Instagram, now a global phenomenon, has wasted no time in becoming a staple social media platform over the last few years. This is partly because it’s seen as the most engaging social media platform out there. It’s because of this that it plays an integral part in many brands’ social media marketing strategies. So much so that it’s considered an essential online marketing tool for every brand. And a mandatory medium for businesses if they wish to successfully reach their target markets.
With that in mind, to help make your brand stand out on Instagram, we have listed several tips and tricks that you can use to get started. So read on!
Always produce quality content
When it comes to Instagram, if you’re ever forced to choose between a bad photo and no photo, choose no photo. Why? Because there is nothing worse than a shoddy image that makes your brand look unprofessional. This doesn’t mean, however, that you need to go to extremes and hire a professional photographer just to get that perfect shot. There are plenty of great phone cameras out there that are more than capable of doing the job. It just means putting aesthetics first and thinking about how to make your photos better. A required condition of success.
Attractiveness sells, so play around with photo editing tools to take your photos from “okayish” to something remarkable!
Think ‘big picture’
If your photo tells a story, your feed should be the novel. When people take a look at your profile, the first thing they will see is your Instagram feed as a whole. So it’s important to have an overarching theme that ties your images together and resonates with your brand.
Popular themes on Instagram include:
Crisp minimalist, like @silverlakesadminpro
Dark & moody, like @moda.misfit
Soft pastels, like @bossladysouthafrica
Colourful and cheerful, like @mishushy.studio
Whichever theme you choose, make sure that it suits your brand and stick to it. Remaining consistent with filters and photography, your theme will be a huge part of establishing your brand identity.
And remember, people’s attention spans are short! You only have a few seconds to make a good impression and convert visitors into followers, so make them count!
Keep your feed balanced and consistent
Whenever you post on Instagram, consider how your new post will look next to your previous post. They should ideally match, giving a balanced and consistent look to your feed.
Before you upload your post, make sure that your colours match and that there is a balance between detailed and simple photos. People like and in fact, prefer balance and harmony. Also, if your old photos don’t match your aesthetic anymore, feel free to delete them.
Use an editorial calendar
Use an editorial calendar to make things easier and plan your content. Your editorial calendar should include information like when posts will be scheduled, images, written copy and researched and relevant hashtags. If your posts feature a specific user or brand, make sure to also include their profile tag.
Consider more video
Instagram has been working on pivoting to video, according to the head of Instagram Adam Mosseri. He stated that “We’re no longer a photo-sharing app,” and explained that over the next six months, the app will start experimenting with different types of video, “full screen, immersive, entertaining, mobile-first video”. So creating more videos may be the key to brand growth and better business exposure.
Create shoppable posts
Instagram shopping posts are a great way to showcase your catalogue and drive sales. Optimizing your profile for Instagram shopping is simple and involves tagging products in your posts and creating an Instagram Shop. Once you have this up and running, you’ll be converting followers into customers in no time.
Posting
On average, it’s recommended that brands post no more than once per day, but there is no hard and fast rule when it comes to posting. For example, Nike only posts once a week while H&M posts once a day.
So far there doesn’t seem to be any relationship between the amount of content posted and engagement rates. The only thing worth mentioning is that if you set a precedent of posting frequently, you shouldn’t stop. If you do, you’ll fail to keep up with your followers’ expectations and they will lose interest.
