How does Instagram Marketing work? Everything you need to know

Check out the focus areas for Instagram Marketing.

When it comes to social media marketing, Instagram has emerged as the biggest stakeholder in deciding the success of marketing strategies. Instagram marketing has become an essential focus point as it allows ecommerce businesses to combine visual aesthetics with high engagement and easy-to-consume trends.

Instagram marketing is important for businesses of all kinds and, working on the fundamentals would aid in the efficient implementation of high-engagement posts and stories. Instagram Marketing has a reason to be popular. According to statistical figures:

• 80% of Instagram users diligently stay updated with at least one brand and, 60% of Instagram users have happily credited the platform to help them in discovering new brands and services
• Out of all the top-performing posts on Instagram, 65% of them feature marketing products which encourages, 30% of Instagram users to purchase these products/service

Given the importance associated with the platform, here are some focus areas for Instagram marketing:

• Instagram Posts
  Instagram's audience is diverse and it is essential to pin down the kind of posts that tend to perform well. It’s often been observed that promotional posts, motivational and self-care quotes along with DIY videos, product pictures and user-generated pieces are popular among the audience. However, it must be noted that, Instagram users like diversity and creativity in content. Stick to unique posts to keep them hooked to the page.
  
  While videos can be used for Instagram marketing, aim at keeping it short even while using the IGTV feature. Instagram users access the platform via mobile phones and prefer to engage with short, catchy content.
• Hashtags on Instagram
  Instagram promotes the usage of the Twitter creation- hashtags. They are integral to Instagram marketing and by the simple addition of a hashtag #, any content can be evolved into a clickable topic. This enables users to check out all posts with the same hashtag and encourages them to follow the hashtags that intrigue them. There are 4 different types of hashtags used on the platform that are key to Instagram marketing and, should be used in sync with the kind of content being posted.
  
  
  • Contest hashtags
    Brand-specific hashtags created for contests, these are used to identify the participants, segregate submissions for the same and raise awareness about the contest.
  • Branded hashtags
    Unique hashtags created by brands to place it on profiles or for posts featuring user-generated content.
  • Hashtags based on timelin
    Creating hashtags for seasonal events like festivals or important sports/historical events. These are key for selling products which are relevant to the seasonal events.
  • Niche hashtags
    These are industry-specific keywords and phrases that aid in identifying and aiming at the target audience. These aid in gathering relevant traffic to the page.
• Instagram Stories
  Stories aid in maintaining regular engagement with the audience and can be used strategically. Posting user-generated content on Instagram is always a safe bet and extremely popular. They can also aid in calling to action for followers to share media of their latest purchase from the brand. Features like poll stickers are key in gathering immediate feedback and in creating immediate social proof. Since stories tend to disappear after 24 hours, they can be added in the highlight section of the page to allow new users to access the key points of the marketing campaign.
  
  Instagram marketing should be embraced fully by diving into the varying features of the brand with complete enthusiasm and engaging regularly with the audience. Regular interaction is under-rated and combining it with creative content would lead to surprising results!