In a world where a strong online presence is vital for business, it is important to stay ahead in the social media game. India is placed second for having the highest number of audiences on Instagram. Indians hold about 120 million accounts. According to a study, Instagram users spend 53 minutes on the app an average in a day. So, one can imagine the humongous impact when a brand advertises on Instagram.
There are nearly two million business accounts on Instagram and 90 per cent of the average users follow at least one business social handle. The study also highlighted that Instagram users are not tired of brand presence. The potential of Instagram has increased massively over the years and is only set to grow stronger. However, Instagram is also known for its constant updates and ever-changing algorithm. Here we have some of the new ways with which you can build a community on Instagram.
Reels
Reels are the most valued feature of Instagram as of now. The new Instagram algorithm gives better reach through reels than longer videos such as IGTV or one-minute videos. These videos are better for brands looking to post simpl content on light subjects. The duration of each reel is 30 seconds, and so they have become a great advertising technique for brands to lure people into their profile. If your brand’s account is new on Instagram, it is recommended to make use of this feature.
Insights
Insights are analytics provided by Instagram for free. They are very beneficial to see if your content is performing well. Simply click on the insights option on your homepage, and select from various options that help you analyse the overview of your content and page’s performance. You can see how many accounts you have reached, how your audience has interacted with you and check your follower growth. If you deep-dive into the insights, you get information such as the time your audience is most active, the demographics such as age, sex, and place.
These insights can be checked for all types of content except for the newest feature — Reels. You can click the “view insights” options on your photo/video and check for the number of likes, comments, shares, and saves. Apart from that, you can also find out how many accounts it has reached, how many profiles visits it has caused, and how many of the reached accounts are following your brand. These useful insights can help your brand analyse its online presence and chart out a growth plan.
Interactive tools
Instagram has many engaging features for your audience to interact with you. The first way they can interact is through personal messages or direct messages. The audience can also reply to your stories that you can put up on your page for 24 hours. Other interesting and fun ways is to use features like polls, quiz, DM and questions on your story. All of these features have proved to help in engagement as Instagram algorithm also takes audience engagement into account. You can check out this brand and their Instagram handle or your reference. These features are excellent for brand awareness and help in understanding your audience better cost-free. Users trust business accounts that reply to their queries and listen to them. Through these features, you can understand the needs of your audience.
Paid promotions
Instagram offers paid promotions. Since Instagram’s algorithm is ever-changing, investing in paid promotions can help your brand trickle into various accounts of your target group. Instagram also gives insights on which is the topmost performing upload and recommends you to promote that particular content. Paid promotions also offer insights and it is guaranteed to bring you more followers.
In a nutshell, Instagram is constantly advancing itself to cater to its audience. It is important to be up-to-date with the latest features and updates for you to establish your brand as a valuable page. Even though many brands have good ideas for content, they are unaware of the changes made by the platform. It is beneficial to read up and be tech savvy about any new updates. Experiment with the new features and find out which is helping your brand the most. Be consistent, and surely with time, you will gain traction to be able to build a community.