Social media has indeed brought new blood to the whole realm of digital marketing. While its effectiveness over email marketing as a marketing approach is debatable, but as a standalone marketing tool, social media is pricelessly critical for any digital marketeer looking to make a serious impact.
Social media marketing as an advertising methodology has been a gift for brands that have been struggling to expand their reach in the real-world market. It has helped them weave around marketing stratagems that pitch them for the best of results and gain a stronger foothold in the market strewn by equally competent competitors.
Thanks to the whole multitude of platforms that are available to us, we are able to leverage and deliver the power of social media for accelerated brand growth. And Facebook and Twitter have surely led the charge by being instrumental in making social media the phenomena that it is today. The ease with which they have allowed the marketeers address the advertising needs of their businesses is what differentiates SMM from the herd of other ways of marketing.
However, there is every chance (and evidence) that platforms of the likes of FB and Twitter might choke on their own excesses. The signs can already be seen and this is why the seasoned marketeers are already embracing other social media tools in order to ensure their brand continues on its trajectory that is headed north. And this is where Instagram steps in.
Why Instagram is the Answer
For socially engaged consumers, Instagram comes across as the de facto best visual based platform that enthralls them with some of the most beguiling pictures scattered all over this relatively new social media player.
- This virtual platform is filled with frenzy that has gone a long way In helping businesses make an instant personal connection with their consumers from all locations and demographics.
- Updating some appealing pictures and appending hashtags to them while uploading has proved to be a fuss free way or brands to capture attention and imagination of their targeted audience.
- Brands not just focus on their own products, but they use pictures that throw light on the various intriguing aspects of the industry they are operating within.
- The Consumers are an important part of the marketing strategy of brands since most of the brands active on Instagram have, at some point in time, run campaigns wherein they as their customers to share their own picture and a part of some contest. This paves way for a lot of user generated content, perching the brand further ahead than its competitors.
If you are still to register your brand's presence on Instagram, but are contemplating the same, it is recommended to do so without wasting any more time. But if you are already there, yet to make an impact, here is a bunch of things you can try:
Get Creative
Every once in a while, you shall share some some product pictures to serve the purpose of creating a social media page of your brand. However, it doesn't have to be a humdrum exercise where you click a stock-images-like photo and upload it with a very subtle and formal tagline to go with it. Having a little bit of fun should work wonders. Add your brand character to the photos. As your consumers to share their own pictures with one of your products. You can then aggregate all the photos and choose the best among them, giving away freebies to the lucky few ones. The investment is far lesser than the returns you are likely to achieve with this strategy.
You can also try clicking the same object from different, more interesting angles and use certain tools like Picassa to add more hues to the photo or add effects like Vintage (which works with just about everyone) to the images.
Post Some Candid Pictures of Your Company
Quirky stuff works everywhere. And who said your Instagram brand page has to be all about product pictures. The shots of your employees engaged in a fun activity (no pun intended) can seize the attention of your followers and pave way for some conversations.
Publish a Story About Your Brand
With the pictures helping your storytelling, an intriguing piece of story about your brand might get you all the attention you have been vying for in a manner most effective. Let the images and the text represent your brand's values and bring out the brand character.
Once in a While, Let you be the One Following Your Follower
why can't it be the other way round, why can't it be, for once, you, the brand, liking a picture uploaded by your follower? And this holds especially relevant when they are getting clicked with your product. You might go a step further and comment on the picture in order to be more visible and command attention of the circle of friends of your follower.
Keep a Tab on the Conversations Happening Around Your Brand
On a platform like Instagram, or for that matter, Twitter, it's easier to find out what people are talking about your brand and determine whether the discussions should bother you or not. Only a few months back, Maker's Mark announced that they would be diluting the alcohol in their offerings in order to cope with the fast rise in demands. The announcement triggered negative conversations about the brand over the various social media platforms. Maker's Mark was sise enough to take the discussions seriously and this prompted them to reverse their decision.
Use The Oldest Trick in the Book – “Write a Caption”
No matter how cliched and mainstream it gets, the posts where you ask users to add their captions to a particular picture always manage to seize attention. So, take a picture of one of your products and ask the followers to come up with some wacky one liners for the same. You will be surprised by the numbers you get.
If Your Post Has Anything to Do with Any Public Figure, Let them Know
If you are updating your followers with the name of the upcoming Johnny Depp movie, you have a chance to grab more eyeballs. Using #johnnydepp will make your post visible to anyone who is keeping an eye on the conversations happening around the actor. However, when you include the Instagram handle of Depp, there is a chance that the he might share your post among his followers. And you know what that means!
As social media cuts more ice with the general audience, the number of social media platforms are also increasing by the day. And it's not just the sheer number that commands attention, but also the fact that even with this huge influx, there are some exceptionally useful social media platforms that manage to knock the doors and Instagram happens to be a fine testament to the fact.
Instagram has achieved instant fame in the web world and it can be owed to the user-friendly and visually appealing interface of this platform. Thanks to the seamless way it facilitates interaction among the brand followers of a certain brand, the popularity has grown from strength to strength and it's setting the standards for the newer players to follow.
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