If you’re not an avid social media user, you might not be aware of how much Instagram can do for your business.
If you’re an entrepreneur launching a new business venture—or you just want to take your business to the next level—it’s important to not discount what Instagram can do for you. Instagram is particularly relevant depending on the nature of your business, and the age of your customers.
If your target market consists of customers ages 16 to 34, your business needs a presence here. This means that Instagram can make a big impact in helping you reach your
digital marketing goals.
When users post content to their Instagram accounts, their online friends can engage with it. This means your business can post photos and videos, and your customers – or eventual customers – can discover your business in this manner. Think of it as a modern-day word-of-mouth kind of thing.
Understanding the potential of Instagram is a fundamental first step. What can you tell people about your product? How can you show positivity? And how can you encourage your clientele to share positive experiences that they will, in turn, share with others?
Goals for Instagram Marketing
Building Brand Awareness
For many brands, this is the number one goal for their Instagram marketing campaigns.
69% of marketers
report the goal of brand awareness as the primary reason for using Instagram.
By consistently presenting your brand’s image, values, and messaging, you can carve out a distinct identity in the minds of your audience. Visual content on Instagram, including high-quality images, engaging videos, and coherent aesthetics, plays a crucial role in this process. The goal is to make your brand recognizable and memorable. Regular posting, consistent style, and interaction with followers enhance brand recall, ensuring that your audience thinks of you first when they need products or services you offer.
Engaging with Your Audience
Engagement is key to building a strong relationship with your audience on Instagram. The good news is that Instagram is designed for high engagement. With the focus on images and video over text, the platform sees higher engagement than other social media platforms. In fact, Instagram has
58% more engagement
per follower than Facebook.
This goal focuses on creating content that sparks conversations, encourages shares, and invites comments. Engagement can take many forms, from likes and comments to shares and saves. Interactive content, such as polls, quizzes, and question stickers in stories, can foster a two-way communication channel.
Regularly engaging with your followers’ content and responding to comments and messages on your posts reinforces your commitment to your community and can help build a loyal following.
Increasing Website Traffic
Driving traffic to your website is another vital goal for many Instagram marketers. By strategically using Instagram’s features, such as the swipe-up option in Stories (for accounts with sufficient followers) or clickable links in your bio, you can direct your audience to your website.
This can lead to increased sales, sign-ups, or engagement with your blog content. Tracking the traffic from Instagram to your website through analytics tools can provide insights into the effectiveness of your strategies and help refine your approach.
The problem is that it can be tricky to drive consistent traffic from Instagram. Things that may go viral will most likely drive traffic but that is not always going to happen. For now, Stories may be the best option to generate traffic from Instagram.
Generating Leads
Lead generation is about collecting information from potential customers, such as email addresses or phone numbers, to create a database of prospects you can reach out to for future marketing campaigns. Instagram can be a valuable tool for lead generation through methods like hosting giveaways that require participants to register, offering free downloads or access to exclusive content in exchange for contact information, and promoting products or services through direct messages.
Boosting Sales
Ultimately, one of the primary goals of Instagram marketing is to boost sales. This can be achieved by showcasing your products or services in action. An easy way to do this is by using Instagram shopping features. You can use this feature to create exclusive offers for your Instagram followers.
The very nature of Instagram primes users for purchasing. Many marketers consider Instagram the best social selling platform available. Social selling means using social profiles to engage, connect, and sell to followers of a brand. Effective sales strategies on Instagram often involve a clear call to action, highlighting the benefits of your offerings, and creating a sense of urgency through limited-time promotions or exclusive deals.
Read
:
5 Pinterest Marketing Goals for Your Business
Also read:
Finding Your Target Market on Social Media
8 Business Goals for Social Media Marketing
Team Writer: Erin Shelby is a writer and blogger based in Ohio. Follow her on Twitter @ByErinShelby