Instagram in 2010 started out like most social media platforms: a place to share personal pictures, selfies, pets, and even food. Since then, it has stabilized itself as one of the most important marketing tools an agency can have. Over 1 billion monthly users are currently active on the site, with 60 million photos posted daily, and 1.6 billion daily “likes” given.

With over 2 million advertisers and 25 million profiles, your brand needs to stand out amongst the rest.

To truly define your brand through a platform, such as Instagram, you need to figure out the right blend of content that keeps your current audience engaged while simultaneously trying to attract new followers. As we gear up for 2021, here are some great ways to increase your brand’s engagement through Instagram marketing tactics.

Instagram Marketing and Its Effect on Digital Presence

One of Instagram’s fundamental goals is to help users share photos and videos with friends and family, but many are failing to integrate it as a primary marketing tool.

With a visual-forward approach, you can showcase products through photos, videos, or Instagram Stories. And this year alone, Instagram has shown significant growth with brand new features. These tools have been centered around businesses, including advanced analytics, Instagram Stories to help drive traffic towards your profile, a brand new video platform called IGTV, and even shopping for certain products straight from the app itself.

Engagement Tools

Instagram users are statistically more engaged than the average social media user. The platform is known to produce higher engagement rates for businesses compared to both Twitter and Facebook.

According to a recent study, 72% of Instagram users reported purchasing something after seeing it on Instagram. Because of this, the platform has molded the perfect audience for ecommerce and brands due to their quick conversions, ultimately making it easier to keep them engaged.

One way to measure engagement is through Instagram business’s free insights feature. This free analytic tool provides stats about the impressions and overall reach of your content. It gives a breakdown of follower demographics, including age, gender, location, and most active hours. These free tools give you insights on how your users interact with your content, allowing you to layout solid “do’s” and “don’ts” for your strategy. 

Instagram Advertising

Another way to increase your follower count is by utilizing sponsored ads to highlight the noteworthy aspects of your brand by using multiple media mediums, including photos, videos, or even carousel and dynamic ads.

Instagram uses Facebook’s demographic data to serve up your ad to the appropriate parties and allows you to create a niche audience. You can create a set budget and even run multiple ads to different audiences simultaneously to increase engagement.

Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories are an engaging and fun way for brands to connect with their audience and market themselves. This short, temporary tool requires you to create fun, attention-grabbing content to engage your audience.

Unlike regular Instagram posts that are prioritized through the algorithmic and need to be published when people are most active; Stories can be posted at any time of day. These are visible at the top of the feed for 24 hours and can be accessed by your audience within that time frame. Stories showcase a wide array of content such as giveaways, polls and quizzes, Q&A with your followers, and even adding purchasable links. And if you post evergreen content to your stories, consider using the Highlight tool to make it permanently accessible to users on your profile.

Instagram Tips

Many brands feel pressured to be present on every social media platform; they post just to post but forget to implement a real strategy. You need to develop your brand’s unique style and stand out among the rest. Here are a few tips to help keep engagement consistent.

Post to Instagram at the Best Times

Although users are active at all times of the day, there are optimal times to post for peak engagement. The best times to post are Mondays and Thursdays at any time except between 3:00 and 4:00 PM.

While these are the best times and days to post, find a balance between posting consistently without being overbearing. If a profile posts too much, it has the potential of getting unfollowed by a bothered user.

Decide on Your Brand’s Creative and Aesthetic

Hashtags have been used since the beginning of social media. Many brands have created interactive hashtags exclusive to their brand, allowing their followers to interact with the company and create engagement.    

Consumers can use the tag and create user-generated content (UGC), allowing others to search through all posts related to the brand and gain better insight. User-generated content is a great way to keep followers engaged and feel a deeper sense of connection to brands.  

Create Content Consumers Will Love

Creating the right content doesn’t have to be complicated. The simplified formula is this: a striking visual and compelling caption. Don’t forget to include a call-to-action (CTA), emojis if applicable, and an intriguing and interactive hashtag!

As Instagram continues to evolve as a marketing platform, it’s more important than ever for businesses to build effective Instagram marketing tactics and define their brand voice. Understanding the platform’s marketing landscape allows you to see what works and what doesn’t. Businesses have so much to gain just from building an Instagram presence; you can grow an engaged community, create a new following, or even sell more products effectively.

Our team is equipped to help elevate your social media impressions, engagement, and everything in between by staying up-to-date with the latest trends. Learn more about our social media marketing agency and the digital expertise we can bring to your team.