Did you know 90% of marketers are using Instagram to promote their products, according to a new report by Social Media Today?
As of late, Instagram is the place for businesses to be. Reach on Facebook keeps dropping. New users aren’t flocking to Twitter or Snapchat. But on Instagram, the audience and engagement levels just keep growing.
Marketers don’t see that wave stopping soon, either.
Most businesses (65%) say that Instagram is extremely or very important to their overall social media marketing strategy. Plus, 72% believe it is very likely that Instagram will become an essential platform for their business in the future.
As Instagram marketing becomes increasingly important, read on to learn what aspects of the platform offer the most opportunity.
Beat the crowds by becoming an early adopter of Shoppable Posts.
Right now, only 13% of businesses are using shopping tags on Instagram. Yet, 37% see this feature as the Instagram tool that has the most potential for their business.
There is no doubt more companies are going to use this, but for now, they haven’t gotten to it. That’s why you need to integrate these ASAP. Since the feature is still new, your shoppable post will stand out and be more of a novelty to followers.
Advertising is getting pricey.
On the flip side, most companies (52%) now advertise on Instagram. It took a few years, but we’ve reached an inflection point.
From here on out, the cost of advertising on Instagram will likely start creeping up. As the platform grows, more businesses use it, which makes the ad space more competitive. It's inevitable.
Static images in the feed remain the top performer.
64% of companies find that still images posted in their feed produce the best business results. As you’re planning, think the most about the images you’re posting in your feed since that real estate is the most valuable (and limited!).
Smartly integrate video.
Brands aren’t flocking to Instagram’s formal video options. Only 17% use IGTV while a mere 10% use Instagram Live. That’s namely because those video options haven’t caught the attention of Instagram’s audience.
Neither are knockout successes. Or to frame it another way, none can compete with how Instagram Stories attracts viewers. Plus, more than half of companies (52%) find Stories and videos to be the second-best way to produce business results.
Like other platforms, videos continue to reign. But on Instagram, it’s about creating more in-feed videos or videos for Stories (and less long-form IGTV content or live video).
Look into alternative analytics solutions.
Nearly half of businesses (44%) find Instagram’s native analytics data only somewhat helpful for strategic planning. 9% don’t think it's useful at all, and already, 18% don’t use it.
As you spend more time and money on Instagram, you’ll need to have the right data to prove your ROI. Frankly, in-app analytics may not provide what you need.
This summer, perform a gap analysis to see what information Instagram’s native analytics tool isn’t capturing. Then, research solutions to overcome that issue.
