As Instagram’s popularity keeps increasing, more people worldwide turn to this network to make their businesses grow with Instagram promotion. Some others become influencers and use their reach to promote different products or events to earn money, as well as website visits. This is one of the primary forms of marketing on the platform.
It doesn’t matter what the user wants from the Instagram app. They all require something in common: followers. One of the best ways to achieve a big follower base is with promotions, and here, everything about it will be explained.
Table of Contents
Promotions on Instagram: What Are They?
When individuals ask what Instagram promotions are, they tend to be unfamiliar with how the platform works. Promoting a user on Instagram is a rather simple concept: advertise the content to get more audience and, therefore, engagement and followers (or website visits). It is no different to watching an ad online, but the platform has proven to be rather useful when companies boost their content.
Nowadays, businesses can pay to promote an Instagram post and use the reach that this app has.
While other platforms like Facebook and Twitter can be used for promoting content, Instagram has been particularly helpful when it comes to user engagement. This means that users watching the ad are more likely to interact and get involved.
Why Promoting an Instagram Account Is the Way to Go
Instagram promotions are the perfect method to get more views and engagement for small businesses. It works like marketing. At the same time, it’s a brilliant idea for people looking to become influencers in social media.
Instagram’s users are used to interacting between themselves because of how the platform works. This means that companies tend to have a friendlier image. Knowing how to promote on Instagram has significant advantages for the user.
There are several advantages to gaining a big amount of followers on Instagram; here are the most important:
- New followers tend to have a community of their own that can get involved with the promoted user. When one person follows, several others become potential viewers, generating a chain effect.
- Everyone likes trendy stuff, so when they see an Instagram account with many followers behind it, they tend to follow it more often.
- The bigger the follower base, the better the user is rated on Instagram. Popularity goes a long way, and the platform tends to help the most trendy accounts first.
- An obvious advantage is a profitability. More views mean more sales or advertising, therefore more money, which is a marketing investment.
Instagram Promotions: How Do They Work?
Instagram promotions work simply. It’s as easy as calling it marketing. First of all, Instagram is designed for smartphones. Therefore anyone can boost content straight from one. To use this feature, the account has to be an Instagram Business profile. This is how promotions become available. Also, if the user wants to use ads, they will need a Facebook business profile linked to their IG.
This way, promotions, as well as Instagram ads, can be used to boost the content to reach more customers, and therefore, increasing engagement.
The Differences Between Promotions and Ads
Before learning how to promote your business on Instagram in 2023, some info has to be explained. Promotions are not the same as other ads because of how they interact with the content. Promotions work with posts that exist already as they are, instead of making an ad. Therefore, the promoted content will have more interactions but will also remain active in that account.
On the other hand, Instagram ads focus on creating new content that will die when the ad expires, so they bring traffic but will not keep the interactions. To summarize what was stated:
- Promoting on Instagram means a specific post will reach more audiences and build interactions.
- Other ads focus on temporary content that tries to generate interest in viewers.
How to Promote on Instagram: The Easy Way
If users are having trouble finding out how to promote on Instagram, fear not. Since this feature is built-in, it is fast and easy to learn where to look.
Hit the “Promote” Button on Your Post
This point is pretty self-explanatory, just hit the “Promote” button found when looking at the post that will be boosted.
Pick a Target
When promoting a post, the Instagram app will ask what the main goal is. These can be:
- Visits (profile growth)
- Traffic for a website
- Views (works better with promotions or sales)
Just make sure to pick the right target for the post, since this can significantly affect the final result of the promotion.
Pick the Right Audience
Next up, Instagram allows users to pick what kind of audience they want for the promoted post. There are three options available:
- Automatic: focuses on accounts with similar tastes to the existing followers.
- Local: choosing a specific location.
- Manual: helps to select people or places to target.
Measure Budget and Duration
It’s time to decide how long the promotion will run for and how much budget is available. This depends entirely on the person boosting the post, so not much explanation to give here.
Review Everything
Now that things are in place, it’s time to see if it’s good to go. All the following points are shown in this section:
- The promoted post
- Target
- What the action button will be displaying
- How the audience will receive the content
- The budget and duration of the promotion.
Create Promotion!
Now that everything is good to go in the review section, simply hit the “Create Promotion” button to promote the selected post. Remember to say “Follow us on Instagram”!
Following up the Promotion
Now that the content with Instagram promotions is out there, it’s no time to simply forget about it. Keeping an eye on the targeted post to see how it’s doing and the engagement it’s having is the perfect way to decide if it’s beneficial to keep it going for longer or simply save some cash and finish it before time.
