Keys to Improving Your Reach on Instagram
Instagram can be a valuable tool for most any business. The beauty of Instagram is it’s simple. Like any other social channel, there really isn’t that much functionality, Instagram is designed for one thing and it does it well. So why Instagram? With a dash of creativity, there are ways that will help you make your brand and posts unique.
Here are a few creative solutions that will help you increase your reach.
1. Hashtags #
For the love of social marketing, be sure to use hashtags for all posts. Adding tags to your photos is a great way to find new followers and share your photos with more people. But hashtags can be tricky. To get the most out of them, you’ll want to keep a few things in mind:
Specific-make it easy for others to find you by making your tag description specific.
Relevant-make sure your hashtag describes your photo.
Observant- pay attention to other similar photos and use similar hashtags.Links
2. Links
There is only one place to have a ‘live’ link and it’s in the bio/profile section. But the good news is, that you can change that link as often as you like. For instance, in the summary where you describe your photo and list your hashtags, invite people to click on your link in the bio for more information. You are able to drive people anywhere you’d like on your website. Customize your link with bitly so you can monitor how many people are using your link.
3. Photo Helps
Instead of bombarding your audience with multiple photos from the same event, make a collage with Diptic < >. You’ll also want to make the photos and collages interesting by branding them or adding other text with Word Swag . Make it your own.Posting Frequency
4. Posting Frequency
Building a following and keeping them is a balancing act. People want to see you out there, consistently building a presence. It has to be unique, and you need to post often to stay relevant and true, but not too much so as to appear spammy. How frequently you post depends on your audience, so it is basically trial and error. Start slowly (once a day) and increase your postings as you feel more comfortable and you aquire more content. However, you need to maintain consistency. Don’t blast out one post an hour and then go to once a day, you will lose your audience.
5. Editing
It never fails, you find a typo or forgot to tag or add a hashtag. You can now edit your post after they’ve been published, so always double check your work.
6. Share and Comment
In case you didn’t realize it, social media is all about sharing and commenting on posts from your audience and/or people you follow. Be friendly, upbeat and engaged. People will respond to people who are invested in them. In order to respond to comments and shares, you should initiate ‘Push Notifications’ so you are alerted right away. For iOS users: go to Settings→Notifications→Instagram→Allow Notifications
Instagram is ever changing just like every other social network. Try not to get frustrated, look at it as an enhancement to your social platform and your reach.
How do you use Instagram to promote your business?
