With an engagement rate 15 times that of Facebook, Instagram is a necessity in social media marketing strategies. However, marketing and PR professionals can become easily overwhelmed by the number of best practice lists published on the Internet.
Determining how to present your brand and who you will target can quickly help brands decide what advice, tips or trends are worthy of pursuing. Learn how to successfully use Instagram to tell your brand’s story with these five tips.
1. Think About Your Audience
Each social media platform has a different audience type, and while some users may follow you on multiple channels, they expect different experiences from each. Stick with a similar message across your channels, but keep in mind the reasons your audience follows your brand on Instagram.
2. Set the Tone
Successful storytelling results from setting a tone and maintaining it throughout your posts. Instagram is fun. Keep it that way by skipping the monotonous, serious tone. Not sure what adjective would describe your brand’s voice? Listen to conversations and watch interactions between employees in the break room.
3. Determine Your Theme
As tempting as it is to post pictures of everything you do or like, designate a theme for your brand’s Instagram account. Think about your customers to brainstorm ideas. What attracted them to your brand? What can you offer if they follow your account? Stay on topic with your products and offerings, but mix your posts up with varying angles and lighting.
4. Schedule Posting Days
Follow your theme when snapping pictures, remember your tone when writing descriptions and stay consistent in your posting schedule. If your brand wants to post twice a week, determine which days work best for engagement and designate those as your posting days. Your followers will begin to expect and look forward to your posts once you’ve established a schedule.
5. Try Out Trends
Once your brand has enough posts to analyze its efforts, start to incorporate trends. Look up topics with the recently updated Search and Explore function. If your brand decides to get involved in a trending conversation or hashtag movement, step back to ensure what you want to post reflects your brand’s tone and Instagram story. Jumping into a trend too quickly can make your brand seem desperate to find followers.
Images: Joseph Morris, Syed Ikhwan (Creative Commons)
