How to set up a page on instagram

How to Set Up an Instagram Account for Your Business (8 Simple Steps)

Visuals are the main ingredient of a strong social media campaign, and Instagram is proof. As of September 2017, 800 million monthly visitors use Instagram to view and share photos, twice the amount in 2015.

Online audiences are used to having ads and content thrown at them from every direction. A busy social media feed starts to look like an endless blur of fragmented stories. Fortunately, you can cut through this haze of content with visuals that tell a story in an instant.

Customers have to SEE your value proposition before they explore it further. The good news is people who follow your content are more receptive to a call-to-action. In fact, 75 percent of users take action, such as visiting a site, shopping or searching online, after liking a post on Instagram.

Learning how to set up Instagram for business is easy, especially if you’re already using Facebook. From a business standpoint, Instagram is simpler and less time-consuming than other sites.

You can use visual micro-stories to find out what entertains your audience and quickly grow a following. Take these steps to create a profile and start promoting your business on Instagram.

1. Download the app

If you’ve never used Instagram, start by downloading the app. Instagram is available for smartphones, tablets, and computers through the Apple iOS, Google Play, and Windows app stores.

The app is geared toward mobile devices, and you’ll probably use a smartphone or tablet for most of your posting activity.

You can visit the Instagram website or use the app on a desktop computer if those options work better for you. However, some mobile features are not available or require special plug-ins to work for desktops and regular web browsers.

So, for the purposes of this guide, let’s focus on using the mobile app.

2. Create an account

Launch the app, and create an account in one of two ways:

Option 1: Sign up with your email address or phone number, and then enter a username.
Option 2: If you have a Facebook account, you can log in with the same information and link the accounts.

Already have an account? Just sign in, and go straight to your profile page.

3. Connect to Facebook

By default, you begin with a personal profile. To use Instagram for business, you have to connect your account to a Facebook business page. Click the profile icon at the bottom right of the screen.

At the top right corner of the page, open the settings menu. It appears as a vertical ellipsis in Android or a gear in iOS.

On the next page, scroll down until you see “Switch to business profile.” Click through the promo slideshow until you get a prompt to connect to Facebook. Select “Choose a page,” and set the page to “public.” Click “OK.”

Next, Instagram asks for permission to manage your Facebook pages. Look through the list of Facebook business pages you’ve already created. Select the right page, and click “Next.”

Only an admin on the account can complete this step. You won’t see the page if you’re just an authorized user.

4. Complete the profile setup

To finish your profile, enter an email, phone number, and address for your business. You have to fill in at least one of these contact fields to proceed. Some information will be auto-filled if it already appears on your Facebook page.

Click “Done,” and go to your profile. A new graph icon should appear at the top of the Instagram app. This is your Insights page, where you can keep track of promotions and engagement stats.

At any time, you can go back to the profile page and switch back to a personal account.

5. Create a new business page

If you haven’t already created a Facebook business page, you can do this at the same time. When you get the option to choose a page, select “Create one” at the bottom of the screen.

Set a title for your page, and choose the category that best describes your business. Some options include:

Books and magazines
Brands and products
Music
Sports
Event sources
Local businesses
Websites and blogs

Pick a subcategory to help people find your page in searches. For example, if you used “local businesses” as a subcategory, you have options, such as bar, home improvement, or arts and entertainment. Click “Next.”

6. Edit your profile

Go back to your profile page, and click “Edit your profile.” Here, you can add a photo, bio, and website link. If you switched from a personal account, consider changing the photo, name, and username to reflect your business. Using your brand’s logo and business name makes it easier for customers to find you on Instagram. You can make a logo in minutes if you don’t have a design yet.

The bio is an opportunity to put some branded language, links or hashtags in your profile. Check out how office supplier Staples uses the company bio for branding and promotion:

Together we make the workplace work. Shop our feed: like2b.uy/staples

Make a brief statement about what your business does or how you help customers. Keep in mind, you’re free to use a more casual tone on Instagram, even if your business is conservative.

From time to time, many brands change their bio to display fun announcements on the main page.

7. Invite contacts to follow you

Take advantage of any work you’ve done to build contacts online. In the settings menu, use the “Invite Facebook friends” option to send a notification to your entire Facebook network.

You can use the “Invite friends” option to access other networks, such as Gmail, LinkedIn, Twitter, or Yahoo! contacts. The more followers you have, the more it gives your business social media credibility.

