Social media networks such as Instagram, Facebook, or Snapchat have fused into our everyday lives. These are not just the platforms where people connect and share tidbits about their lives, but they are also an infallible route for businesses to market their products.
Where there are people, there will always be marketers. Instagram has around 1 billion monthly active users across the globe, posting and sharing millions of pictures every month. The popular photo-posting platform ranks sixth in line in terms of usage after Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Messenger, and WeChat.
With an advertising reach of 849.3 million users, Instagram is a treasure trove for marketers and businesses alike. However, there are some misconceptions with regard to the platform such as Instagram does little to convert its traffic, thus businesses from reaching their full potential.
We are here to debunk these myths, so you can make the most out of the photo-sharing app and thrive.
Too Boring For Instagram
Instagram is all about visuals, and appealing ones at that. So when you are offering services such as Spectrum Cable Service or a credit card, you might be put off from using the platform to market them since they don’t possess an iota of glamor.
However, your product doesn’t require beauty or glamor to become the star on Instagram; you just have to get creative. For example, construct memes relevant to your product and a recent fad since memes are the hottest content on social media these days.
Instagram Doesn’t Have Analytics
A while back, it wasn’t easy to monitor performance of your Instagram marketing campaign, but the platform has now come up with its own built-in analytics tool.
To utilize that you must have an Instagram business account. Remember you can only view the performance of the activity occurred since you converted to a business profile.
If you find Insta analytics ineffective and superficial for your measuring endeavors, consider using Hootsuite Analytics, Iconosquare, Union Metrics, or HypeAuditor.
Lack of Referral Traffic From Insta
Instagram doesn’t allow you to post any links in your post, which is a hurdle for your followers to go to your website immediately upon seeing a good post from you.
Instagram does allow your followers to go to your website directly by clicking on your post, but for that, you need to buy ads.
If you want to avoid purchasing ads, Instagram allows link to your website in your profile’s bio and you can mention in your post captions that the website link is located in your bio. Moreover, Instagram now allows you to add links in your stories. You can ask your audience to swipe up to go to a landing page.
Follow Others to Gather Followers
Many Instagram businesses, particularly in the beginning, follow users in hopes that users will follow their page. However, not everyone returns the courtesy of following back, especially when your account has nothing that strikes their fancy.
A better and surefire way to gather followers is by creating appealing and useful content.
No Leads From Insta
With 1 billion monthly active users and 500 million who view and interact with business’ stories, you are sure to find your targeted consumers on the platform, which can later be converted into leads.
Initially, your target audience does not actively look for your business, so you need to see who they are following by looking similar businesses in your niche.
Instagram allows you to input some 30 hashtags per post. Hashtags are a sure way to get you featured in the top posts, which offer greater exposure. Never pass up the opportunity to use hashtags. The more you use, the greater are your chances of reaching your targets.
If too many hashtags usage makes your Insta post look like spam, consider putting in a few rows of space after your caption, and then add those hashtags. This way users will only be able to see those if they tap on “more.”
Wrapping Up
Whatever platform you market yourself on, you require wits and creativity to kick start your popularity, more than its features and tools.
For that, you need to first develop an effective Instagram strategy you could follow when you encounter multiple challenges in your journey or else get beaten by your competition.
A lot of businesses try multiple strategies to see which ones suit them best.