We live in a changing society, constantly evolving, due, among other factors, to new technologies. One day you can have 5 million followers and the next day you can be “canceled” by a bunch of people that you have probably never even met. And it’s not just the users, as social networks themselves are also suffering the wrath of the consumer: Snapchat has plummeted, Facebook is holding its own but only for an aging niche audience, Instagram has grown a lot recently, though only with the permission of TikTok.
So how can we stay on top of social networks like Instagram and stay relevant to our users? Here are some of our top tips to really make the most of platforms like Instagram.
The Audiovisual Format
The first thing to know about Instagram is that audiovisual content is king, in particular reels, Instagram’s new format for uploading short ‘Tiktok like’ videos. The TikTok application has gained a lot of traction in the last two years as you can monetise your videos and you don’t need to have many followers for them to have thousands of views. That’s why Instagram has also wanted to adapt to this trend and has created a unique section next to the “Explore page” where you can upload short videos with dances, cooking tips, fashion, tips, stories, etc.
Instagram Live
Instagram Live allows you to have a direct conversation with your followers. In this aspect, There are plenty of influencers and brands who are already doing live shows with collaborators and therefore increasing their visibility among Instagram’s users.
Podcasts
That’s right, podcasts are back in fashion. Many users set aside a section of their Instagram for podcasts or create entire accounts dedicated to audio content. There is a huge range of audio content and the good thing is that you can link it to Spotify (the most popular music platform), meaning that you can achieve monetisation much easier depending on the amount of listeners you attract.
More “Natural” Content
Normality and ordinariness is what attracts people on Instagram, forget trying to be a celebrity and focus on being ourselves. People want to identify with people, not idolise them. Therefore, it’s important to be more natural and to use our intuition when we post.
Say “Goodbye” to Editing
As we mentioned in the previous tip, naturalness is in fashion, which is why it is now a trend to spend less time editing our posts as this gives a touch of authenticity to each post. Experts call this the “no-edit edit” and it all came about through Instagram’s previous update which removed the ability to be able to see users who had liked posts. This means that users have to work a little harder on the composition of their posts, playing with lighting, perspectives and locations.
Captions are Important
Nobody talks about the captions under Instagram posts, which is a shame as these are important, and the longer the better. Captions produce greater engagement among brands and users meaning that they will spend more time looking at your posts. The average caption is only around 450 characters,or between 65 and 67 words.
Influencers or influencer marketing
On Instagram, influencers are essential for a brand’s success on the platform. At the end of the day, an influencer is an opinion leader who will have a big influence on their followers. Using influencers will ultimately help our brand reach a larger number of people.
But we must bear in mind that not just any influencer will do. Whichever influencer you use should share the same values as your brand, otherwise the message will be lost. Followers also count, sometimes it is better to find a “nanoinfluencer” or “microinfluencer” with no more than 100,000 followers so that they can transmit our brand message in a simple, more authentic way.
Instagram Shopping
This tool has been around since March 2018 and has evolved over time. With Instagram shopping you are are able to tag your product, put a price on it and the user can even buy it without leaving the app.
To take advantage of Instagram Shopping, you must create a company profile and link it to your Facebook company page and create a product catalog.
Now that you’ve mastered Instagram, how about trying Facebook? Check out our post on Tips to improve your Facebook page.