8. Fill your gallery

Start adding photos to your gallery. The best thing about Instagram is your ability to reinvent old photos by adding filters. Users love the authenticity of the platform, so you don’t need pro skills to tell great stories.

Click the cross-shaped “Add” button to open a gallery from your phone. You can select the drop-down arrow at the top of the screen to get photos from other sources, such as Google Drive.

Once you know how to use Instagram for business, you can create Stories to drive engagement. Instagram stories are short photo or video collections that disappear after 24 hours. This simple feature is an effective way to share a funny, educational or heartwarming moment with your followers.

Even better, you have unlimited ways to be creative with storytelling. Show a product coming to life in your “food lab.” Offer a 10-second tutorial on cleaning the gutters. Make your audience laugh with funny filters on staff photos.

Instagram may seem intimidating at first, but the short, visual posts make it easy to learn fast and connect frequently with little effort.

An engaging Instagram account is part of a strong online presence. Make sure you have all the digital tools you need to grow.

How to Create an Instagram Page for Your Business

Nowadays, most businesses have an Instagram and a Facebook page. These are brilliant moves by business owners and managers. Having a vocal social presence in our modern society is crucial to standing out.

If your business or product stands out, you’re bound to become more successful and rise above the competition. If you’d like to learn how to create an Instagram page for your business, you’re in the right place.

Read on for clear instructions, valuable tips, and other information you need to get your business’s Instagram page up and running. Note that you will need a business page on Facebook.

Get Started on Instagram

First of all, you need to download Instagram on your mobile device. Here are iOS and Android download links. You can’t use the web version of Instagram when making a business account. That version is limited, and you’re much better off using the mobile app.

When you start Instagram for the first time, you’ll need to sign up for an account. There are two signup options. The classic one requires a mobile phone number or an email address, while the other option is linking your Facebook account with Instagram. We suggest the other option, since you’ll need Facebook anyway.

If you have an account on Instagram already, then you can skip this step. Just make sure to update the app on your device.

Why Do You Need Facebook?

You probably already know that Facebook owns Instagram. The two social media titans are closely related and thrive off one another. You need to link your Facebook business page to your Instagram business page for this to work.

Honestly, that isn’t a bad thing at all. A little cross-promotion never killed anyone. You can have precisely the same posts on Facebook and Instagram for better visibility. And whilst Facebook is more popular with a mature audience, Instagram has relatively younger users. Keep this in mind and use it to your advantage.

You don’t have to make a Facebook business page right away, but it’s recommended that you do. You can do it while creating your IG business page, so let’s get to it.

How to Create an Instagram Business Page

Follow the steps to convert your Instagram profile into a business page:

Launch Instagram on your device.
Tap on Profile (bottom-right corner of the screen).
Tap the hamburger menu (three horizontal lines in the top-right).
Select the Settings (gear icon near the bottom).
Tap on Account.
Scroll to the bottom and select Switch to Professional Account.
Follow the on-screen instructions. Select whether you’re a Creator or a Business and tap Next.
Enter your business information (phone, email, address).
Then, you’ll get to the Facebook part. You can create a Facebook business page on the spot. We highly suggest that you do this.
Tap Next, and that’s it. Your new business account should be created.

Take a Look at Your New Business Profile

Now that you’ve set up a business profile on Instagram, it’s time to update it. The first thing you’ll notice is a new graph at the top of your Instagram app. Tap on it. It’s in the Insights window, which shows the engagement and other useful statistics for your page. You want to get those numbers up, so let’s begin.

Go back to the profile window and tap on Edit Your Profile. Now, you should add a profile picture, a link to your website, and a compelling bio. You can also insert one link in your bio, keep that in mind (best for promotions and concurrent deals).

Make sure to put up your brand logo in the profile picture. Also, name your Instagram account after the business. If you don’t have a logo yet, make sure to get it fast. Another good idea for your bio is to add hashtags and your company slogan. If you don’t have one, try to come up with something catchy. Other than that, enter a short description of your business in the bio.

The best tone for Instagram is casual and fun, nothing formal or overly serious.

Expand Your Profile

You can quickly grow your IG profile by adding your contacts. Click on Invite Friends and try to get as many people to follow you. Feel free to get followers from all channels (Facebook, email, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. ). If you lack followers, why not invite your friends and ask them to share your page?

