Guest post by Martin Ochwat
In the last decade, various platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have incredibly grown their user base. Social media is becoming the primary channel for many ecommerce stores to generate sales.
Recently, Instagram announced that they have more than 1 billion monthly active users. Nearly, 500 million users log onto the platform every day. The growth demonstrates the attention that social media marketing is getting today.
Internet research shows that 56% of Instagram users reported purchasing products which they saw in various posts.
Looking at this data, the question arises whether brands need a dedicated marketing plan to increase sales specifically on Instagram.
If you’re aware of the trends in ecommerce marketing, you must have heard about Instagram’s endless algorithm changes. These changes have resulted in less visibility for organic posts.
Top showing posts usually have highly engaging and relevant content.
A lot of the platform’s recent focus has been on improving the platform to help people buy numerous products. This helps brands to generate more revenue and focus more time and money on Instagram.
When it comes to developing new ecommerce strategies to increase revenue, there are a few ways you can do this.
1. Stand Out by Engaging with your Audience
Most social media users have a limited attention span. Every time they browse a product on their feed, something new is shown to them. In order to stand out, brands need to connect with their audience.
To help with this, you need to apply strategies that are likely to keep your customers engaged. These include:
- Creating content specifically for your followers.
- Scheduling several days’ worth of content ahead of time.
- Making use of tools.
- Allocating time to engage with your followers’ questions and comments.
2. Take Your Ecommerce Sales to Next Level
Once you start providing engaging content on Instagram, the next challenge is to deliver a great experience when visitors come to your website. In 2019, customers’ expectations are very high. Even giants such as Amazon are facing challenges of keeping customers happy.
You should focus on providing a great user experience. This usually includes reducing the number of steps to get a conversion from social media visitors on your website. For example, you can tag products on your Instagram page. If a user clicks on the item, they can get directed to that specific product on your website. From there, the product page on your website should be easy to navigate and make a purchase.
In another survey, it is seen that users are two times more likely to make purchases on their mobile phone than on desktop. Use this to your advantage, and make sure your site is optimized for mobile visitors. When trying to get visitors from Instagram, also consider the following.
- Make sure to use updated images of your product.
- Highlight special offers and promotions.
- Make your website easy to navigate for social media visitors.
- Share stories of your product or brand to connect with your audience.
3. Elevate Your Sales With Contests and User-Generated Content
On Instagram, it’s likely you have different groups of people following you. One strategy is to segment your followers and target each group of users with specific content. You can generate content focusing on solving specific customer needs. By showing the right content to the right people at the right time, you greatly increase your chances of making a sale.
In addition, focus on creating content that is generally known to perform well.
Here are three types of posts that resonate with most users:
- Behind the scenes footage of your company and product
- User-generated content that’s posted by your users.
- Running promotional offers and giveaways.
Instagram’s Benefits for Ecommerce Stores
- The platform allows you to showcase high-quality images of products
- It gives consumers easy mobile access to online shopping
- Instagram helps you attract a large audience, expand your reach, improve brand positioning, and build engagement.
- The above collectively help users in their buyer journey, resulting in more revenue your business.
Today, the latest trends in the ecommerce marketing depict that brands are no longer relying on Facebook strategy alone to promote their products and services. They’re also integrating Instagram into their social media marketing campaigns to achieve their business and marketing goals.
Important tips to follow immediately:
- Create a business account instead of a personal account.
- Create visually appealing photos using photo-editing software.
- Highlight positive reviews for your products
- Run several crazy contests for common products.
- If you are a startup, tie-up with big brands.
Conclusion
The best part about Instagram marketing is that it can be used by almost any brand. Many online shoppers today visit Instagram. So, if you are an ecommerce store owner that hasn’t used Instagram yet, we suggest you start now! By following the above strategies, you are sure to generate more followers and sales within the next 14 days!
