Why use Instagram when there’s a perfectly good Facebook for your photos, videos, and stories? They’re even owned by the same people for crying out loud!
Ever hear someone utter a variation of that argument? We have. And every time it happens, there are several reasons that come to mind for our endorsement of Facebook’s little brother.
In the following article, we’ll be going into a bit more detail about what these reasons are. There are eight altogether. Let’s start posting!
1. Connect with More Than a Billion Users
One fact that’s made the question of why use Instagram for business a bit of a no-brainer is this. In June 2018, the photo-sharing platform passed the 1 billion mark for the number of monthly active users.
That’s up from previous 2015 estimates of 800 million by the year 2019. Instagram is outperforming expectations thanks to enthusiastic engagement. In other words, many of the people who turn to Instagram are eager to connect with cool brands.
Got one? It won’t be hard to find an audience. Of course, monetizing that audience may be another story, but one we’re sure you can handle!
2. Easy Polling to Identify User Preferences
When pondering the question why is Instagram good for business, consider the access it gives you to user insights. The “Stories” feature of IG allows you to easily poll users on what they think about a particular topic, product, or service.
The market research you derive from polling can easily be incorporated into your next product update or service package. Just make sure you’re promoting your poll effectively through Instagram and other social networks.
3. Easier to Team with Influencers
Still wondering why Instagram for business? Look no further than the Influencers! These generally are men and women who have achieved significant popularity on the platform.
Some are Instagram exclusives. Some likely got famous in other venues but seem to have an affinity for Instagram over the other social networks. Either way, they present a tremendous opportunity to be seen, understood, and to educate your target market.
Influencers also can help boost the effectiveness of your paid marketing efforts as can digital marketing strategists with an Instagram focus. Famoid is one of several currently on the market.
4. Emphasis on Mobile Users
One of the earliest and best answers to the question of why use Instagram for marketing was its level of mobile-friendliness. It can seem a little off-putting at first, especially if you grew up doing most of your big-time computing through a desktop or laptop.
But Instagram forces you to make posts through a mobile platform. And it’s better for it!
That’s because more people access the Internet through a mobile device than ever before. In fact, 2018 was the year mobile became more used than desktop.
Of course, the biggest complaints you’ll hear about Instagram is you have to use a phone. And it only allows 60-second video uploads (currently).
But considering the fast pace of the Internet, it really fits more into a 21st Century way of life. And you can expand your functionality through the Stories feature.
5. Direct Sales Friendliness
Much of the Instagram space is about lifestyle branding. Emphasis on lifestyle.
People here are open to brands that leave a mark. They want to embrace their inner consumer in a more beneficial way. They want it to be useful.
Instagram’s ability to draw in ready and willing buyers, as well as how it allows direct sales through the platform, makes it any business’s dream come true for using social media. And considering the platform’s strong analytics, it’s easy to see on a micro level what resonates and what doesn’t.
6. Focuses on Visual Storytelling
If you run a flower company or another business that focuses heavily on visuals, then you probably don’t need to be convinced of Instagram’s effectiveness. But many find it tough to think of their brand in terms of visual storytelling.
What is visual storytelling as it relates to Instagram? In simple terms, it’s about selling the benefit, not the feature.
People need to see how the product or service you offer will impact their lives for the better. Visual depictions of this can say much more about your brand’s good than words ever could.
But Instagram also gives you the best of both worlds. You can use your words to help sell the visual. And while you should probably keep it short, you’re not hamstrung in the same way that a platform like Twitter is.
7. Helps Monitor the Competition
You do you. Why worry about what anyone else says, thinks, or is doing to get ahead? That may make a great personal slogan or lifestyle brand tagline.
However, it’s not how you should be managing the marketing aspects of your business. And it’s not how Instagram was made to be used.
Fortunately, Instagram makes it really easy to connect with your competition through its tailor-made displayed features. You can track pages like yours as well as pages like those of your competitors.
It’s a rabbit hole worth going down. Find a few companies — some better, some worse, some at your same level of development. Take notes on what they’re doing to get engagement and what they’re doing poorly.
Capitalize and build on what works. Avoid what doesn’t. And leave room for your own creativity along the way.
8. Personality and Positivity
Instagram’s charm is that it lacks formality. People seem less offended on IG than they do on Facebook or Twitter. That’s evidenced by the fewer arguments and the lighter sense of humor and self-awareness.
It’s a great place to let your personality show. And it’s somewhere that values positivity. If you want to put your brand’s best foot forward, this is the place to do it.
It Is Not ‘Why Use Instagram’
It’s why would you not? While the brand hasn’t eclipsed Facebook in the number of users, it certainly captures a lot more goodwill and has more room to grow.
So the next time you hear someone ask why use Instagram for business marketing, point them this direction. And for more tips on how to grow your following, check out our previous article on the topic.