Author: Jaqquline Lawrie
Instagram is a huge force in the social media world and one that can help build your business and reach people you might not have on other platforms. With over 800 million users on Instagram, it is the largest photo sharing social media application. By utilising Instagram, you will be able to create a visual path for your company and interact with followers on a personal level. Instagram can be quite daunting though, especially for new businesses that carry a small following. How do you stand out from other accounts? and look professional? And attract an audience? All of these questions are normal for newcomers to the application and following these tips you will be able to maximise your Instagram account as a small business.
1. Switch from a personal account to a business account
Before sharing posts, following other accounts or even telling others you are on Instagram make sure your account is an Instagram business account. This may seem like a minor change but by having a business profile you’ll be able to view account analytics, advertise your account/posts and get new contact options on your account homepage. In order to switch from a personal account to a business account simply:
- Go to your profile
- Click the three small dots in the top right corner (settings)
- Scroll down to ‘switch to business profile’ and click this option
- Connect your Instagram to Facebook
- Choose a category
- Enter contact details and click done (note: your profile needs to be on public to switch from personal to business accounts)
2. Post daily
You need to be consistent and post often in order to stay relevant on Instagram. According to Brian Hughes you should post daily, but don’t spam your followers with more than two posts a day. The average posts made by large brands is 1.5 per day and even though you may be a small business you need to post just as often. When posting photos make sure they are relevant, high quality and not offensive. If you do not have time or expertise, you can also hire professional social media management services to do the job for you.
Some of the great fashion brands who post regularly on their social account are ICONIC and men’s grooming online store Urbane Man. If you have a popular product or product category then it makes sense to promote that category in your social accounts. For instance, for Urbane Man popular category is Beard Balm so they consistently promote beard related posts on Facebook and Instagram. This is something you can do too to promote your top product to grow your eCommerce store.
3. Interact with other accounts
Instagram is a great social media application for interacting and as a small business you should be utilising this. Likes and comments play a big role in attracting people to your account and help you gain followers. The suggested amount of time that should be spent daily on commenting on other profiles is 1 hour. When interacting make sure you’re commenting on relevant posts to your brand and every comment is unique and genuine. An easy way to find relevant posts is by following a hashtag or geographic location.
4. Include hashtags in your posts
Time to get hashtagging on your photos! I’m sure you’ve heard of hashtags and while this is beneficial to your account it’s important to not overdo it. When including hashtags on your photos make sure they are relevant, not attention seeking (example: #instadaily #instalike) and a few of them are unique to your company. While your account may be small it’s important to add a few unique hashtags with every post, as this will build up your brand and when it takes off, other accounts will start promoting your brand with your hashtag. An example of a unique hashtag could be your business name or a unique product your offer.