Another way of growing your profile is by continually updating it. Keep adding posts and stories on Instagram, talking about your business, promotions, etc. After your profile becomes more popular, you can even add links to your stories (you need a lot of followers for that), so you can promote your services or merchandise.

Don’t Give Up

Every beginning is rocky; don’t let that get you down. True, when you start a business page on Instagram, you won’t have all that many followers. The same goes for Facebook. You have to grow your following over time.

Your brand will grow too, you’ll get more customers, and your business will flourish. Best of luck to you, and feel free to tell us about your experiences in the comments section below.

How to make a profile on Instagram*

Choose a nickname, avatar, make a description, buttons and "Eternal Stories".

Valeria Svirskaya
founder of InShow agency, commercial writer

The head of the InShow content marketing agency and commercial writer Valeria Svirskaya talks about the basic principles of creating a profile on Instagram. The product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation, which will help you quickly find your profile in search and convert a client into a buyer. nine0003

As a basis, we took the account @primacandle on Instagram. The product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation, which is maintained by our agency. It is designed according to all the rules described in the article.

Nickname

The best thing you can do for the promoted brand is to come up with a simple and understandable nickname that both the student and his grandmother will write down by ear. In this matter, the main rule is not to complicate things. Usually, the user enters a new nickname no more than 2-3 times, if the required account is not found, he easily switches to another brand. nine0003

Avoid:

How Apple does social media - detailed analysis with examples of good design of profiles on Instagram *

Punctuation marks and symbols (periods, underscores). Signs are indexed by InstagramThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the territory of the Russian Federation. is the same as letters, so @rr_r and @ppr are two different accounts and the user will get confused.
Nicknames of three or more words, especially if they are broken by dots. It is easy to make mistakes when entering text and you can lose a client even before he has met you. Try searching for @thehampshireschoolchelsea and you'll see what I mean. nine0029
Repeat the names of famous brands. Let's say your account name is @appleshopsamara. When entering this nickname, the user will first see the @apple and @applemusic accounts, and then everything else.

Getting it right

Use words that are simple and clear and easy to write down by ear.

If there are 2-3 words in the profile name, write the nickname without dots and underscores. But better - cut it down to one word.

Try to come up with a name that does not repeat well-known brands. nine0029
Ideally, if the nickname is short and easy to remember, for example, @ohmylook, @tsvetnoy and @idocvm.

A simple nickname that repeats the name of the brand. Easy to remember, no unnecessary characters and numbers

Connect Instagram* in Amplifer and publish photos, videos and carousels directly through your computer. Get recommendations for the best time and track post statistics. 7 days free

Avatar

Cheat sheet for social media with platform recommendations

An avatar is the face of your brand and can be seen in the general feed, Stories, comments, and profile. A weighty reason to look good and become recognizable. Tips for photos in Instagram will help you make an avatar. The product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the territory of the Russian Federation. Let's say you produce handmade bears and want to put a product photo on an avatar. The worst thing you can think of is to shoot a bear on an old smartphone in the evening under artificial yellow light. And such examples on Instagram The product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist on the territory of the Russian Federation. nine0025 is too much.

Small font on the avatar. Many brands use two or three words in their logo, often one word larger. If so, choose a keyword for the avatar or monogram it. Otherwise, the avatar will be smeared and careless, and the user will not read the text.

Monochrome colors. Now pastel and light colors are in fashion, designers often mix similar colors and shades. As a result, the text on the avatar is not visible. Customize logo for InstagramThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist on the territory of the Russian Federation..

Look at @topdrawerlondon's avatar and don't repeat their mistakes. The font merges with the background, and the bottom inscription cannot be read even from a computer

How to do it right

If you have an online store or a brand, put a large logo on the avatar. Subscribers react more actively to photos with faces, but if you are not the face of your business, it is better to show the logo. A high-quality logo inspires more trust in the brand even before the moment of purchase. nine0029
If you are an entrepreneur or freelancer, put the best portrait on your avatar. The photo must be of high quality, with an open face. High-quality does not mean studio and made on an expensive camera, now it is easy to take a great photo on a smartphone. Choose a sunny day, find a white wall, clean your smartphone camera and take dozens of photos, you will surely like one of them.

Be sure to adapt the logo for the avatar. The brand name should be clearly visible, for this it is better to choose a sans-serif font, so it will be better read, and the font and background colors should be contrasting. If you have a logo in pastel colors, come up with a black and white version or a monogram specifically for InstagramThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist on the territory of the Russian Federation. .

