Why Sponsored Instagram Posts Are The Best Way To Reach New Users Looking For Businesses Like Yours!
Lead generation on Instagram is not easy and requires planning, strategy, creativity and repetition.
While traditional methods of building your Instagram business work magically, they don’t tend to reach as many users as a solid sponsored post.
When Facebook started, organic reach was simple. With little competition and emerging technologies seeking more and more users, it was actually quite easy to post something on Facebook. If configured correctly, you will reach new users who are not familiar with your business.
Then once you had a large enough user base your organic reach was down and eventually it became almost mandatory to pay to push a post in order to reach new users.
Instagram has yet to get into a pay-per-play model, but that doesn’t mean there’s no serious value in paying to send a post to new users (called “Promotion” on Instagram).
Which one is right for your business: Pinterest or Instagram? Find out here: Pinterest or Instagram. Which is better to develop your business online?
So what does promoting a post entail, and how can you get it right so that it reaches the right people for your business? Here are 3 strategies to follow:
1. Create a business profile
The first step is to convert your profile into a business profile.
Just tap on the sun symbol (iOS) or three dots (Android) depending on your device.
Now tap on “Switch to company profile”. You will also need to make sure your account is set to Public.
Enter the required information and tap “Done”. It is easy!
* note * if you haven’t already done so, it’s important to be added as an admin to the associated Facebook page
2. Strategies
Strategy is the key to getting the most out of your post promotion. It’s worth getting the post you’re promoting ready before you start.
The reason is that you can make decisions not only about what you post and to whom it will be promoted, but also where they will see it.
With Instagram, your posts will appear in both the stories sections and the news sections of a user’s account. If you want to opt out of having your post appear in stories, you will need to use Facebook’s ad manager.
Both are viable options, but the administrator interface has many more options than those offered by Instagram natively, so if you have administrator privileges on the associated Facebook account and it is already connected, then it is advisable to use the system more strong.
If you would like help with this, please contact us and one of our social media experts will be happy to assist you.
Now think about the end user and how they will see your post. If you’ve already defined your ideal customer, you should be able to see competing brands. Take a look at the most popular ones and see what has worked best for them.
This can give you a real idea of what will be most effective for your own posts.
Once you’ve settled on your creativity and know who it’s designed for, it’s time to promote it.
3. Post promotion
Depending on your choice of promoting via Instagram or via the Facebook Ads Manager, you will have many options here.
Post your creativity first. By the way, if you haven’t already reviewed our guide to building your Instagram business, you should. This will ensure that your post is optimized for performance before you even start paying.
Now go back to your post and look at the bottom right and where it says “Promote”, just tap.
Once you’ve tapped it, you’ll see several options for who you want to reach, how long your promoted post will be running, and how much you’re willing to pay to reach them.
The options may be limited for who you can contact, so make a note of who you have tried to contact the publication with and next time you can try different parameters to see if they are more effective.
It’s never as easy as typing in what you want and hitting Done. Look for associated interests that your ideal customer will have or broad categories that you are in.
If you are promoting through Facebook Ads, you will need to log into your Facebook profile associated with the business and select “Ads Manager”.
You will need to navigate to the ad level for this.
The process through Ads Manager is much more complicated but you have many more options. You’ll select the creative by clicking “Use Existing Post.” You will then be able to select the associated Instagram account and choose your post from there.
Your options here for orientation are much better.
This method is an intermediate level exercise, so if you are new to using social media for your business or just don’t find the interface intuitive enough, give us a call. This process shouldn’t take long, so if you run into any issues, ask us to do the heavy lifting for you.
If you’ve managed to find your way through the settings and set it up correctly, just choose the budget and duration and you’re good to go.
We fully understand the complexities of doing everything right. It is highly recommended to try it with a probationary position and a small budget if you plan to tackle it yourself.
Instagram has more than 10 million monthly active users and continues to grow. The interface may change without notice and is always being refined to provide even better reach for promoted posts, so don’t treat it lightly.
Think of it as if you were running a traditional ad.
With a magazine ad, thousands of people may see your creativity and this is the same as with your IG profile. This is the external representation of your business, so treat this part like any aspect of your business: like a professional.
