I know what you’re thinking: “In what way could a social media stage full of funny cat videos, influencer posts, and food pictures help you get more customers and generate more sales?”
Believe it or not, Instagram is much more than just funny photos and videos.
It’s also becoming more of a marketplace, with 70% of shoppers browsing Instagram for their next purchase. And 50% report they are more interested in a brand when they see ads.
Now reflect that 1.13 billion people are utilizing the stage, and more are joining daily. That’s a lot of possible customers, which explains why over 200 million businesses are on Instagram.
But becoming Insta-famous is more than creating an account and posting product photos. There is an art to building a following for your local business. And you are in the right place to learn how to do it.
Table of Contents
1. Join, join, join
Before anything else, Instagram, corresponding to any social media podium, is a community.
And just as your business is a valuable part of your local community, you also want to show that you’re a valued and respected member of the Instagram community.
This will help you gain followers who will enjoy engaging with your content.
But posting great pictures or videos is not enough!
To establish your reputation in the Instagram public, you want to build relationships with influencers and other brands (even direct competitors) and participate in the conversations they start. Interact with the content they produce and interact with other Instagram users.
You have to expend commitment to commit.
And when your followers create a chat in the comments section of your posts, actively participate in those conversations and respond to questions, concerns, praise, and other feelings.
2. Boost your Instagram community by reposting local content
You can improve your business’ reputation on Instagram and in your local community by regularly reposting content posted by your local followers, other businesses in your area, and local celebrities.
Not only will the gratified creator feel great that their business is showcasing their content, but other followers will notice as well.
You can mention your “hello” on their Instagram page, which will help you reach your followers and even more people in your local community. Win, win!
Sharing content created by real people kinds your brand feel more accessible and human.
In other words, your company feels more like a friendly neighbor than an aftermarket business.
This strategy is not only effective in building a better reputation in the community, but also saves you a lot of time in creating original and unique content.
3. Maintain a consistent brand identity
Your Instagram business account is just another extension of your brand.
While Instagram is a single platform that can (and should) be used to achieve different goals from other touchpoints, including your other social media accounts, you should maintain a sense of consistency across platforms, particularly around tone and style. For your brand.
Many customers follow your brand through several, if not all, of these different channels.
If your Instagram persona differs from the tone set by your website, Facebook page, or in-store staff, you risk confusing your customers.
That means your customer interactions on Instagram, then the tone you set in your post captions, need to be aligned with how it feels to visit your business in person.
Otherwise, customers might expect the happy, upbeat deal they heard about on Instagram, only to be disappointed.
4. Avoid blanket postings
While the tone and character behind your posts should remain consistent across channels, too much similarity can be detrimental.
You must carefully navigate consistency and post unique content, not a blanket. H. Using the same message and content across different social media podiums.
The danger of blanket posting is that clients who follow you transversely on multiple social media channels will see the same message multiple times.
After the first time, he stops being attractive and starts being annoying. Remember that every channel is different and should be treated as such.
However, there are times when general disclosure is acceptable, e.g. B. if your company is hosting a local event or launching new products and you want as many people as possible to know about this news/event/product.
However, you still want to make certain you’re cross-promoting responsibly.
5. Show your local lifestyle
Your company’s local lifestyle is best described as a customer’s life after they buy your products.
Because Instagram is such a visual social television stage, it’s the perfect station to showcase what your brand’s local lifestyle is like
Include images of your products in action so customers can imagine living this lifestyle.
This strengthens your overall brand equity and encourages those customers to make a purchase.
Once creating images or videos demonstrating your products’ local lifestyle, you should always try to include popular landmarks in your city.
Not only are these locations recognizable and familiar, but they also help complete the customer’s view of your products in their life, especially if you use frequently visited landmarks.
6. Go with the trends
The holidays are always a hot topic, and businesses have long used the holidays to entice customers with holiday-related messages.
But there are many other popular themes that you can use to create engaging Instagram content.
This is a great way to grow local attention by posting relevant and stimulating gratifies to your local factions.
To bargain trending hashtags in your area, you must pay attention to the news, local events, and specific community day off.
That’s why it’s smart to follow other businesses, local luminaries and other thought leaders in the community, as you can check out their Instagram for trending inspiration and local keywords.
However, there is a dark side to taking advantage of trending topics. Some brands try to hijack issues that are best left alone.
For example, when a tragic event occurs, you want to prevent it. Otherwise, it may seem like you’re trying to take advantage of other people’s misfortune.
Controversial issues are another sore point for many people; you do less harm by ignoring them. Things like politics, religion or other controversial topics are forbidden!