How to market your brand on instagram


The Beginner’s Guide to Instagram Marketing (2022)

As far as social media marketing channels go, Instagram has been a major power player for quite a while. This is particularly true for ecommerce businesses, which get access to a visual-focused platform with enthusiastic followers and high engagement.

In the past few years, Instagram has grown and evolved at a rate similar to Facebook, quickly adopting new features (including Instagram Stories and Instagram Reels) and becoming even more valuable to merchants and users alike.

In this beginner’s guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about Instagram marketing, including how to optimize your profile, how to create eye-catching Instagram content, how to get more results with both feed and Stories content, and how to implement the perfect Instagram marketing strategy.

Learn everything about Instagram marketing:

Why use Instagram for marketing?

Instagram is a staple of many small businesses’ marketing campaigns, and for good reason. It has a large and diverse audience of over one billion monthly active Instagram users and 500 million daily Instagram Stories users who are happy to engage with brands, resulting in high engagement overall.

Research and case studies have clearly demonstrated the benefits of an Instagram marketing strategy, finding that it translates directly into sales and leads.

In general, Instagram users are more than happy to follow brands on Instagram, where they are actively discovering and purchasing products on their Instagram feed.

Instagram shopping specific features have made the biggest impact for both brands and shoppers because they essentially close the gap between product discovery and purchase on the app.

Taylor Loren, in an edited excerpt from the course How to Make Money on Instagram

It’s also worth noting that Instagram continues to invest in helping ecommerce brands and stores turn engagement into sales. For example, Instagram ads, when done correctly, often see excellent results and offer high engagement.

Shopping on Instagram streamlines the Instagram sales process. Business profiles with over 10,000 Instagram followers can add Swipe Up links to Instagram Stories to drive traffic directly to their site, something that was otherwise difficult to do on the platform.

Instagram keeps expanding, making it more valuable to merchants and ecommerce businesses, especially if they have products with a strong visual appeal.

The best part? The Instagram algorithm shows your content to users based on their interests and behaviors in the app. This makes it easier for you to reach Instagram users who’ll likely engage with your brand, and get more results from your Instagram marketing efforts.

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How to create an Instagram business account

To start using Instagram for marketing, you’ll need an Instagram Business account or an Instagram Creator account. If you already have a personal Instagram account, you’ll just need to switch to an Instagram business profile in the Instagram app.

Here’s how to do it:

  1. Go to your profile and tap the hamburger icon () in the upper right corner.
  2. Tap Settings.
    1. Tap Account.
    2. Tap Switch to Professional Account, then Continue.
    3. Select a Category for your business, then tap Done.
    4. Tap Business and follow the prompts.

    After setting up your account you'll want to add an Instagram bio and contact details, which we'll cover in the following section.

    If you want to verify your Instagram account, read Want To Get Verified On Instagram? Here's How The Process Works.

    The best Instagram marketing tips

    Use the following tips to build your Instagram marketing strategy and set your brand up for success.

    Optimize your Instagram profile

    To get started with marketing your business on social media, you’ll first need to handle the basics of setting up your Instagram account.

    You need to fill out your contact information, have a keyword-optimized description (don’t forget emojis!), and choose a profile picture that’s easily identifiable, like a logo.

    This is a great start. But to get the most out of your Instagram marketing strategy, you’re going to want to take your Instagram account to the next level. Here’s how.

    Here’s an example from Fashion Nova that combines all three of these features into a well-optimized Instagram bio and profile.

    Create your content strategy

    Instagram has one of the most active user bases across all social media platforms, with 63% of Instagram users logging in at least once a day. They also spend an average of 28 minutes on the app.

    If you want to get results with Instagram marketing, you need to know what types of posts perform best. Does your audience like Instagram Stories most? Or do they prefer standard Instagram photos?

    While every demographic is different, there’s fortunately been a lot of data compiled that can give us some insight on where to start.

    Instagram users enjoy a broad range of post types, including promotional posts, motivational quotes, product photos, DIY or tutorial content, and images shared from other users (i.e., user-generated content). That said, users want to see diversity; they’ll get bored or annoyed if you just use one type of Instagram post for too long.

    As a small business owner, don't be afraid to own the low production value. If you're making your products in the messy basement, that can actually be endearing to an audience.