Choose real photos for your avatar, no stock images. Users have learned to identify falsehood and such an avatar can play against you.

The avatar shows a color, high-quality photo of the owner of the Primacandle brand with the product. It immediately gives the impression that the account is maintained by Natalia herself, this inspires confidence among new subscribers

Name and description of the account

Account name - 30 characters. This information is indexed by the search InstagramThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the territory of the Russian Federation. Therefore, fill in carefully. Indicate the city and keywords, for example, "cakes Moscow" if you are a confectioner from Moscow. There is no need to duplicate the brand name if it is indicated in the nickname.

@primacandle account is easy to find by keyword **candles** and name

Account description - 150 characters. It's kind of a price tag. At first glance, the client must understand whether he needs you or can move on. In the description, include all the key information about the brand:

What do you do. Write in essence, not “making dreams come true”, but “studio photographer”;
Address if you have an offline hotspot;
Methods of communication. Preferably several options or the most relevant;
Opening hours;
Site, if any. Make an eyeliner to the link with a call to click, for example, new collection , sale item and so on;
Promotional offer. If you have a sale, do not send to the main site, provide a link to the current page with goods or services for the promotion.

The Primacandle account lists the range of products, says worldwide shipping, provides a contact email and a link to an online store with an invitation to click. Questions "where to buy" and "how to order" are rarely asked

How to use emoji in social networks - Amplifer's guide

Emoji . In profile descriptions, we use emoji to structure the text, highlight keywords, and grab attention. Users InstagramThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the territory of the Russian Federation. are already accustomed to the fact that emoji with an envelope indicate mail, and a handset - a mobile number. This makes it easier to grab attention and quickly find the most important thing.

Unusual font . In some profiles, you can see non-standard text in the account description. This is a good way to draw the user's attention to the most important thing. You can make such a test at sprezzkeyboard.com. nine0003

Additional text in account description . If 150 characters is not enough for you, there is an easy way to add information in the profile description. To do this, you must have a connected business profile. Go to Settings (Options) → Edit profile (Edit profile) → section Company information (Business information) → Contact options (Contact options) → Address (Address). In field City (City/town) enter your city, and in field Address (Street Address) - missing text.

Instagram analytics guideThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation. — detailed analysis

Active buttons . Business accounts have active buttons Call , letter , text and How to get to if the owner has added a phone number, email address and location. On the one hand, this is the instant inclusion of the user. On the other hand, not everyone notices the buttons, because they merge with the background of the application, and in the desktop version they are not displayed at all. Therefore, duplicate important information in the account description. nine0003 In the mobile application InstagramProduct belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the territory of the Russian Federation. buttons for call, mail and location are active These buttons are not available in the browser

Link in the description . When you add an active link, make sure that it leads to the actual page. For example, if you have an online store, then put a link not to the main one, but immediately to hot commodity items. If the emphasis is on the blog, then indicate the link to the last article. Sometimes, instead of a link to a website, you can see a link generated by mssg.me, linktr.ee, or a similar service. nine0003 This is what the link looks like in the profile description

Such services make simple landing pages where you can specify several ways of communication. For example, WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram and website. This is convenient, but often users do not respond to unfamiliar and incomprehensible links and simply do not follow them. Therefore, add a call to click on the link in the description.

List of buttons that open via a link from the description

Try Amplifer to post to Instagram* directly from your computer, without notifications, receive analytics reports and recommendations on the best time to post

"Eternal Stories" (Highlights)

How beautiful it is to lead InstagramThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation. company — column of the founder of "Periodiki Press" Varvara Vedeneeva

Recently InstagramProduct belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation. added Highlights - collections of "Stories" that are displayed under the profile description. This feature is not available to all profiles, but “eternal stories” are actively used abroad. The most popular format is thematic icons with a description of a service or product. nine0003

We added candle-making videos to Eternal Stories, but this format didn't really go well: such posts got only 2,000 views more than regular Stories. We left them, but moved promotions and sweepstakes to the first positions.

