Have You Heard? Instagram Is the New Homepage
[Originally published on the Dash Hudson blog.]
And here are 4 ways to make it count.
The Internet is a relatively new concept. The iteration of it that pervades people’s personal everyday lives is, anyway. A majority of today’s living population vividly remembers a time without the World Wide Web — isn’t that crazy? But I digress.
After the turn of the century, businesses that found themselves without a homepage were deemed archaic, untrustworthy, and either fell behind or got with the program. At that point, no one had the slightest idea of the magnitude with which social media was going to hit and impact the way the world operates.
Cut to 2018, and now the businesses without an Instagram account are deemed archaic and untrustworthy. Without an Insta profile, do you even exist? These days, people’s first reflex is to open Instagram to look up a brand on the social network before doing so on a web browser. This consumer behavior was cemented when mothership Facebook introduced business profiles for companies to display all their vital facts on their profile. Marketing would never be the same again.
A business can elevate to cult status when it becomes an Instagram brand. Today’s economy is trading in double taps on the Instagram app, and the Millennial generation is spearheading operations with an army of Zees in tow. There’s a revolution happening right before our eyes, and those that fail to join the zeitgeist will be left in the dust.
All drama aside, Instagram is the number one brand vehicle for modern businesses. When someone lands on your company’s Instagram profile, it needs to communicate what it’s about. It needs to be informative while simultaneously making a first and lasting impression.
Whatever vitals live on your homepage need to also be prominently displayed on your Insta profile. If someone were to find it through the Instagram explore page, they have to be able to understand the nature of your business right away.
If you’re not entirely sure how to telegraph all of that on your profile and maximize every inch of it, follow our 4 pointers below.
1. Type a super tight bio.
You guys. Instagram marketing strategy 101: have a strong bio. Instagram users need to be able to grasp your biz after reading those short lines, so make them count. Be descriptive and informative in your signature tone of voice, as well as add a relevant link and your unique branded hashtag if you have one to help generate UGC.
If it’s poignant, revealing, and attention-grabbing, you’re golden. Don’t forget that your photo also needs to make sense; your logo will do the trick.
2. Make sure your grid is looking good.
The first thing people are going to judge you on are the visual cues you’re giving. On Instagram, that means your gallery’s aesthetic. While your current followers don’t go into your profile to see how things are looking, it does serve as a means to gain newbies. A potential follower inevitably has to see your profile to decide if they want to hit that blue button. If your grid is looking mediocre, you can bet that they’ll bolt.
People love a curated feed, so give the people what they want! For a user to become a follower, they must be captivated by your content. That’s why it has to be representative of your brand and be of high quality, while meeting your aesthetic standard. Any visual that doesn’t live up to this criteria should be axed. Which leads to my next point…
3. Use the archive feature.
A few months ago, Instagram came out with a nifty little functionality known as Archive. Essentially this means that you can remove less desirable posts from your gallery without deleting them permanently. That makes them invisible to the public, but easily retrievable by you should you be feeling nostalgic.
Use this to rid your profile of any gnarly photo that might be a lurking ghost of your less curated past. Leave only the relevant images and videos that tell the most current version of your brand story. Basically what you would want the world to know about it.
4. Use the Stories Highlights Feature.
When you find people on Instagram, your chances of also checking out their Stories are high if they have one up, right? That’s how other users feel when they stumble upon your profile. This is an excellent opportunity for brands to insert additional information about themselves, and then be saved as a permanent highlight on their profile.
Name the highlight something obvious, like “Info” or “FAQ,” and give people more useful factoids about your biz. This is especially great for lesser known companies. Save other Stories that contribute to your brand image in separate themed Highlights to keep those potential followers on your brand journey.
Your Instagram page is your brand’s chance to make an impression on the thousands millions of Instagram users that are potential customers. Brand marketing is undeniably shifting to mobile-first as consumer behavior keeps leaning in that direction. Everything is being played out on Instagram, so get in there and make sure you’re a front-runner.
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