Using Instagram for business is a growing endeavor in the business world now that so many businesses realize the power of using images for marketing. However, with much more astuteness to over-promoting a business in the online world, the use of images pertaining to your business have to be leveraged on Instagram. But how can you do that when you want to be as active as possible on your account? Plus, how can you make your business photos unique enough so they create instant recognition of your brand?
Finding the Balance to Your Instagram Photos
Most online advice says to apply an 80/20 rule to business photos on Instagram. That might surprise you to learn that only 20% of your photos should be directly related to your business. Those photos should frequently include images of your employees and even yourself going about your work to create that sense of personalization customers today want.
Ultimately, posting nothing but photos of your business might come off as being blatantly self promotional due to Instagram working no different than other social media. When promoting yourself on social media, it has to be a shared experience if you want others to return the favor of visiting your own website.
So what other photos should you post on Instagram if the other 80% have to be something else?
Finding Photos That Relate to Your Business
The best thing to do is network with similar businesses or with people who somehow connect with you on Instagram. Using hashtags, you can find these people and create a web of friendships that can mean sharing their photos as well as your own. This kind of symbiotic networking helps you gain even more people viewing your page. Sharing other photos will also be reciprocated and gives you free promotion.
Before you partake in the 80/20 rule, though, think about how you can differentiate your own photos from the others you share. You can do that experimenting with the different photo filters Instagram provides.
Using Filters to Create Your Visual Brand
The use of filters on Instagram allows for endless different combinations of styles that can help you create a visual brand. That’s especially important so people can immediately recognize your photos when they see them posted. It also helps show them that all the pictures you’re posting aren’t all about your own business. They’ll know that when you post other pictures with differing styles, you’re making a concerted effort to create a balance.
Be sure to think clearly, though, and make those filters fit the style of your business. A distinctive visual style that ties in with your business theme is one of the true advantages to using Instagram while also creating shared experiences.
You’ll also want to tie your Instagram account in with your website. Here at Lucid Crew , we can design a website for you with a style all your own. That’s right, you won’t have to endure copycat designs from us. We’ll create exactly what you want while incorporating links and elements that link people directly to your Instagram account and other social media pages.
Contact us so we can meet with you about what kind of web design you have in mind. As we create it, we’ll make sure your website is optimized for the best possible search engine placement.
