In South Africa alone, as of July 2021, there are 6.03 million Instagram users. This number has grown from 4.89 million in July 2020. This means that in a year there has been a user increase of more than a million.
With so many potential customers roaming the app hourly, daily, and weekly, it is no wonder that Instagram has become essential in every business’s marketing strategy.
Instagram has evolved into such a hotspot for sales and product marketing that the app itself has started to gear itself towards selling. On 30 June 2021, Adam Mosseri (the head of Instagram) announced on IGTV that the app is going to be focussing on creators, video, messaging, and shopping. This bodes well for businesses trying to sell and promote their products and services on the app.
Instagram Marketing Strategy for a Small Business
There are multiple benefits that Instagram can offer a small business:
- The Shopping Feature: Instagram has a shopping option, and can encourage prospective buyers to make an impulse buy. The presence of the “sell button” makes purchasing on the app easy and convenient. Many businesses have experienced an increase in sales due to this feature.
- Social Proof: people are more likely to buy a product or service if a friend has recommended it to them. This is known as ‘social proof’. In the age of Instagram, influencers have the same impact on users when they recommend or advertise a product on their page. This effect also takes place when friends post about a product. Thus, brands can build trust through Instagram.
- Communication: every brand has or should have its ideal customer in mind when discussing, planning, and executing social media marketing. Instagram makes it easier to connect and directly communicate with your ideal customer.
An Instagram Marketing Strategy: Why You Should Use One
Instagram isn’t just about posting a photo of your products and expecting an immediate sale. There is a lot that goes into formulating and executing a strategy that will attract your target audience, convince them that your product is worth buying, and entice a sale. Stories, highlights, reels, IGTV (Instagram TV), Instagram live, the Instagram shop, and the stock standard post are all avenues that businesses need to capitalise on to ensure they reach their target audience while building their social presence. On top of that, hashtags, posting times, and an array of other strategic actions can help boost your brand’s profile.
This can be overwhelming for a business owner who isn’t familiar with the ins and outs and can often seem off-putting. This results in the loss of a fantastic opportunity to grow the brand. At Starbright (a professional social media marketing agency in South Africa) , we offer social media marketing as well as social media training. Contact our team to ensure your business doesn’t get left behind in the marketing game!