Say Cha-Ching! It’s Instagram Marketing

Among the social networks competing to be top of the marketing heap, Instagram remains among the foremost photo-sharing sites in the world, and now one of the best marketing sites for businesses in the world.
Maybe you have a Facebook page. Perhaps you’ve cultivated a nice following on Twitter, but your social media presence could always use a boost, right? Right. Instagram marketing, here you come.

Check out these Instagram marketing tips!

Keep a sharp eye on trends
We like to call Instagram Twitter’s more photogenic cousin. The family resemblance doesn’t stop at followers but it also extends to the use of the hashtag (which Facebook has also picked up). For the uninitiated, hashtags act in the same way keywords and blog tags do; they help rank your site or page according to relevance to certain search terms.
Also like Twitter, Instagram has a section indicating which hastags are the most used at a given time and in a given location. Keep an eye on these trends and when you find one that’s relevant to your business, snap a shot and take advantage of the popular search!
Action is awesome!
When it comes to videos and photography, a popular rule of thumb is show, don’t tell.
You might be a very gifted writer and describe your product or service better than anyone ever could, but don’t use that to shy away from the visual aspect of what you do.
If you’re a roofing company, share the stunning birds-eye views with your followers (scenery photos are huge on Instagram). If you own a jewelry shop, have some friends or employees model your product. If you have created your own cosmetics line, create a tutorial or use before and after shots to show off your product in action!
Speaking of Action…
What’s an Instagram marketing post without a call to action?
Rather than giving your step-by-step instructions, I’ll turn to a post Nordstrom made sometime last year. The picture is of a pair of fine leather boots on a model in a scenic street. The caption said for every 10,000 likes the picture received, Nordstrom would lower the price by 10 percent.
You don’t by any means have to limit yourself to discounts when calling customers to action through Instagram. You could hold a contest in which customers showcase your product for you (for example, Instagram you wearing our shirt, win a prize!), you could hold an ad creation contest and much, much more. Don’t be afraid to experiment!