To view this, go to Promotion Insights, which is found inside the business profile section, choosing the post and tapping “View Insights”. Here, the user can see:
- Profile visits
- Follows
- Impressions
- Website clicks
- Comments
- Shares
Solid Tips for Instagram Promotion: Do It the Right Way
In this section, the target is to show and explain some tips and tricks when you’re using the promotion system. These are the best tips on Instagram promotion in 2023:
Use an Instagram Nametag
The Instagram Nametag function allows businesses to create a more personal image while keeping the branding intact. It’s an excellent idea to have this asset ready and share it around to generate more brand awareness, for example, on Facebook. It also makes sharing the brand a straightforward process since it tends to be representative of the business. It works great with the typical “Follow us on Instagram” posts.
Testimonials Are Important
It’s easy for a business to say, “Hey, my product is the best”, but most won’t take it seriously. It’s better to have customers say “Wow, this product is great”, so find those people and get their testimonials, it will help the brand get some credibility and earn the trust of potential buyers. These have been used for decades by all kinds of businesses, and that’s because they are effective.
Stick With The Theme
A big part of brand recognition has to do with sticking with a theme. This is something every big company does since clients tend to trust in familiarity. Get a theme going, and you’re sticking with it so that customers know when something belongs to the business. When people view something they’ve seen before, they are usually drawn towards it, that’s why a theme is so important.
Quality is Key
Let’s face it; even a 3-year-old smartphone has a pretty decent camera nowadays, so make sure that content quality is top-notch. Marketing has to be attractive. Editing and checking every published piece of media doesn’t require that much work anymore, and it’s worth it since it makes the business look professional and caring for quality. Good attractive posts mean free Instagram promotion.
People Love Behind-the-Scenes Content
When a business brings behind-the-scenes content, it shows a side that customers are not used to seeing. This may sound negative, but on the other hand, it’s quite useful. In such a way, they don’t look like a corporate machine. Instead, they seem like regular people working hard, which creates empathy and makes customers feel related.
Check That Things are Available to Buy
Instagram promotions are a good start, but if clients see the products and can’t buy them, well, it doesn’t make much sense. Instagram has monetization tools that automatically add links to the profile’s bio to get the products straight from the company’s website. It allows potential customers to buy what they see quickly, saving them time, and increasing sales. Links can’t be added to posts.
Work on a Creative Trademark
A perfect way to stand out on IG, or any social media for that matter, is creativity. Having content that goes well with the brand is the path to creating a theme and trying to feature other things. Don’t just upload a picture of the product, turn it into a character in the play, being a companion, playing a role in an adventure. This is great when uploading entertaining content and giving people ideas on how they can use the products and why they may want them.
Giveaways Make Followers Feel Appreciated
Everyone knows that giving some free stuff doesn’t hurt a company in the long run. But it makes the follower base feel better and brings a positive image. All of them are important to any enterprise on Instagram, and giveaways are a great way to thank them. They also work wonders for new followers since everyone loves gifts, so it’s key to promote an IG account. This means that while they may look like a potential waste of money, they work as investments, drawing more potential customers, and everyone feels appreciated.
Keep Content Coming
When people follow someone and view content daily, they tend to get used to it and like it. However, if someone suddenly sees a post from a profile that they followed a month ago and it’s the first time they see anything, they may unfollow. This is because viewers prefer constant updates and posts, and they don’t like to follow inactive accounts. Maybe daily posts are too much but don’t become a stranger. Try to keep regular content coming so that followers don’t feel abandoned.
Find What’s Trending and Use It
Trending topics in social media are popular, that’s why they are called that way. Try to use this for the company’s advantage, but remember to keep a cool head. It’s okay to joke around when there’s a new meme that became viral or a funny video, but stay sensitive. Human rights movements and such are the best options as long as companies know their place when it comes to it. Regarding this matter, don’t over-do it, so that viewers don’t start believing that you’re trying to profit on such topics.
Keep Hashtags in Line
This is an Instagram 101, hashtags. Keep them as tidy as possible and apply the appropriate ones for the content. It may sound kind of obvious, but people use hashtags to look for content they want. Therefore, if they are well done, those who want to see that content will find it.
Use Additional Platforms
If an IG account truly wants to extend its reach, why would they stay in one platform alone? Expanding to other places is smart and helps to grow, but remember to keep the content on all of them. Don’t publish something on Instagram and then forget to put it on Facebook, or followers may resent it. The most popular are YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and sometimes LinkedIn.
