When it comes to getting awareness on social media, the possibilities are almost limitless. Instagram thrives as a platform where pictures and culture meet, and on May 2016, its taking its advertising program beyond by announcing its very own business profile and tools.
Many companies and influencers are using Instagram to reach more people. The photo-sharing platform by Kevin Systrom is nonetheless one of the fastest growing social media, and with that influence it's trying to make its users easier to manage their strategy.
And that is by using tools as a way for them to reach targeted customers. The new Instagram Business Tools enable businesses to find and track customers' engagement easier.
The announcement of the new tools come with the following:
Business Profiles
Accounts that are recognized as businesses will receive tools to help them measure engagement and promote their posts. This is a free feature for businesses where they can choose how they want their customers to get in touch with them. The choices are: call, text or email. With a tap of the contact button, customers can connect with the business as well as get directions.
Instagram accounts that have their own business profiles are also having the ability to access Insights and the ability to use Promote.
Insights
The tool allow business accounts to see their followers and post performances based on time of day. This will enable them to figure out the best strategy to publish something.
The Insight tools give businesses actionable information about their followers and which posts resonate better than others. This will give businesses the ability to learn more about the behavior and demographics of their audience in order to create more relevant and timely posts.
The tools can be accessed within Instagram's mobile app.
Promote
Business accounts will also have the ability to promote posts straight within Instagram's app. For example, a well-performing post can be turned into an advertisement, helping businesses to connect and get even more customers.
Users just need to select a post they've shared, and add a button to encourage people to take actions. With the tool, users can select their target audience, or allow Instagram to suggest the targeting for them. After the setting is set, the post will be promoted as an ad for any length of time the user chooses.
A Lot Like Facebook
With the new tools, Instagram is giving its business users the ability to reach, engage and track users with ease. Instagram is having more than 200,000 companies using its platform to promote their businesses, and it's already predicted and inevitable that its parent Facebook will introduce the tools to help these users. After all, this is where the money comes from.
And because Instagram is Facebook's and Instagram has been familiarizing itself with Facebook's way of delivering ads, the tools are made to be similar to Facebook's own insights tools which displays reach and impressions alongside fan growth rates. The social giant assumes that most businesses owners would have owned both Facebook and Instagram, and making the tools to look and feel similar, users will familiarize themselves pretty quickly.
Instagram's business profile and tools is rolling out in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand as its initial introduction. For users worldwide, the company promises a soon global rollout before 2016 ends.