Instagram is one of the fastest-growing social media for business, with 1 billion monthly active users and 500 million daily active users. Now those numbers are genuinely heaps! Since its launch in October 2010, it has seen a magnificent rise in its active number of users on a global scale and is showing no signs of slowing down whatsoever.
Having said that, what does this data mean to businesses of all sizes? It means “opportunity”. Instagram is like a rising sun; its potential is still waiting to be harnessed. At 1 billion, Instagram is ranked the 6th most popular Social network by the no. of overall users, the order being Facebook at 2.6 billion, YouTube at 2 billion, WhatsApp at 1.6 billion, Messenger at 1.3 billion, and WeChat at 1.1 billion.
What exactly is Instagram?
Before knowing why you need a strong Instagram presence, let’s brush up on some basics. Instagram stands as a viral social media platform for sharing photos and videos, boasting a staggering 2 billion monthly users globally, as reported by Statista. Users can:
- Generate posts featuring photos or videos.
- Craft Instagram Stories, residing on one’s profile for 24 hours
- Construct Instagram Reels, comprising short-form videos lasting 15, 30, or 60 seconds
- Conduct live video streams
- Can participate in direct shopping experiences from e-commerce brands through the application
Meta, the parent company of Instagram, also owns Facebook. Instagram caters predominantly to a younger generation, with Statista revealing that nearly 60% of its users are under 34, and 18.1% fall within the age group of 35 to 44. Hence, Instagram has become a potent strategy for businesses to connect with millennials, and it holds substantial marketing power for engaging Gen Z and other demographics.
Why Instagram?
Suppose you wonder what makes Instagram stand out from other social media platforms. In that case, the answer lies in the fact that Instagram provides greater scope for marketing opportunities, wherein you can get in touch with your audience with respective domains, for example, beauty, fashion, technology, food, traveling and so on.
Moreover, Instagram is anticipated to attain a user base of 1.4 billion by the end of 2024; Instagram presents substantial potential for amplifying the marketing endeavors of small business proprietors, a fact well-recognized by marketers globally.
- As per the 2021 social media marketing report from Social Media Examiner on Instagram marketing strategy says that around 78% of marketers use Instagram.
- In the hierarchy of importance, marketers position it as the second most crucial platform, trailing only behind Facebook.
- 64% of marketers express intentions to escalate their engagements on Instagram within the upcoming year.
- As for Instagram, 90% of users on the platform follow at least one brand.
- Additionally, a 2019 study commissioned by Facebook disclosed that 54% of individuals had purchased after viewing a product or service on Instagram.
Instagram proves particularly advantageous for small business proprietors constrained by time and budgetary constraints, unsuitable for extravagant marketing campaigns.
Why Should Your Business Be On Instagram?
Businesses Of Any Dimension Can Survive On Instagram:
Given Instagram users’ diverse needs and interests, enterprises of all backgrounds and various sectors can prosper on this platform. Achieving success may take time, but if a marketing team aspires to establish their organization’s presence with consistent Instagram management, it can play a pivotal role in your business.
Businesses can enhance brand recognition and foster connections with their intended audience through consistent activity, ensuring a daily posting routine of at least one content piece. This strategy mirrors how renowned brands like Coca-Cola and Adidas, alongside numerous smaller enterprises, have adeptly harnessed Instagram for their prosperity.
More Number Of Individuals Utilize Instagram:
Boasting an immense user base of 2 billion per month, Instagram stands out as remarkably favored, particularly among the younger demographic. Furthermore, according to Statista data, 63% of users in the United States engage with this social platform daily, while 97% partake in its usage every month.
Instagram Allows You To Connect With Your Audience:
Instagram is an outstanding social media branding platform to demonstrate your potential to your clients that your entity extends beyond being an anonymous corporation. Specifically, going live and sharing stories on Instagram can exhibit your brand’s distinct personality.
Instagram Narratives:
Use Instagram stories to unveil the behind-the-scenes perspective of your organization and the individuals constituting its workforce. For instance, you can post videos portraying your production processes, stories portraying office staff interactions, and posts depicting your company’s active involvement in the community.
