As our society becomes more virtually oriented, it’s more important than ever for businesses to ensure that they have robust profiles on the most popular social media platforms. Having an Instagram profile for your business can be a great way to draw in customers as well as increase brand awareness. Keep reading to learn best practices to make your business’ Instagram profile stand out.
Keep it Real
Using professional-quality photos can help showcase your services or products. However, official photographs don’t often show the behind-the-scenes of your business. Post photos of your employees, manufacturing, or your office workspace to help users see what your business’ day-to-day really looks like. These “behind the scenes” pictures don’t have to be super fancy and taken by a professional. They can be taken by anyone on their phone and edited to match the rest of your feed.
Use Graphics
It’s great to use aesthetic shots of your product every now and then, but changing it up and using graphics instead can help your profile stand out. Story and feed graphics can be created through Canva, where there are over a thousand templates to choose from. Graphics can be whatever you choose to help give your feed a different look, from single images of your product to verbiage highlighting news or upcoming events.
Use Carousel Posts
Carousel posts allow users to put up to ten photos in one post. These are great for a business profile because it allows you to post a series of photos like start to finishes or before and afters. They also simply allow you to post multiple photos without clogging up your feed. Another way to utilize carousel posts is by posting tips and tricks or how-tos through multiple photos. There are lots of ways to get creative!
Post Videos
Posting videos is another great way to make your profile stand out. Video content is proven to get the most engagement and can help offer your profile some variety. No one wants to have the same thing over and over again on their profile and creating and posting short videos can change up your feed and boost engagement. You can post videos of product shoots, behind the scenes, or even repost your business’ TikTok videos.
Use Geotags
By using geotags, users that come across your business’ profile can learn more about your business and where it is located. Geotags make it easier for users to come across your business in a search. If you are a store, attach geotags to all of the images that you post of the store. This will help people that come across your page figure out where you are located and how to visit, as well as attract local users that may come across your business while looking for other local businesses.
Include a Link in Your Bio
Since you cannot add hyperlinks to captions on Instagram, adding a link to your business’ Instagram bio will not only make your profile stand out, but will also allow you to direct users where you want them to go. Having a link in your bio that takes users to your website’s home page is useful if your profile is new. As you introduce new campaigns and launches, changing the link in your bio to take users to a specific product or campaign landing page can increase conversions. You can also update your website link regularly to take users to your most recent pieces of content on your website, ensuring users are always staying in the know.
Post Consistently
Posting consistently is important because it will create a sense of routine for your audience and they’ll know when to expect you to post content. Having periods of time in between posts can decrease engagement while posting consistently ensures maximum engagement from your audience. Posting content consistently can look different for different businesses, but the sweet spot for maximum engagement is 1-3 posts per day. Posting 1-3 times a day allows your business’ audience to stay up to date while not overcrowding their feed.
Post Faces
Including people in your posts lets users know who is behind all of the hard work of your business, while also reminding your audience that you are human, just like them. Posting people can help increase engagement, as users like to see more than just the products or services your business offers. Sharing photos of people in your profile also helps diversify your feed from strictly product posts and announcements, helping your profile stand out.
Are you ready to make your business’ Instagram profile stand out among competitors? Social Ape is here to help. Contact our team today to get started!
