Tip #1 - Establish your brand’s “look” on Instagram

Whether you’re a seasoned social media marketer or just getting started, it is important to have a clear idea of the type of content that best suits your brand. It’s important to optimise your Instagram profile. In just 150 characters, your bio needs to make a great first impression. It needs to convey who you are and why people should be following your account. Choose an eye-catching profile picture, for most brands choosing their own logo as their profile pic is a good idea in order to give the account credibility. A good bio will allow followers to see at a glance who you are and what your brand represents. 

Keep in mind that what works for one brand may not work for another. Maintaining a uniform visual style is important, but so are authenticity and approachability. As much as you want to stay uniform, the best thing to do is follow your own voice! Just be sure you maintain consistency with colour palette choices, fonts, tone of voice etc.

In order to build a consistent look, it's important to clearly define your business goals. Perhaps your goal is to create a successful online presence for your business, increase brand awareness, or sell products through the Instagram app. You may even want to combine several outcomes all at once! Whatever it is, having a clear idea of your goal will help you know what kind of content to produce. 

Once you have your “look” down, all future posts should follow suit in order to not confuse followers with differing styles across your account.

Tip #2 - Make the most of Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories are a key part of any good Instagram marketing strategy. They provide an opportunity to connect with followers and build relationships while also providing that "continuous" feel that people are looking for from the social media accounts that they follow.

A third of the most viewed Stories on Instagram are posted by businesses, and they play an integral role in a solid marketing strategy. The nature of these short videos forces authenticity your followers want something that feels more real than what appears through curated posts, but it also provides them with content specifically tailored to their needs which helps maintain positive relationships with your audience.

Have a message in mind that you would love to share with the world. Think about what's important while keeping it engaging and creative. Aim to make an impact in the first 3 seconds of your video so you don’t lose any viewers. You can also create highlight albums to preserve your top Stories so they don’t disappear after 24 hours. Your highlights will appear under your bio and you have complete control over what you want the cover to look like.

If you're not already using Stories and Highlights, then we highly recommend giving them a go for your business account in order to maintain your presence on Instagram and increase your account engagement. 

Tip #3 - Engage with other accounts

If you want engagement on Instagram, be sure to engage as well! Posting quality content is great but you are unlikely to see increased engagement if your account never responds or interacts with other profiles. Social Media is all about being social! Be sure to respond to any comments on your posts, and to comment on other relevant posts from other accounts. This lets people know that you are paying attention. Explore popular accounts within your niche and make yourself visible without being promotional. Find opportunities wherever they come up. 

Tip #4 - Experiment with Instagram Reels

Reels is a new Instagram feature that lets you shoot, edit and share 60 second videos. Unlike Stories but very much like TikTok, Reels offers sophisticated video processing tools with an emphasis on editing features for those looking to make their social media content more interesting and creative.

The following are a few ways you can use Reels for your business.

You could make educational content, like showing off your product and how to use it or teaching people a quick tip. This will show that you have some knowledge in this area which could help others as well. You could make behind the scenes content. We all know how important it is for

businesses today to show their followers what they're up to. Maybe you've got a new product or service and want some feedback before launching it? You could also tap into trending content. If you want to stay ahead of the curve, tap into what’s happening now and make sure your business is current with all things Reels! 

Brands should really take the opportunity to engage people who prefer quick-and-easily digestible content such as Reels. Reels are a great platform for collaboration and using them can significantly increase your chance of showing up on the Explore page, which is one of Instagram's best discovery spots. If you’ve been feeling stuck in your Instagram growth, start making Reels as soon as possible. They are a great way for people to consume your content and engage with your social media account. 

We hope that you now have more of an idea on how you could better be using Instagram to make your business successful. We would love it if you could share this Blog with your friends or colleagues who might also find this info interesting! If you have any questions about the topics we covered in this Blog, or other Digital Marketing questions, please don't hesitate to contact us!

If you are looking for more business ideas or advice, why not check out our other Digital Marketing Blogs on our Website. Thanks for reading.