This article in the Member Spotlight series will show you how to maximise the marketing potential of Instagram for your business. If you want to create an impact in digital marketing, the field is yours to conquer. Share your thoughts in our Community Insights by submitting an article of your own.
Instagram is the fastest growing social network in the world, with over a billion active users per month.
Recent studies comparing the Instagram activity of the top 100 financial services organisations in the United States and the United Kingdom present a very similar image on both sides of the Atlantic.
The Financial Services company can benefit from the following five Instagram strategies.
1. Important Piece of Advice:
Make Sure Your Images Stand Out
It’s crucial that you adhere to Instagram’s stringent picture and video requirements. If you don’t, the pictures and videos you upload to your profile won’t look very well and you won’t be making the most of the space available to you online. Take note of the suggested running times for articles and videos. Here you may find Instagram’s video requirements. The image requirements are listed here.
Keep in mind that the majority of Instagram users use the platform from their mobile devices, and design your images accordingly.
Instagram emphasises one’s outward appearance. Having the right dimensions for your photos and videos is crucial. Take high-quality images (with a good camera) and produce in-house movies for Instagram. This might need modifying the frame size during filming to get a square shape.
Learn how to use Instagram’s built-in editing features. When uploading a picture, you have the option of using a predefined filter (such as Mayfair or Clarendon) or performing custom adjustments to the image’s contrast, brightness, and warmth.
Keep in mind that the majority of Instagram users use the platform from their mobile devices, and design your images accordingly.
2: Keep tabs on your progress
Tracking your marketing initiatives’ success is essential. Monitoring helps in planning for the future. You may increase the followers that your material will generate a lot of interest by keeping tabs on which postings are the most popular. Signing up for an Instagram business account will provide you with information on the geographic and age breakdowns of your audience, allowing you to better target your messages.
You may increase the likelihood that your material will generate a lot of interest by keeping tabs on which postings are the most popular.
If you have a business account on Instagram, you can see exactly when and how many of your followers log in. After that, you may choose when you want your posts to become live.You might find opportunities to interact with your clientele by keeping an eye on important hashtags and mentions.
3. Create Content Tailored for Instagram
Instagram is not a place to promote your business or sell anything.
Brands that do well on Instagram tend to publish in a more casual, artistic style than they do on other social media sites. According to our findings, barely a tenth of UK financial services organisations and a thirteenth of US businesses are using video and gif material.
Instagram posts that feature your company’s workers or those focus on social education tend to do well. Currently, instructional content is only used by 12% of UK financial services organisations and 8% of US businesses. Set yourself apart!
If you want your postings to become part of a hot issue and reach a wider audience, you should include hashtags. Don’t go crazy, though; stuffing your post with of hashtags looks bad.
4. maintain brand uniformity.
Maintaining a unified aesthetic is crucial for Instagram success. Be consistent with your aesthetic throughout all of your Instagram postings. When making content, it’s helpful to settle on a colour scheme and a few filters and typefaces to use consistently.
Choose a voice and a focus for your Instagram. Choose a tone of voice and stay with it, whether it’s lighthearted, casual, or official.
5. Interact with Your Readers
Communicate with your intended audience. To increase awareness of your Instagram profile, follow related accounts, tag potential customers/clients in posts, and like photographs.
If a user’s post fits with your brand’s image, you may “regram” (repost) it. Just make sure to mention them by name and include their handle in your article.