For the savvy internet marketer, Instagram may just be the next big marketing endeavor to master. You shouldn’t compare Instagram to Facebook because they are two completely different types of social media platforms. However, Instagram is growing faster than Facebook did in the beginning. That’s due in part to the simplicity of using this image sharing platform. Instagram offers a unique way to get your brand name out there. The marketing opportunity on Instagram is only getting started, for this reason alone, you should care.
What is Instagram?
Instagram is more than an image sharing site, it is a means to tell stories with great images that you have taken. It is about keeping friends and family up to date with your adventures and daily activities in a personal way. While we all post hundreds of photos to Facebook to see, we would only post the very best image to Instagram to share the best moments in our lives. By adding hashtags and fun descriptions, we can help to get our images seen by more people. This adds to the functionality of Instagram.
Marketing on Instagram
As a business, you can get a head start on all of your competition by jumping on the Instagram bandwagon right away. You may not know how you could possibly use it to market to your target audience, but believe me, you can. When surveyed, the majority of Instagram users said they would love to receive notifications of special events and giveaways from their favorite brands. All that takes is to have an Instagram account that you regularly post images to. Users can select to follow your brand which can lead to a massive amount of exposure for you.
Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter
While Instagram will never be another Facebook, it is owned by Facebook. This makes integrating an Instagram account and a Facebook account simple. Facebook already has a section for showcasing your Instagram images, which gives you plenty of reason to have an Instagram account and to be posting images to it. Instagram is already bigger than Twitter, and brands love Twitter. Instagram makes it easy to share your Instagram images on both Facebook and Twitter with internal controls. This makes it super easy to connect all of your social media accounts.
Instagram and shopping
Instagram users are far more receptive to selling than Facebook or Twitter users. When polled by an independent research firm, a huge number of Instagram users claimed that they actually use the platform to shop for the brands they love. Over half of the users polled said they already follow some of the brands that they like, and would love to see more brands on the platform. Statistically, it seems that Instagram users are far more engaged with brands than Twitter users.
Why you should care
When looking for big marketing opportunities, Instagram is one of the best opportunities at the moment. There aren’t many big businesses that see the huge potential in Instagram yet. This can give you a huge head start. You can get your brand situated and amass a following far before your competition even realizes what they are missing. And if being in front of the game isn’t enough reason. The ROI with Instagram is amazing. Once you know how to take awesome photos, upload them and make them look great, it will be super easy for you to keep your brand at the head of the pack in only a few minutes a day.
