In our previous article “How to Build Engagement on Instagram” we looked at some simple ways to get started on Instagram for Business.  This article is a follow on and shares some more tips to further your Instagram for Business experience.

Audience

Who are your audience? What do they like? Use Instagram’s demographic information to find out more about who is interacting with your posts (Insights, Audience).  You can then tailor your posts accordingly, maybe by tying in your posting time to a specific time zone or when your audience is most active.

Top-Performing Posts

Analyse the data of your last month’s posts and see what the top-performing posts have in common.  It could be certain hashtags, the colour scheme or something else.  Try to analyse and replicate in future posts.  Keep reviewing to get the best out of Instagram.

Cross-Promotion

Gain followers from Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn by mentioning your Instagram account on these platforms (and vice-versa).

Use Catchy CTA

Don’t forget that the image is only one part of the post.  Make sure you write something catchy that sums up the image, your brand and includes a call-to-action such as “leave your comments below” or “click the link in the bio”. A catchy CTA will guide the audience into responding in the manner that you wish.

Stories

Instagram Stories are a fun and interactive way to connect with your audience and can be leveraged in a number of ways:

• Use creative stickers to ask questions or poll your audience
• Share behind-the-scenes content, product sneak peeks
• Follow this guide on how to create playful and interactive Instagram stories

Reels vs Stories

If you want to attract new followers then don’t forget Reels.  These are videos (up to 90 seconds long) that are focused on content creation whereas Stories are more snapshots of your day, in order to keep your followers engaged

Carousel Posts

According to Publer, Carousels with both video and images get the highest engagement rates – an average of 2.33% over posts with images (1.74%) and posts with videos only (1.45%).  New to Carousels?  Take a look at this Social Sprout article.

Advertising

If you are wanting to really get your brand message out there then don’t forget about advertising. Utilise Instagram’s ad formats: Instagram offers various ad formats, including photo ads, video ads, carousel ads, and story ads. Experiment with different formats to see which ones resonate best with your audience and drive desired results.

We hope that this has been a useful read.  Red Desk Virtual work with our clients to ensure they have a positive online presence across all their digital platforms including social media.  Please contact us mel@reddesk.co.uk if you are wanting to discuss a new project or review of your own social media.