Why Instagram Sponsored Posts are the best way to reach new users looking for businesses like yours!
Instagram lead generation is not simple and requires planning, strategy, creativity, and repetition.
While the traditional methods of building your business on Instagram 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 set up correctly, you will reach new users who are not familiar with your business.
Then, once you had a large enough user base, organic reach was limited, and eventually it became almost mandatory to pay to boost a post to reach new users.
Instagram has yet to enter a pay-to-play model, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t serious value in paying to send a post to new users (called “Promotion” on Instagram).
Which is right for your business: Pinterest or Instagram? Find out here: Pinterest or Instagram. Which one is better for building your online business?
So what goes into promoting a post, and how can you do it right so 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 to a business profile.
Just tap on the sun symbol (iOS) or the three dots (Android) depending on your device.
Now tap “Switch to business profile”. You will need to make sure that your account is also set to Public.
Enter the required information and press “Done”. It is easy!
*note* if you haven’t already, it’s important to be added as an admin to the associated facebook page
2. Strategize
Strategy is the key to making the most of promotional posts. It pays to have the post you are promoting ready before you start.
The reason is that you can choose not only what you post and who you promote it to, but also where they see it.
With Instagram, your posts will appear in both the stories and news feeds of a user’s account. If you want to choose not to have your post appear in stories, you’ll need to use the Facebook Ads Manager.
Both are viable options, but the admin interface has many more options than Instagram natively offers, so if you have admin privileges on the associated Facebook account and are already logged in, then using the more robust system is recommended. .
If you need help with this, get in touch and one of our social media experts will be happy to help.
Now think about the end user and how they will see your post. If you have already defined your ideal customer, you should be able to see the brands of the competition. Explore 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 decided on your creative and know who it’s designed for, it’s time to promote it.
3.Post-Promotion
Depending on your choice of promotion through Instagram or through Facebook Ads Manager, you will have many options here.
Publish your creative first. By the way, if you haven’t already checked out our guide to building your business on Instagram, you should. This will ensure that your post is optimized for performance even before you start paying.
Now go back to your post and look at the bottom right and where it says “Promote” just tap on it.
Once you’ve tapped on it, you’ll see several options for who you want to reach, how long you’ll run your boosted post, and how much you’re willing to pay to reach them.
Options may be limited for the people you can reach, so make a note of who you’ve been trying to reach with the post and next time you can try different parameters to see if they will be more effective.
It’s never as easy as typing what you want and tapping Done. Look for the associated interests your ideal customer will have or the broad categories they fall into.
If you’re promoting through Facebook Ads, you’ll need to log into your Facebook profile associated with your business and select “Ads Manager.”
You will need to navigate to the Announcement 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 guidance are much better.
This method is an intermediate level exercise, so if you’re 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’re having a hard time let us do the heavy lifting for you.
If you’ve managed to find your way through the setup and have it set up correctly, simply choose your budget and duration and you’re all set.
We fully understand the complexities of getting all of this right. Trying it out with a test post and a small budget is highly recommended if you plan on tackling this yourself.
Instagram has over 10 million active monthly users and growing. The interface can change without notice and is always being refined to provide even better scope for boosted posts, so don’t take it lightly.
Think of it as if you were putting up a traditional ad.
With a magazine ad, your creative is likely to be seen by thousands of people and this is the same as with your IG profile. This is the external representation of your business, so treat this part like any other aspect of your business: like a professional.