According to recent research, people are more likely to follow brands on Instagram and people on Facebook. Instagram is booming and the audience is passionate. They want to see your brand through your eyes, so share your moments.

1.    Choose this social channel if you’ve got beautiful photo opportunities, great stories to tell about them, and passion for making your brand shine here. Get started by learning the Instagram business basics.

2.    Think of this as a savvy mini business blog with great imagery and captions. Create a content and message strategy that’s purposeful and meaningful.

3.    Make your business bio count. Tell people a bit about you, how you can help, and why you’re special.

4.    Create a content strategy that includes the following, and use the 150-character rule for your message:  

a.    Good stuff that informs or inspires.

b.    Helpful stuff people can learn from your brand/team.

c.    Insights and feedback you can learn from your followers.

5.    Followers will engage with your Instagram in one of two ways - one image at a time (feed), or as a collection of images (brand page). So, be sure that all images are representative of your brand or brand story.

Keep in mind that Facebook owns Instagram now, so the evolution continues. Here are a few new capabilities:    

·       Tools as well as tips for creating a business profile on Instagram.

·       New ways for users to drive sales from Facebook to Instagram.

·       Instagram Stories (a new feature to share multiple photos and videos in a slideshow format); disappears after 24 hours.

·       Live Video as part of Instagram Stories – video disappears when live video ends.

·       Zoom – a “pinch to zoom” feature.

For some support with Instagram brand page development, contact us. 

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In the meantime, for more on this topic, visit Instagram for Business.

~ Tracy L. Teuscher, APR