Are you using Instagram for your business? Are you wondering how it would fit into your social media strategy? When I saw the headline of a recent Mashable article “Instagram Now Has More Daily Active Users on Mobile Than Twitter”, I thought it might be a good idea to learn more about this photo site.
As I’m learning more about how to use Instagram, I’ll share any tips I pick up along the way (and I apologize in advance for the cat pictures I’ll be uploading – my 3 cats make such interesting test subjects…)
Cali – nap time interrupted
If your business sells products or relies heavily on “visual” branding, using Instagram in your marketing plan may make sense right away. But service-based businesses may want to consider using Instagram too, to show a more personal side of the company, offer behind-the-scenes shots of the office or provide a quick way to showcase highlights at live events.
Here are a few tips on using Instagram and connecting it to your Facebook Fan Page:
Tip #1 – When setting up an Instagram account, choose a username that matches your Twitter username to make it easier for others to find/follow you.
Tip #2 – Use Hashtags (it’s common to see at least 3 or more with each photo) to “tag” your images: based on keyword, topic, location and more.
Tip #3 – Link your Instagram account to your Facebook Fan Page. There are several different ways to do this. Here are the ones I am experimenting with – feel free to share others.
- Use Hootsuite – if you are using this social media dashboard, you can add your Instagram profile and then share photos to any other accounts loaded into Hootsuite (Facebook, Twitter, Google+)
- Add a Tab on your Fan Page with the InstaTab App – a quick and easy set-up allows you to share your Instagram shots on your Facebook Page.
- Web dashboards – manage your Instagram account with one (or both):
Webstagram: in addition to standard management features, allows you to put a gallery of your pictures on your blog/website, create a “follow me” button to place on your sites, search for pictures on Instagram through SearchStagram
Statigram: in addition to standard management features, allows you to place an Instagram feed on your Facebook Fan Page (creates a new Tab), gives you a public URL so non-Instagram users can follow your Instagram account (i.e. http://statigr.am/feed/yourusername ), creates “follow me” buttons for your sites, offers an RSS feed option and lets you create a Facebook Profile Cover collage of your latest 50 shots.
You may want to test both dashboards like I am, to figure out which one works best for you.
The following articles are great resources as you are learning how to use Instagram for business. Share any of your tips for using the site in the comments below or on our Facebook Page.
Instagram Now Has More Daily Active Users onMobileThan Twitter [Report]
About Terry League