Instagram – Georgia Web Services | Search Engine Optimization

A lot of changes happened on Instagram last year. In July 2021, Adam Mosseri announced that Instagram is no longer just a photo-sharing app. The platform shifted to photo and video sharing. The move is to embrace the ever-changing social media trends.

A digital marketing speaker Hong Kong also notes the recent announcement of the Instagram Chief that the platform will focus on video enhancements this year – specifically Reels. That is why a video marketing agency Hong Kong highlights the importance of giving your IG profile the best impression this 2022.

To date, Instagram has over 1 billion monthly active users (MAU). According to a social media agency Hong Kong, 80% of Instagrammers search for products and services on the platform. This is largely due to influencer marketing. Unlike other social media networks, Instagrammers do not hesitate to follow business profiles. That is why most brands opted to advertise and promote on the platform.

Below are some tips to give Instagram the best impression this 2022.

CONSISTENT ACCOUNT HANDLE

An Instagram handle is the username on Instagram. It conveys your identity among IG followers. To boost your chances of having more Instagram followers, a memorable and shareable handle can help. For a business profile, the brand or company name makes the most sense.

Showing your official Instagram account can boost recognition. But if you will be curating and sharing a niche or specific content, the handle should highlight the type of content you will upload. Instagram allows 30 characters as the limit for an account handle. Keep them short and simple. Whenever possible, keep a consistent handle or username on all your social media accounts.

CONVINCING PROFILE IMAGE

The first thing that Instagrammers look for when visiting a profile is the profile image. It serves as the calling card of a brand or business. An Instagram profile image is displayed as a circle under a 1:1 aspect ratio. The safest size is 200 x 200 pixels for a clear quality.

A brand logo makes sense as a profile image for business accounts. It also makes a brand easily recognizable among IG feeds and posts. An eye-catching image centered the logo in the most limited space. It should also have a clear contrast and good lighting. A convincing profile image can you’re your Instagram profile the best impression this 2022.

EYE-CATCHING BIO

Your Instagram bio appears under your handle or username. It is limited to a 150-character description. It is your chance to tell them who you are and what you do. An Instagram bio conveys the personality of a brand and shows Instagrammers if they come to the right place.

To give Instagram the best impression this 2022, your Instagram bio should answer any of the following questions in brief:

What do the brand promises?
What is your brand personality?
What is your brand’s niche?
What makes your brand unique?

Alternatively, you can also put a Call-to-Action (CTA) on your Instagram bio. This is if your goal is to boost conversion, sales, and traffic.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Another part of an Instagram profile is what we call the Story highlights. It is a feature or tab that holds the favorite Stories posted on an Instagram profile. Instagrammers often scroll within the story highlights before following an account. That is why it is important to showcase the best of your uploaded stories.

Give Instagram the best impression this 2022 by using story highlights to introduce a brand. Make them discoverable using GIFs, hashtags, and stickers. Be consistent with your aesthetics to boost brand recognition. You can also use location stickers and tags to optimize SEO.

Reference: https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/how-to-give-your-instagram-the-best-first-impression-infographic/616581/

Like a Silicon Valley fairy tale, the photo-sharing app, Instagram, rose with momentum in its first few months. It was launched in October 2010 by Kevin Systrom as an iOS mobile app. Immediately, it racked up 25,000 users a day. In less than 2 years, the king of social media, Facebook bought it for $1 billion cash and stocks. Yet, like old good tales, Instagram has witnessed many conflicts and synergies, failures and successes, twists and turns. Now, it has gone a long way and become the second best social media platform where you can market your business.

INSTAGRAM MARKETING

A social media agency Hong Kong defines Instagram marketing as the way brands connect to their target audience within the platform. It does not involve direct promotions of products and services. Instead, it focuses on publishing engaging photos and videos to inspire Instagrammers to make a purchase. With a number of original filters, marketers can create photo and video ads using their Instagram cameras. The very first Instagram ad was published in 2013 by Michael Kors. It’s a photo of a golden MK watch surrounded by some French macaroons and a white coffee cup. The ad never looks invasive even though it was pushed on the IG feeds of people who don’t follow the Michael Kors IG Page.

Today, there are around 1.074 billion monthly active users (MAUs) on Instagram. It houses over 200 million business profiles globally. The average time an Instagrammer spends on the platform is 30 minutes per day. A digital marketing speaker Hong Kong has noted that 60% of Instagram users discover new products on the platform with 90% of the following at least one brand. With 130 million of them tapping shopping posts monthly, the revenue on Instagram ads is expected to reach $18.16 billion this year. With these powerful marketing statistics, it is, therefore, important for brands to know how to improve Instagram reach. We’ve got you covered here!

HOW TO IMPROVE INSTAGRAM REACH

Instagram has a complex algorithm in determining the best post to show its users. They are ranked based on the popularity of the content and what kind of post a user interacts with. The relationship between accounts is also a factor that affects the ranking of Instagram posts on a certain feed. This algorithm changes from time to time to provide a better user experience on Instagram. To improve Instagram’s reach, here are some tactics and tips.

Add Location Tags on Your Posts. Geotags or location tags on Instagram are latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates showing a physical location. These areas are identified by the GPS on a mobile device. They can be a geographical point like a city or town. They can also be a location category like a business or landmark. Adding location tags on your Instagram posts is a great wait to put your business location and physical stores on the map. People will see them as they search for local posts or accounts near them. It is the easiest way to expand your organic reach on Instagram.

Experiment with Different Posts and Formats on Instagram. People go to Instagram, not mainly to shop, but to look for ideas and inspirations. As such, it will be best to experiment with different posts and formats for brands to improve Instagram reach. More than 50 billion photos were already uploaded on Instagram since its inception. Instagram Stories are huge. There are 500 million Instagrammers who use Stories daily. A video marketing agency Hong Kong suggests that they are perfect to use for AR lenses, fundraising, links, polls, questions, and shopping. Reels are a new addition to Instagram. They are short video content that clones TikTok clips. IGTV is a great way to educate customers and showcase products and services. While Instagram Live is the perfect way to connect with your audiences in real-time. Around 80% of them prefer watching a live video over reading a brand’s blog. Using different posts and formats on Instagram can maximize your impact as they allow you to engage with the different preferences of your target audience. It also avoids making your Instagram business account boring to your followers.

Optimize the Accessibility of Your IG Posts. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are around 1 billion people with disabilities all over the world. These include people with hearing impairment, physical disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and visual problems. If a brand or business will not optimize the accessibility of their social media posts to this group of people, they will be missing out on 25% of their target audiences. To optimize the accessibility of IG content, here are automatic features you can use on Instagram.

Alt text to describe images and photos.
Auto captions for IGTV with instant subtitles in 16 different languages.
Manual captions on Stories and video posts.
Videos that can be lip-read and with minimum background noise.

Test Different Posting Frequencies and Time on Instagram. In general, it is recommended to post 1 to 3 times per day on Instagram. The best time to post is between 10 AM to 3 PM on Wednesdays and Fridays. Yet, testing different posting frequencies and times within the platform can help you know when most of your followers are online and receptive enough to engage in your content. Start by using Instagram Insights. It will give you an idea of when your followers are active. It also gives feedback on what post format excels best. It takes a couple of weeks to discover the right rhythm. But it will be worth it if you want to improve your Instagram reach.

Reference: https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/how-to-improve-instagram-reach-9-ways/