Social media

The Social Media Rising Star – Instagram

Instagram is stealing the show

Instagram is the fastest growing social media network brand. If you own a business and you are not on social media, especially Instagram, you are losing a golden opportunity to grow your brand.

The first wave of social media platforms made everyone realize that there was true power in networking. People were ecstatic about being able to find friends, family and acquaintances and connect with them. They also found great inspiration in all the sharing that was happening online.

Traditional platforms like Facebook where posts can be made up of text only, need a more laborious exercise to go through. Scrolling through text and photos also needs more mental power than just scrolling through photos. This is the crux of Instagram’s success, which is considered as one of the big five on the Social Media landscape.

Instagram’s success lies in the simplicity of its operations, namely the facility to post a photo (with or without a description and including hashtags). Photos are much easier to scroll through, much easier to digest and the adage that a picture is worth a thousand words is what the success hinges on. The fact that there are ‘less’ facilities to operate on this platform make it easier to indulge in. There is a shorter learning curve and less risk of errors when one is posting. It is easy to follow and easy to be followed and the concept of hashtags keeps the content interesting. In comparison to all this, other social media platforms like Facebook appear more complex and sophisticated.

On Instagram, it’s easy to edit and post photos at the same time. There is no major hassle and truly less is more. To top it all, there’s less concern about what you are disclosing to the world about yourself. Instagram’s success is closely linked to the simple mechanics that it upholds.

Combine this with the advanced photo taking facilities on mobile devices and services provided through mobile Apps. The result is a setting where everyone can capture bits and pieces of life’s essence when it happens and possibly edit it to make it more interesting.

How to harness Instagram’s success and make it your own

How frequently should you post on social media? According to John, digital marketing director atKeen Malta Ltd, “post once or twice a day, ideally at a time when your followers are mostly online and use attention-grabbing images and relevant hashtags”. Posting twice a day helps to capture more audience. Knowledge of the hashtags is essential but this is not rocket science. Finding the keywords associated with your business, topic, product, services is essential. Investigate the main industry hashtags and develop different hashtag sets that you can rotate. When thinking of hashtags, remember events, holidays, greetings, and key topics.

instagram marketing planPick a photo that is naturally an original and make sure that is visually stimulating. Otherwise, repost and give credit. Capture the essence of your topic in color, mood, emotion, texture. Detailed imagery is appreciated on Instagram and many times it feels like the audience on Instagram is a connoisseur of photos. From the amateurs to the professional, Instagram is the meeting place for those who enjoy visuals. The right type of photo at the right time with the right hashtag often brings in a rapid barrage of likes and new followers.

On Instagram, pretty much like on other social media platforms, it is important to act out on your core strength. Whether you’re an expert photographer, a hair stylist, a trekker, a wedding organizer or anything in between, it is important to ensure that your core strength comes out via the posts. In marketing lingo, this is closely tied to positioning and to the unique selling proposition. Make sure you are consistent in the posts and in their quality.

Whilst Instagram is mainly about photos, posting of videos or quote graphics is often popular. In fact, videos are touted as being very popular. Instagram’s advertising facilities make it a good business choice. Furthermore, Instagram is opening up for more interesting posts via Instagram Stories.

As Instagram continues to soar, there is truly nothing to marvel about. It is simply the fascination of a story in picture format, a format that is a universal language. Now it’s all up to the business to narrate the story …

If you have any questions, please ask below!