Instagram​ Content Marketing

Hello everyone

Every social media site has its own tools, methods that are unique to that site. Therefore there is a strategy for content success on each platform. Over the next weeks, I will be exploring this notation by taking at each of the platforms I focus on and discussing what content is successful on them.  Today I’m going to be focusing on content marketing on Instagram.

Images can be a powerful representation of what matters to a business as I discussed in my previous article about the power of pictures (for a link to this article see the bottom of the page). Pictures can tell a story so business can post pictures on Instagram telling their story, that represent their brand. Through this strategy, businesses can communicate with their followers or customers and build relationships. For example; a winery showcasing their vineyard suppliers to show where their good quality grapes come from or an artist showing the stages of their work to include their followers in their artistic process.

 

Good habits to practice 

For businesses; it’s important with their online presence that they maintain it with constant and regular posts. It’s also important that they are careful and strategic with their presence by getting into good habits with their posting. by this I mean, choosing what to post and how to present it. This choice should be different with each social site because each site has different methods of best practice which markets should be using.

On Instagram, there are methods such as captioning photographs and using hashtags which can boost a post reach and provide context but the best way to achieve a strong following is by carefully choosing each photo; making sure you produce your businesses best image.

Reaching out to your community 

People use social sites to connect with others which can be to a businesses advantage. If businesses think of Instagram as a community then there are ways that they can use this community to share their business with that community.

By sharing cause that matter to your business, by tagging people in relevant photos, engaging with others that engage with you and responding to questions or comments you are connecting with a community. All these things and more put a human face behind a business that is a face that others can connect with and build a relationship with which strengths your business.

 

As with most sites, the more Unique marketing strategies will always get the best results on Instagram since we are all drawn to something we haven’t seen before. However, a few simple good tactics can have more effective results over time than something brand new and shiny which just flashes by. So by using the practices I discussed above your campaigns and therefore your brand has a better chance of lasting longer and building strong ties with your Instagram following.

 

Sources:

http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2015/08/instagram-marketing-strategies/

Instagram Marketing: Your Complete Guide to Instagram Success

How to Use Instagram for Content Marketing

http://www.socialmediatoday.com/social-business/5-examples-effective-instagram-contest-strategies

The Power of Pictures

New Platform Data

Hello all

Every platform is different. What works on one site will not work on another. which is how it should be each social app must provide a unique experience. Each site must have a compelling reason why they are a site worth joining as such all markets should be aware what content will work on what sites.

In this article, I will use research conducted by different platforms to show what each platform can offer to its users and how marketers should be using these identified reasons to their advantage. I will be looking at Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.  

Instagram 

Instagram is considered a platform of fun, relaxation, and discovery. A place where celebrities get more precedence. Users look to this site for an insider perspective and insight. The visual focus on Instagram makes it more conducive to entertainment.

As such marketers should use the platform to entertain, aspire and give exclusive personal insights to your business. All this helps to show a human and fun side to business which can attract attention by allowing people to form a personal connection to the business.

Facebook 

Facebook is a platform better known for satisfying people’s need for connection. its primary appeal is considered to be the ability to connect with friends and family. Therefore it would seem to suggest that Facebook users seek more personal content such as perspectives they care about and want to discuss.

This research might suggest that Facebook is a place for sharing reactions and opinions and, as such, marketers should display emotive content designed to evoke engagement. Businesses should achieve this by finding causes or issues that matter to their followers and showing that this is important to their brand.

Twitter

Twitter is a platform used for direct communication with one’s targets audience. This site acts an everyday source of exposures which constantly allows for businesses to be discovered. More than this according to new research more than a quarter of users have gone on to make purchases because of Twitter. It is also clear that people engage with these brands by tweeting them and the responses they receive leave a positive opinion of that business.

So Twitter should be used as a way or engaging with its customer basis in the hope of encouraging more sales. This is not to say that every brand on twitter will see an immediate sale increase but there is still a large a value to active on twitter since it allows people to connect with your business.

 

So this new research shows the still present relevance for marketers to be on all of these platforms and use their unique audience’s to your’s brands advantage. I believe that these statistics shows, that no matter the platform or its special features, what people or users are really looking for is the personal connection behind the professional side of business. However, it’s always well worth conducting your own research as to what users respond to on different platforms

 

Sources:

http://www.socialmediatoday.com/social-business/facebook-releases-new-data-what-users-are-looking-facebook-and-instagram

http://www.socialmediatoday.com/social-business/twitter-releases-new-data-how-users-engage-smbs-tweet

Introduction to instagram

Hi all

A lot of businesses are using Instagram now to improve their brand through social media. so I thought it would be worth learning more to improve my knowledge. So I will be taking a look at both the basics of Instagram and how to use Instagram for your business.

• the basics of behind Instagram: 

Instagram is a photo sharing an app that works with android or your iPhone. it allows people to share great quality photos about what matters to them on their mobile.  You can comment, Like and tag people in the photo’s just like on any other social media site and you can also link your profile to your other social media sites. Instagram, however, is considered to be one of the best social media sites for engagement.

Once you have taken a photo that you wish to share on the site you can explore the sites photo filters, focuses and other edit options. You can also post small videos or splice a number of videos together. Once your photo or video clip is ready you can add a caption or anecdote before sharing your photo on Instagram.

• How to use Instagram for business: 

On the business side of things Instagram it’s all about building a visual identity of your business and sharing that with your customers. By building the brand of your business through photos that are relevant to your customers it creates a better relationship between you and your customers.

This can be done in a number of the different way such as following those who follow you, hosting photo contest to get customers engaged, offering exclusive rewards or behind the scene information. All of this can help to take the mystery out of your business for customers and include them in the day to day running which shows the most personal side of your business and not just its products.

 

In conclusion, Instagram is a way of creating identity through photos, either personally or professionally, which allows you to better connect with the people following you. Since these connections are vital in business, businesses could most definitely benefit from using Instagram.

 

Here are my sources:

26 Tips for Using Instagram for Business

http://mashable.com/2012/05/29/instagram-for-beginners/#QyCvfZo8w8qH