Instagram is another one of those social media platforms with its own special twists that you need to master if you intend to use it to generate leads for your business and drive traffic to your blog. It now has more users than Twitter does and it grew by 50% in the last 6 months of 2014. Do you think your clients and/or customers could be here? It is definitely worth doing further investigation.
Here are a few ways to drive traffic to your offers from Instagram:
1. Be strategic about the link
You get one and only ONE link on Instagram, use it wisely. What do you really want your people to do? Think that through and place a link accordingly. You can change it every day if you need to but be very strategic about it.
2. Hashtags
Without hashtags, nothing gets noticed. Pop over to the accounts of leaders in your niche and see what hashtags they use. Try out new ones and see the response you get. Do not put anything out in the Instagram world without a hashtag unless you expect it not to be seen.
3. Videos
Instagram allows you to use fifteen second videos to tell a story. It is incredible what you can fit in 15 seconds so use it as frequently as you want to, in order to inspire, entertain or educate them on your product or service. Remember to use hashtags again to get it seen.
4. Pictures
Instagram, of course, is completely based on pictures so use visually stimulating images to get the attention of prospects. Go to places like pixabay to obtain free images or you can use shutterstock or dollar photo club for a broader range at a higher price point. Put quotes on pictures and of course, you can use your own images taken as part of your regular life. Let your pictures tell more of the story of what you and your business stand for.
5. Connect with the movers and shakers
Go see what the gurus in your industry are up to and connect with them. Also, connect with some of their followers but please do not be cringe-worthy when you do this. Follow people you feel would be interested in what you have to offer. Go onto their profile and check things out rather than doing a blanket follow.
Give meaningful responses – There are more than enough spammers on the platform (and you will discover this when you get started), be deliberate about how you communicate with people. Always keep in mind that these are PEOPLE, not simply money in your bank account.