You’ve likely noted the growing popularity of Instagram, the photo-sharing social media platform known for selfies, food photos and travel pics. But have you thought about adding Instagram to your company’s marketing strategy? Remember, just because “everyone’s doing it” doesn’t mean it’s right for your business. But a platform as popular (and growing) as Instagram is always worth considering. So here are four questions to help you determine if Instagram fits with your marketing goals.
Your answers to these questions may reinforce why it’s worth it to invest time on Instagram for your company. And if you’re not using Instagram, but you answer “yes” to a few of these questions, perhaps this post will gently nudge you to try it out.
- Do you want to increase your brand’s visibility?
Instagram’s user base and engagement continues to grow. While it’s likely that not all of the platform’s 400+ million active users are in your exact target audience, companies have an opportunity to carve out a niche of followers that are hyper-focused on their brand.
By 2018, there will be over 100 million Americans on Instagram. Currently, engagement on this platform is significantly higher than Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. And, to boot, an Instagram member spends an average of 25 minutes a day on the platform.
- Do you want to share your company story and your clients’ successes?
People are more likely to be visual learners than auditory ones. If you’re looking to share stories about your brand, your company and your role in your community and industry in very visual, memorable ways, this is a platform worth investing in.
- Do you sell your services and products online – or do in-person sales conversations sometimes start digitally? While there are advertising opportunities on Instagram, the platform can also be a medium for generating new business conversations that can lead to happy clients in the future.
For companies selling more intangible services or an experience, Instagram can provide a visual, behind-the-scenes look into a company’s culture, people, values, and client relationships.
According to Social Media Today, 13% of business-to-business brands consider Instagram “very important” or “critical.” Instead of seeing this small percentage as an indicator that the platform lacks relevance for B2B brands, we believe it offers an opportunity for earlier adopters to have free reign of the platform in their professional space. Consider carving out your niche here.
- Is your industry struggling to attract younger talent into its workforce?
Instagram is a viable platform for engaging with young adult audiences. They are digitally savvy and expect companies they’d consider working for to be active there. Currently, 90% of Instagram members are under 35 years old. It can be a valuable platform to find and recruit new talent.
To learn more about the platform, I suggest creating an account and experiencing it for yourself. If you’re not quite ready to get hands on, read our whitepaper, “A-LINE’s Guide to Using Instagram,” which includes tips on how to get started and integrate Instagram into your marketing mix swiftly.
If you’d like to chat about how Instagram could potentially become part of your overall marketing strategy, drop us a line. We look forward to brainstorming with you!
Meredith Lindsey