3 ways to get more out of Instagram

In my last post about Instagram, we looked at a few case studies of exceptional Instagram use:

• Oracle uses Instagram to build community behind their brand. They showcase events they attend, volunteer opportunities and more to give their business a personal voice.
• General Electric posts about their research to pique interest in the company.
• Oreo posts mostly about their brand and products (which is not a best practice) but keeps a strong following by incorporating tips and recipes.

Today, we’re going to dig into these companies’ strategies even more - to discover the real reasons for their phenomenal Instagram success. Then, we’ll discuss how you can employ their common strategies to get the most brand interaction on Instagram.

What do Oracle, GE and Oreo have in common?

At first glance, it seems like these Instagram pages don’t have all that much in common. Oracle features mostly images of the the company’s events, GE’s entire feed is about their research and innovation, Oreo shares product photos and recipes. At first glance, even I was looking at these pages thinking, “huh?”

But there are a few commonalities that make these pages some of the more successful business uses of Instagram:

1. They use hashtags. Yes - this one is kind of a no-brainer. But the key on Instagram isn’t just to slap a few hashtags on your post, it’s to use the right kind and the right number of hashtags.

Kind: The best way I can think to describe the kind of hashtags to use is K.I.S.S. Keep it super simple (or, keep it simple, stupid, if you prefer that version). Tag your photos with either branded hashtags that are coined by your business (ex: #GEInstaWalk), or terms that others are searching for (ex: #GivingTuesday).

Number: If you look around the page, you’ll notice that most of their posts use 3-5 hashtags to categorize the post. This is totally appropriate for Instagram. I beg you: please, please, please do not tag your photo 15 times. There’s truly no better way to lose your audience than to overwhelm them with hashtags.

2. They’re engaging. No, they’re really engaging. I was recently reading about the “Facebook test.” Basically, this means that people want to be viewed as cool, witty, or clever on their personal Facebook pages, so they only post photos, links or statuses that portray them in that light. Use the Facebook test on Instagram. Is your content witty or informative? Does it make people say, “cool!” or “aww” or something of the like? If not, don’t post.

3. They offer followers deeper brand insight. This theme shines through on all three of the pages we’re examining today. Your followers should feel like they’re part of a secret, VIP club, where you let them peek behind the curtain. GE posts behind-the-scenes research photos that followers would otherwise never see - so take a page from their book. Are your products handmade? Post a photo of you making them. Humanize your brand through photos that are more personal than what you post on, say, LinkedIn.

Have you found success marketing your brand on Instagram? I’d love to hear more. Leave a comment or shoot me a note on www.jackiesteinmetz.com.