Instagram Live Occurrences:
Instagram Live is an exceptional method for cultivating connection, confidence, and credibility among followers. You can conduct live question-and-answer sessions similar to those on Facebook Live Q&As. Like Instagram stories, live can offer an insider’s view of your corporate environment.
Instagram Allows You To Partner With Influencers:
Use Instagram influencer marketing to construct your brand. Influencers have a significant social media presence, with considerable influence and substantial follower bases. These influencers could be renowned personalities or well-regarded users within specific niches, actively endorsing products and brands, frequently ushering novel offerings into broader public awareness.
A reliable influencer holds the potential to elevate your company’s sales to unprecedented heights by enhancing digital marketing return on investment (ROI) and providing access to demographics that may typically elude you. Engaging influencers in promoting your product enables them to broadcast information about your business to thousands, or even millions, of followers through just a handful of posts.
Instagram Keeps You Informed About Your Competitors:
Your business can utilize Instagram to observe your rivals and understand their interactions with their audience. You can pay close attention to ascertain the frequency of their postings, the content they share, and how they connect with their followers. This data can be employed to refine your approach, drawing insights from their errors and gaining inspiration from their achievements.
Instagram Offers Your Business To Be Creative:
An excellent advantage offered by the image-sharing application lies in the creativity it imparts. Within Instagram, your promotional squad can unleash their imagination, devising innovative methods to capture interest, amass followers, and increase clientele. Demonstrate to the audience that your brand possesses character and make shopping with you an appealing experience by diversifying content through social media competitions, acknowledgements, vibrant visuals, engaging videos, and other interactive elements.
Instagram Increases Your Horizon:
Utilizing Instagram advertisements enables you to connect with fresh clientele through customizable and traceable promotions. Tailor your focus towards particular demographic groups, establish connections to your website, and accumulate valuable user information to guide your additional social media marketing endeavors.
Instagram Lets You To Hone Your Marketing Strategies:
Starting your business’s strategy for social media marketing? Gain particular, relevant details on your followers and the performance of your content through Instagram Insights. Utilize this information to enhance and shape your additional social media marketing initiatives.
Insights furnish essential social media metrics and details concerning your followers’ age, location, app usage duration, and more. Observe the performance of each post and identify the optimal posting time.
Know The Do’s And Don’ts On Instagram:
As you might have understood the importance of taking your business on Instagram, here are some do’s and don’ts to help you further present your business before your audience.
Do’s On Instagram:
- Ensure that you post consistently on your account. It is recommended to post at least 1-3 times a week.
- Use your Instagram bio wisely. Also, give your product link or your landing page in the bio to promote your business.
- Interacting with other profiles and responding to comments and likes is advisable for enhanced user engagement.
- Make sure you get feedback from your followers from time to time to get more insights on marketing strategies.
- Have a unique style in your Instagram posts, including a filter, grid pattern, angles, or anything.
- Use hashtags wisely, as your followers can easily find you. You can incorporate a maximum of 30 hashtags in each Instagram post.
- Instagram users want an emotional bond with the profiles they track. Share behind-the-scenes visual content, such as videos or images, providing users a glimpse into your organization’s procedures or history that would otherwise remain unknown.
Dont’s On Instagram:
- Typically, more than three weekly posts tend to annoy the followers.
- Abstain from utilizing automated comment generators or sharing comments with a generic tone.
- Despite the importance of sharing captivating content, refrain from incorporating entirely unrelated or sensational material solely for increased reposts.
- Continuously posting sales-centric content can be a mistake sometimes. Followers should not feel compelled to make purchases.
- Although Instagram emphasizes visuals, including captions in your posts can be advantageous. Use captions that are interesting with the image or video.
- Instagram thrives on interaction, and those expressing negative opinions need a reply. Be attentive to positive and negative comments, demonstrating your concern by responding considerately.
An increasing number of individuals are directing their focus towards Instagram, and neglecting numerous potential clients is inevitable if you refrain from becoming a part of this influential social media platform. Although advertising and sponsorship prospects are available, an Instagram business profile is a must. If you have not embraced Instagram’s popularity, it’s time to reach Infinix, the best social media marketing agency in Chennai for effective Instagram marketing.
