Leveraging Instagram for Maximum Impact
Whether you are trying to build up your brand or trying to bring your business to the next level, Instagram is probably a really good thing for your business no matter what. Considering that your business will benefit from a visual element (most businesses do), Instagram will work well for you and you should leverage it properly.
What to do and what not to do
First of all, you will want to figure out the best way to use Instagram to your advantage. There are several things that you can do, which will make a difference for your business, both in the short-term as well as in the long-term.
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Be consistent: When it comes to creating and sharing content as part of your overall content marketing strategy, one of the first rules of thumb is that you share your posts on a consistent basis. That means that you post on the same day(s) each week and you post at the same times (more or less) each time that you post. The most important (and, perhaps, most obvious) reason for doing that is because people get used to seeing your content and they eventually (hopefully, it will not take too long) look for your content at the same time each day that you post content.
[tweetthis]Posting content consistently is a commitment but it will pay off because it helps you to build relationships.[/tweetthis]
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Take advantage of your one-link allowance: Considering that you are only allowed one link, you better make it a good one! Whether you are selling products and/or services, whenever you have something new to let your target audience know about (that could be something totally new or it could be a change that you have recently made to your already-existing products and/or services), you will want to write about it and include a link to whatever is new. That link may lead to a landing page, a status update in your biography, or any other number of things. No matter what you do, your goal is to engage your target audience in some way.
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Pose a thought-provoking question: Keeping audience engagement in mind, a question (if it is stimulating enough) will go a long way to doing just that. Comments work well too but sometimes, a question that really causes the other person to think may generate some really exciting, productive discussions. At the very least, your question can serve as a jumping-off point.
You should keep in mind that you are not asking a question because you want to hear yourself speak. You are doing that because you want to hear other people’s opinions. That serves two extremely positive purposes. First, it gives you a valuable perspective of other people. Second, it demonstrates that you value the opinions and points of view of other people. Sending a clear message about how much you value your target audience’s opinions sends a very powerful message about how you feel about your relationships with the.
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Present the most effective look and feel: Don’t forget that you are dealing with Instagram in this instance. From an aesthetic perspective, if you have the most appropriate look and feel for your particular business, other people will react positively. It will make your target audience members want to interact with you and to deepen the relationship that you share. The truth is that with so much information coming at you at such a rapid pace, it may be challenging to separate the meaningful from the mediocre. That is exactly why your content (words and visual elements) must stand out from the rest. Your Instagram account should be a part of your brand. It will help you to really widen your scope and to provide another level of valuable information to your target audience members.
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Pay close attention to the metrics: No matter what you do online, it is important for you to pay close attention to the analytics because you much continually have a good sense of how you are doing as a result of your social media interactions and postings. Only you will be able to choose the most appropriate categories to watch but those analytics are critical to your business’ success because it will help you to understand what you are doing successfully and what you need to adjust or revise. In short, those analytics will help you to grow and progress appropriately and successfully.
Now, for what you shouldn’t do on Instagram
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Don’t post too much: Posting too much content will make you unpopular with your target audience members. Although consistency is critical to your success, you will want to limit your postings to two to three times a week, at most. If you post more frequently than that, you run the risk of your content being considered spam, which is the last thing that you want or need. Of course, there is an element of subjectivity here, which is the idea that your target audience may want more frequent postings. However, that is probably more the exception than the rule. The majority of businesses that post content online are fine with no more than two to three a week.
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Always make sure that you keep it human: It is important to remember to keep your engagement human. Don’t rely on a robot or some automated action to do the work for you. Other people will know what you are doing and they will not appreciate it. The end result of that will be that your target audience members will not remain loyal to you and you will not be successful at building the kinds of relationships that you hope to build. That means that you will be in danger of losing your credibility.
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Always post content that is relevant and appropriate: If you constantly keep in mind that your content is centered around your brand, you will never be in danger of straying from the right topic. It is critical to keep in mind that your brand is always the most important focus and deviating from that focus will prevent you from achieving your goal in a timely manner. Of course, it goes without saying that your content must always be engaging, compelling, and valuable to anyone who chooses to read it.
Conclusion
Instagram is a valuable social media channel that can work well for your business and it can help you to bring your business to the next level. In many cases, images are more powerful than words when it comes to getting your brand’s message across clearly.Of course, the visual elements that you choose to use (including still graphic images and videos) must be of the highest quality possible in order to achieve the results that you are seeking). You need to embrace Instagram’s capabilities and leverage it to the best of your ability for your business.
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