    Gretta van Riel, in an edited excerpt from the course Grow Your Business with Instagram

    Instagram videos can share more information with users, making them valuable. Still, if you’re going to use video on Instagram, be sure keep it short, even on IGTV. Instagram users are predominantly mobile users, and they aren’t likely to stick around for more than 10 to 15 seconds at a time.

    Of course, many of the world’s most creative brands and artists are pushing the limits of Instagram Stories. Keep an eye on how your competition is using Instagram marketing to generate inspiration.

    In many ways, the aesthetic of the images and videos are a lot more important. Instagram is, after all, a visual-centric platform. Here’s what we know about the content that performs best on Instagram:

    From product carousels to interactive content like Reels, there are many ways to engage with an Instagram audience and spice up your followers’ feeds. It just takes a little know-how.

    Ultimately, you should have an experimental mindset when it comes to your Instagram marketing. Not every video or image is going to be a hit. But by testing different types of content and Instagram Stories, you can find the type of content that works for your audience. 

    Resources:

    Use Instagram hashtags

    Hashtags started on Twitter, and while they never took off on Facebook, the use of relevant hashtags are a staple of effective Instagram marketing. By adding text after the # symbol in an Instagram caption, bio, or Story, you can turn any word or phrase into a clickable topic.

    When users click a hashtag on Instagram, they’ll see a collection of all the public posts using that hashtag. Perhaps even more significant, users can now follow Instagram hashtags that interest them. This provides them with a stream of content, even if they don’t follow a specific Instagram profile. Hashtags are a great way for users to find quality content they’re interested in—and for merchants to expand the reach of their content.

    Types of hashtags you should be using

    In order to fully expand your reach and get the most results from your Instagram marketing, you need to be using the right types of Instagram hashtags.

    There are six key types of hashtags that are crucial for ecommerce businesses to incorporate into their Instagram profile:

    1. Branded hashtags. Most brands will (and should) have a unique branded hashtag. They’ll attach this to each post, place it in their profile, and encourage other users to attach it to any posts in which they’re sharing user-generated content. It can include your brand name, but it doesn’t have to. Examples include Fashion Nova’s #NovaBabe hashtag.
    2. Contest hashtags. These hashtags are a type of branded hashtag created for a specific contest. They are often used to identify contest entries for photo-submission contests and to generate contest awareness overall. In addition to the main branded hashtag contest, you should also incorporate general contest hashtags like #instacontest and #giveaway. Contest hashtags are also a great way to get your audience to create user generated content.
    3. General appeal hashtags. There are certain hashtags that are popular among large, diverse audiences. These can help you get significant reach on your Instagram posts, because they’re more likely to be sought out. A few common examples include #nofilter, #antiques, #ilovemyjob, and #puppylove.
    4. Niche-specific hashtags.Each industry will have phrases and keywords that are relevant only to their target audience. These hashtags won’t get you the same reach as general-appeal hashtags, but they will generate more relevant traffic. For instance, if you’re selling jewelry inspired by the Harry Potter series, you may want to include the hashtag #harrypotterjewelry in addition to the more general #harrypotter.
    5. Timely hashtags. Current events and seasonal holidays can also make great hashtags, especially when you factor in selling-focused holidays, like Valentine’s Day or Christmas. People are likely to be searching for content that’s relevant right now, so take advantage of a few #valentineformyvalentine and #stockingstuffer hashtags. While it may be tempting to use hashtags on your Instagram ads, this is currently not an effective Instagram marketing tactic.
    6. Entertaining hashtags. These won’t help you with reach, but they will serve to entertain your audience and help you establish your brand voice. They’re meant purely to be funny or clever, and that’s it. Examples could include #iknowitstooearlyforchristmasstuff and #thisiswhyweallhatemonday. In many cases, entertaining hashtags might be grouped together, one after another, to tell a story, like #toobad #itshereanyway. This type of hashtag is great to really build a strong connection with your target audience.

    For best results, research each of these Instagram hashtags, and use combinations of different types for your posts. This will strengthen your branding while helping you reach the largest and most relevant audience possible. We’ve put together a list of the most popular Instagram hashtags to help you get started.

    Hashtag best practices

    Hashtag usage is one of the most significant factors that will determine your success on Instagram, but as with any social media marketing tactic, they can be tricky to execute properly Here are some best practices to help you maximize your reach and results: