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Instagram influencer marketing is seemingly taking over the social networking-business world. Many businesses are relying on hiring an “influencer” to promote their products, rather than traditional advertising efforts. Some of the top brands turn to social media marketing to increase sales and make their name known to the rest of the social media world. Depending on the product being sold, there is an increased likelihood that the specific customer market spends its time on Instagram. Instagram claims over 1 billion active users, with 4.2 billion likes per day on Instagram. Instagram marketing is a tough arena to claim proficiency, but if you follow these tips– Instagram influencer marketing will come to you at ease.
1. Change Your Instagram Account to a Business Profile
Changing your Instagram account to a business profile is quite easy, it is a simple switch on your setting preferences. Many argue that the Instagram algorithm favors personal profiles over business ones. In response, most serious Instagram management tools are limited to business profiles only. The four benefits of an Instagram Business profile include: access to insights, the ability to add a contact button, your industry will show on your profile, you will be able to advertise on Instagram and make promoted posts and it brings the ability to add links to Instagram stories. Insights will be discussed later in this article. Adding a contact button allows viewers to simply click a button and be in contact with you. Showing your industry on your profile will simply bring awareness to your page and your validity in the respective industry. Adding links to Instagram stories isn’t available to the average user, but this allows influencers to connect their viewers directly to a product. Instagram has recognized the increased turn to business profiles and is experimenting with creator accounts for serious influencers.
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2. Use Instagram Insights as a Serious Tool
Instagram Insights provides a deeper understanding of the operations of your account. It allows you to find out who viewed your profile and among many other things– it gives you access to view who sent your post to others. It also reveals the detailed demographics of your followers, helping you determine whether you are actually targeting your designated market. Insights represent data from each post you make– detailed specifically per post instead of an overall profile.
3. Don’t Be too Sales-y with Your Posts
No one wants to feel like they are being sold something, especially Instagram users. The biggest mistake businesses make in Instagram influencer marketing plans is tailoring their captions toward that of a sales dialogue. This decreases the value of the post, and most people will in return ignore them. Users have limited time in their day, and they will alter their opinions towards your company if they feel as if they’re being persuaded to buy something. Take @mycultofreal for example, she includes posts that emphasize her lavish life of traveling. She convinces her following to go to these nautical places in her captions, not by exclaiming they need to book their flight, but emphasizing the time of her life that she had. One to take notes from!
4. Use Sponsored Ads to Build a Bigger Audience
After signing up for a Business Profile, you will have access to creating a sponsored ad on Instagram. Sponsored ads allow you to reach people who are not already apart of your existing followers. Ideally, you want to target your ads to Instagram’ers who best represent your target customers. The goal of this sponsored ad is to attract the attention of users, and feature content that appeals to them. Take @8fit for example, they feature an interactive sponsored ad for a weight loss program. The caption reads, “Love your body, change your life”. This is a great example, as it promotes a healthy lifestyle and does not pressure the viewer to buy anything. Mastering sponsored ads is an important aspect of Instagram influencer marketing, but it can bring your business to the next level if used correctly.
5. Use Your Own Branded Hashtags
Hashtags are back in! Did they ever truly go away? Many Instagram influencer marketing plans will argue no. The great aspect of hashtags is that you can make them into whatever you please. The more you can encourage to make posts using your custom hashtag, the broader the reach and engagement will be. Branded hashtags should be simple and clear. More people are willing to use a hashtag that is easy to replicate, similar to #nationalgeographic. This tag has been used 4,787,298 posts to date, proving the simplicity has paid off. Also, Red Bull has created a catchy hashtag #givesyouwings which has been used more than 403,000 times. Including a catchy hashtag will bring your Instagram influencer marketing plan to the next level– take a look at National Geographic and Red Bull!
6. Encourage Your Fans to Create User-Generated Content
User-generated content has increased its popularity phenomenally over the last couple of years. After creating a suitable custom hashtag, businesses encourage followers to upload relevant photos using that hashtag, allowing them to provide personal stories that consumers can relate to. Take Coca-Cola for instance, they started an initiative, “share a coke” with their customers that took off running. Coke-drinkers shared pictures on social media of who they shared their drinks with, and Coca-Cola’s following nearly doubled!
7. Post at the Right Times on the Best Days
Although it is extremely important to discover who your target market is for Instagram influencer marketing, it is just as important to discover when is most ideal for posting content. Our goal in influencer marketing is to spread the best information for our service, but also to ensure our audience hears it. Different target markets will be more friendly to different times of the day. For instance, a younger target market is on their mobile device for a longer amount of time. Therefore, the window of time will be much broader than an older target market. This takes great research into the behavioral patterns of your target market. Therefore, it is essential to know exactly who you are selling your product or service to.
8. Partner with Other Influencers for Greater Reach
More the merrier, right? This saying applies to this tool for Instagram influencer marketing like no other. Studies show that individuals are more likely to follow a group of influencers from a specific field they are interested in. This is based on the notion that different people have different opinions, likes or dislikes. Most Instagram users are on this app for that reason- they want to weigh the opinions of others and see what a day in the life is like of many different people. By partnering with other influencers, a product will have a wider reach, by catching the eyes of followers of not only one influencer– but of many. There is power in numbers, and banding together will only create the opportunity for growth with Instagram influencer marketing.
9. Be Creative with Your Content
We seem to hear this in every aspect of our lives. “Creativity will set you apart, this is where you distinguish yourselves from the rest of them.” The power of creativity is like no other, and Instagram is the best platform to embrace that. With over one billion users on Instagram, these individuals are looking for a creative outlet. This is an essential aspect of Instagram influencer marketing due to the highly competitive nature and the number of differentiated influencers out there. After discovering their unique message, influencers should find ways to communicate this message in a creative way that ensures the target market hears it. The world is your canvas!
10. Track the Right Metrics
Finally, it is essential for Instagram influencer marketing plans to include the correct metrics in which they measure their reach. Every firm with a business profile has access to Instagram Analytics. You can gain so much data from this service, to ensure your message is being communicated properly. The statistics influencers use must directly relate to your goals. CoSchedule exclaims that if your goals are to increase engagement, you should measure: “comments, saves, engagement, website clicks, and top followers.” If your goal is to grow your audience, you must measure: “followers, likes, impressions, reach, top posts, active hours, and active days.” It is essential that influencers don’t get stuck on menial metrics. An Instagram influencer marketing plan is not complete without proper metrics.
Intertwine these tips into your influencer marketing plan, and you are sure to utilize this powerful platform to the max. Get to influencing!