Content for the People
This tip is also about the image of being a corporate machine. Get away from that image, show content that features people with the products, not vice versa. Remember that regular human beings are following, not other companies, and the product is for them.
Tags Work Out Well
Tagging is another method of promoting content, since users may look for specific places, brands, or even profiles. Therefore, find something that has to do with the published content and tag it, maybe an influencer appears, or the picture was taken at a landmark, use that.
Make Sure They See It in Action
Looking at a beautiful studio-level picture of a product is nice and everything, but watching it work is next-level since viewers know what to expect. Showcase the product and make it attractive.
Show Off Milestones
Milestones are a big deal for anyone, even companies. There’s nothing wrong with sharing them in social media with a big smiley face on everyone involved. This makes followers feel like they are a part of those big achievements and bring them closer to the brand.
More Reach With Influencers
Influencers have that name for a reason. They influence their followers. Making a deal with a social figure is a reliable method to get more brand awareness. Maybe ask them to try out the product and share their experience on their profile and give them the product for free, or whatever deal may work for both.
Optimized for Promotion
If the user wants to be seen, it is better to be ready for the attention. Ensuring that everything looks professional and tidy is essential so that when new people come in, they like what they see and follow the profile. First impressions matter, make sure they are as perfect as they can be.
Using Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories are one of the platform’s greatest successes. This feature is used by millions every day, and companies should use them as well. Using stories to feature customer-made or behind-the-scenes content is perfect since it will feel more “organic” or natural. It’s highly recommended to use this to promote an Instagram account.
Your Link as a Target
Trying to sell a product too hard is no good. This means that not everyone wants to see that link everywhere, since it will feel like a business is trying to force customers to buy, instead of a person showing something out.
Competition is Good, Collaboration is Great
If another business has something that compliments any products offered by the user, it’s not bad to collaborate with them to create competitions. This way, people may get more involved with the businesses and their products, while also making them feel great if they win a prize.
Don’t be Closed, Try Things Out
Trying new stuff is not a bad idea, since social media keeps changing every second, it’s nice to try and get something new done. Just keep trying and see what works, and don’t get stuck with only one thing. Innovation is all about trying to reach new places, so don’t get stuck.
Speak Out Loud
When a business is truly passionate about their field, it shows. It’s an excellent method of marketing. Speaking out and being as public as possible with things related to the business is great. It shows confidence, which is contagious, making followers feel like they can trust the user when it comes to that area of expertise.
Facebook Groups and How They Can Help
Facebook groups are huge social media communities that revolve around a single topic. This means that a company that offers something that may be attractive to a member of that community can find many potential customers inside that group. Finding these groups and becoming involved with them can be crucial when trying to increase reach.
Paid Campaigns Are Investments
Investing money in a business is a must, but it has to be done intelligently. A paid campaign or promotion is a perfect way to get engagement and find potential followers or even buyers. Just remember that a poorly run campaign can be harmful and just a waste of money, so make sure to do due diligence and be ready to get the most “bang for your buck”. If done correctly, it will be the same as a free Instagram promotion.
FAQ
How Much Does It Cost to Promote on Instagram?
The Instagram promotions system works in a “Cost-Per-Mille” structure. This means that the user pays based on how many views it gets. The cost is charged for every 1000 views. That is why the user chooses a budget for the promotion.
However, time is another factor, and Instagram will charge for views instead of clicks. That’s why in this article, there’s so much emphasis on having well-designed content that will attract people and make them click it. If 1,000 individuals see the post, but only 10 clicks it, instead of a 100, it’s not a good investment.
Does Paid Promotion on Instagram Work?
Yes, it does. However, it’s not as easy as simply paying for it and expecting it to work flawlessly. Content is important, making something that draws attention is key, and having a profile that makes viewers stay is also crucial. Some often think that by paying for ads and promotions, they will automatically have a lot of follows, but that’s false. Promoting lousy content won’t work, doesn’t matter how much is paid.
Is It Worth Paying for Promotion on Instagram?
Like all investments, it’s worth it depending on the outcome. If the amount of exposure obtained from the promotion is huge, well, it will pay for itself. Making quality content will increase success chances, but make sure that many people see the IG profile. First impressions matter too much.
Let’s Wrap It Up
Knowing how to promote on Instagram can be key to getting more followers and increasing business exposure. However, when done incorrectly, it can represent a waste of money.
Making quality content, knowing the target audience, and being creative is the key to success in the jungle that is modern social media.
How was your experience of promoting content on Instagram in 2023? Leave a comment below!
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