FIVE TIPS FOR INCREASING INSTAGRAM ENGAGEMENT
Instagram is steadily becoming one of the most popular (and engaging) social media apps to date. With over 800 million users, it’s hard to justify the decision to not market your business on their platform. If you are equipped with a well-planned social media strategy, your business will receive unshakeable engagement with its direct target market.
There’s a good reason why food and restaurants are incredibly popular subjects for Instagram posts. Let’s be honest with ourselves here… we all love a drool-worthy food photo. Am I right? (If you answered no, you’re lying.) So how can your business grab the attention of those insta-followers you are so desperately trying to reach?
Here are 5 fool-proof methods to create an engaging social account without seeming too desperate:
TIP #1: SWITCH TO AN INSTAGRAM BUSINESS PROFILE.
What are the major differences between a personal and business account on Instagram?
- Insight Tools: You receive access to Instagram’s analytics tools (called Insights) that allow you to see your accounts stats, best times to engage with your followers and post performance and reach. This is a free tool… FREE… so utilize it.
- Call-to-Action Buttons: Not only can you link your website, but you can also create clickable buttons that allow viewers to email, call or get directions to your establishment. This makes it incredibly easy for your target market to get in touch with you directly.
- Paid Promotions: You can promote your posts directly from the app to reach a larger audience. It’s exactly like boosting your post on Facebook, but for Instagram.
- Clickable Links: Once you’ve reached that coveted 10k following, you can add links to your Instagram stories. This is a great way to sell products, drive website traffic, grow your email list and much more.
Note: To set up a business profile on Instagram, you MUST have a Facebook page for your business for it to link to.
TIP #2: CREATE A STRONG BIO FOR YOUR BUSINESS PROFILE.
Piggy-backing on why you should switch to a Business platform, creating a strong biography will help make the right introduction (and first impression). Include valuable information about your business and make sure it clearly explains what your business does. Ensure that your brand is easily searchable by choosing the right username and name for your account. For instance – if you’re a restaurant – make sure your username and account name match as closely to your restaurant name as possible. Also keep in mind that your bio is limited to 150 characters, so make it count!
TIP #3: SHOW-OFF YOUR PRODUCTS AND MENU WITH EYE-CATCHING PICTURES.
I cannot express how crucial this is. Use Instagram’s visual platform to gain followers, engage with new fans and build a loyal (and returning) customer base. How exactly can you do this? FOOD PORN. Today’s consumers have a strong attraction to vibrant photos that are so vivid they practically want lick their phone (or find a way to jump in so they can snag a bite). True story. Make sure to check out these 13 photo & video apps recommended by Hubspot.
TIP #4: WORK WITH LOCAL MEDIA AND HIGH-REACH ACCOUNTS TO CREATE SOME BUZZ.
Social-savvy account holders have already established a loyal audience that trusts their recommendations. Work with these accounts to spread your own brand’s reach and attraction.
The #1 rule to go by when partnering with other accounts: only work with accounts that have an audience that would already be interested in your product or business. For instance, a hot sauce brand would have little to no increase in traction if they partnered with a fashion blogger. Get it? Strategically consider the audience of who you want to work with… because there’s no point of spending your hard-earned money on a partnership that won’t bring you more business.
TIP #5: CREATE A SOCIAL CALENDAR TO KEEP YOURSELF ON TRACK.
One of the biggest challenges businesses come across is creating a consistent message and feed. As an owner, you’re busy (trust me, I get it), so posting on a regular basis can start to feel more like a chore than promoting your brand. There are many scheduling tools out there to assist you with this (Hubspot, Buffer, Hootsuite) and I recommend scheduling at least 4 posts per week.