post. Not only does this boost your position in the algorithm by encouraging engagement, but it also is an easy way to conduct some simple market research into your audience.
  • Engage with user-generated content. This is content that is made by someone outside the business. For example, let’s say you’re a shoe company and someone shares a picture of themselves wearing your business’ shoes; that picture is user-generated content. It’s a great idea to be interactive when this happens, whether that’s to comment something in response or to simply like the post. If their post is particularly good, you can even ask to share it to your own page, with permission from the original user who posted it. This is a good way to build a sense of community among your audience.

6. Give your Instagram audience something exclusive!

It’s a good idea to give your audience a special reason to follow your page; you should show them something exclusive to Instagram. Here are some ideas for you.

• • Instagram giveaways. Giveaways are a tried-and-true method of boosting engagement on social media, as well as hype for the brand. Instagram giveaways can be quite simple. For example, you can provide some basic instructions to your audience in order to enter the giveaway, such as follow the page and tag a friend. Afterwards, once the giveaway period has ended, deliver the promised rewards to the winners. The winners will have gained increased brand loyalty to you, while the people who entered may want to try again next time.
  • Show some special content. Maybe this can be something behind the scenes, like the staff of the business having a good time together. This can show your business’ human side; it’s always a good idea to remind your audience that your business has a team of passionate and friendly individuals behind it. That is just an idea though, as there are many possibilities for special, Instagram exclusive content that may fit your own brand even better. Think outside the box; the more creative, the better!

Wrapping up