Social Media Strategy for Instagram

Ah, yes, Instagram: the app with picture-perfect images. This platform can be a scary platform to look at advertising on, as Instagram sometimes has a reputation of being surface level and catering to a younger demographic. However, that is not necessarily the case. According to Instagram, 90% of accounts follow a business on Instagram. That is a lot of advertising potential.

Facebook purchased Instagram back in 2012, and it is now possible to manage advertising strategies across both platforms within the same interface (Facebook Manager). So convenient! With more and more people spending time on Instagram, the platform itself is a very powerful advertising tool.

Developing a strong social media strategy specifically for Instagram is an essential piece of ensuring positive ROI. Let’s cover some things to think through as you build out your Instagram social strategy.

Is Instagram the right platform?

First thing’s first – before fully committing to Instagram as the platform to advertise on, you need to confirm this platform is the right fit for the business.

Yes, researching to verify age and other demographics line up with who spends time on Instagram is important, but ensuring the visual aspect of your business can be represented is the single most important factor. Without compelling visuals, your Instagram ads will not reach its full potential. 

Create compelling creative

Instagram, similar to Facebook, is driven by visuals. In order to have an effective Instagram advertising strategy, you need to have compelling, professional images to work with. 

If your business isn’t super visually interesting (IT services, for example), Instagram likely is not the best option. However, if you’re a home remodeling company, landscaping company, or any type of B2C company, Instagram is a great platform to consider promoting your products or services. That is, if you have professional photography to use! 

The success you see on Instagram will be largely tied to the quality of the creative you use. That means that 99% of the time, the photos your coworker shot on their iPhone aren’t good enough. If you are serious about investing in digital advertising, investing in professional photography is a must. 

To take that even further, we recommend updating that creative (photography, ad copy, etc.) every 60-90 days to ensure users are seeing something fresh. Otherwise, they’ll experience ad fatigue and your ads will become ineffective. This means you’ll need new, professional creative on a rolling basis.

What are your goals?

As you develop a strategy for Instagram advertising, its always important to define your goals. Is your goal:

• Brand awareness
• Engagement
• Conversions
• Something else?

Knowing what your primary (and maybe secondary) goal is will help develop the specifics around your strategy – ad copy language, calls to action, and type of advertising to use on Instagram.

Ad Copy & Calls To Action

Depending on what you want your audience to do in response to your ads (what your defined goal is) you need to tailor your ad copy and calls to action accordingly. 

For example, if your goal is brand awareness, your call to action might be something like: “Follow Us to Learn More.” If your goal is conversions, your call to action could be: “Get Your Project Started Today.”

What is the difference between Instagram promotions and Instagram ads?

The biggest difference between Instagram promotions and Instagram ads are the goal and the type of content.

Instagram promotions, or Promoted Posts, are used to enhance already effective Instagram posts. My promoting or putting additional dollars behind these organic posts, you’ll gain more brand awareness from them. It’s the same idea as boosting a post on Facebook.

Instagram ads are built out campaigns that feature new content. Running Instagram ads allows you to more specifically target an audience set and target a specific action (define your campaign goal as reach vs. conversions).

Ready to get started?

Think Instagram is the right fit for your business, but don’t know where to start? Or maybe you want a second pair of eyes? Drop us a line. We’re here to help walk you through all of this so that you don’t have to do it alone.