Announcement of the action for Valentine's Day

Remember:

Choose a simple nickname that is easy to remember and enter in the search InstagramThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the territory of the Russian Federation. .
If you have an online store, then put a large logo on a contrasting background on the avatar. If you are promoting a personal brand, then a photo where the face is clearly visible.
Profile name is indexed by internal search InstagramThe product belongs to an organization recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation, so add keywords (your city, what you do)
In the description, indicate all the important information for ordering your product or service. If you use the "call", "send email", "send sms" and "get directions" buttons, duplicate this data with text in the description. nine0029

Post to your Instagram feed and Stories* from your computer

Register and connect Instagram* to Amplifer to schedule posts with text, photos and videos directly from your computer. Track post statistics and get recommendations for the best time to post

* The activities of the Meta organization are recognized as extremist and banned on the territory of the Russian Federation

Designing a page on Instagram: learning how to do it right

We tell you how to properly design a page on Instagram. We will discuss the name, profile description, profile picture and design trends.

How do I choose an actual account name?

Account name is the nickname by which users in the social network will search for you. It is always in English. And it can even be generated in various services.

It can be abstract: related to your field, personal characteristics, hobbies. For example, @lady_text, @krasiviye_blondin, etc. Or emphasize your personal brand and be in the first/last name format. For example, @gulia.konk, @ivavanivanov. nine0003

The maximum number of characters is 30. If you enter a nickname that already exists, the social network will not allow you to register such a name. In addition to letters, you can add:

underscore - @irina_lapina,
dot – @vadim.fedorov,
numbers - @by2rina.

To make it easy to find you on Instagram, we recommend:

use your real first and last name;
use only one abstract nickname in all social networks in order to be remembered by users;
do not change such a nickname constantly, so as not to confuse subscribers;
use a minimum of elements: underscores, numbers, dots.

Also remember that your nickname is the username you will use to log in. You can change it once every 2 weeks.

How to choose the right profile photo? nine0014

The profile photo is the same photo that is visible in the small circle. And here it is important that your face in this photo can be seen. This is your personal page, so the photo must be of you.

From the tips:

Choose a large frame of the face.
It's good if the photo is taken on a single background. If there is no such photo, develop in Photoshop.
Avoid abstract photos of the sky, flowers, etc. It's trite and doesn't make you stand out. nine0029
In this case, it can be a high-quality black and white photograph.
You can use memoji, cartoon avatars.
If you are an expert in something, you can add some detail: for example, take a picture with a camera if you are a photographer.

Examples of avatars for bloggers Alexandra Mitroshina, Larisa Parfentyeva, Katya Kornilova (from left to right)

+ Tips for creating a content plan. The article contains relevant ideas for posts in an expert, personal and business account, as well as talks about the content plan and content matrix. nine0003

What should be in the account description?

The account description is your Instagram passport. True, you draw it up not as officially as a document. In social networks, on the contrary, an easy and understandable style is appreciated.

In the profile description you must write:

who are you - your name;
what this page is about: why read you;
your awards and successes are what you are proud of;
How can I contact you: links, contacts. nine0029

If you have your own hashtag, you can also add it to the description. Previously, almost all bloggers highlighted points with emoticons. Now the majority writes the text either without division into paragraphs, or without emoticons. But both are in trend.

Old design options

New design options

Content, let's now talk about how to formalize the covers of fixed storis. Otherwise, they are also called highlights or actual stories. They do not disappear after 24 hours, and the archive is saved there. nine0003

All stories are divided by topic into different groups. Each one needs its own cover. If earlier they used logos, icons, now the cover trend is different.

1. Simply select the photos of . Live, real. At the same time, it is good if the colors are combined with the shades of the tape.

2. Use the single color . No icons or text. In this case, the shades should be similar or matching palette.

3. Pick up unusual pictures that are rarely seen anywhere .

4. Use boho style . Its bases are: natural shades (often yellow, beige and brown) and ethno-details.

5. Add typography - "magazine style" . Main elements: various fonts (no more than 3), their unusual design, for example, in a circle.

What stories should be fixed in highlights? In fact, there are no rules in this matter. Just remember that these stories are in addition to the profile description. It should be clear who you are, what you do, what is important to you in life. Therefore, in highlights you can fix:

getting to know you - your life story;
important moments - travel, wedding, childbirth;
useful content: about texts, visuals, reviews, selections, etc.;
reviews;
cases;
questions/answers.

How to create an attractive feed of posts in your account?

There are only a few rules you need to remember to make your ribbon harmonious. nine0003

1. Select 3-4 basic shades to be used in your profile. These colors will be the most: texture, scenery, your clothes, details, etc. Try to choose shades that combine with each other, for example, natural ones.

2. Try to match the hues in adjacent photographs . These can be top and bottom photos, through one and adjacent frames.