So, you do not find Instagram marketing powerful enough to generate leads for your brand?
Think again!
In 2019, Facebook conducted a survey to determine if Instagram plays any role in pushing customers to buy stuff.
Surprisingly, it turned out that 80% of Instagrammers decide whether or not to buy a product or service during brand-led communications.
People love to use Instagram to discover what’s trending (83%), research products (81%), and make their buying decisions.
With such popularity, it gives marketers clear shot opportunities to drive sales in front of their broad global audiences.
So why is lead generation on Instagram important?
The reasons are multifold.
A huge chunk of its content is visual, meaning that Instagram draws people from different countries and languages.
It is almost a complete mobile platform.
However, one of the biggest reasons that remain is people love how picture-driven the social media platform is.
And since people love Instagram so much, it is the perfect place for your brand to be.
But then, you also need to remember that converting followers takes more than just posting pictures and using hashtags.
In this blog, we will explore some effective strategies and give you an idea of what you should be doing for Instagram lead generation.
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1. Optimize your Instagram profile.
Let’s start with the basics. Build a well-optimized profile for your brand that converts. And for that, there are three important things you need to take care of.
- Profile image
- Content
- Link
Because your Instagram profile is usually the first touchpoint for your users, it should be at its photogenic best.
Use an easily recognizable profile photo that your users can relate to. You can also use your business logo (only the best thing to do!).
Come up with a well-written bio describing what appeals to your customers most about your product.
For example, if you are a photographer, you know that your followers would like to browse through your previous work to decide whether to hire you for their upcoming nuptials. Therefore, make sure that they know first-hand when your slots are open.
Next, add a link to your website or any high-converting landing page. Since you only get 150 characters, it is wise to use URL shorteners like bitly.com.
Here’s an example of a well-optimized Instagram profile.
Image source: wix.com
2. Add a CTA button to your profile.
Another Instagram marketing tactic is to add an action button to your business profile. You can also include your contact information like your email id, phone number, and corporate address so customers can get in touch with you.
Similar to “Call Us Now” buttons in websites, Instagram also provides options for lead generation like Reserve, Book, Get Tickets buttons, etc. You can convince viewers to sign-up, contact you, click to learn more based on your marketing goal.
Willing to add a CTA button? Here’s what you need to do.
- Go to your business account page and tap Edit Profile.
- Select Contact Options.
- Tap the Add an Action button.
- Choose what button and the provider you’d love to add.
- Add the right URL.
3. Develop a content strategy that delivers.
If you really want to grow your audience, develop a high-conversion content strategy—similar to how you use LinkedIn for sales. Here are two things that you’ll want to follow:
First, choose a core topic and come up with interesting and visually appealing ways to show off your brand. For example, you can speak about your customers’ success stories to generate leads on Instagram. Other topics are company culture, behind the scene, and user-generated content.
The other is to upload high-quality, professional images multiple times a day without making it look forced. Some five to ten posts every day will do the trick.
But if you don’t have the time, there are tools like Later and Hootsuite where you can schedule your posts ahead of time. Create and post. Experiment with different things and see what works.
4. Use Instagram stories and live videos.
Other marketing research strategies include Instagram stories and live videos. When used correctly, it can prove to be a gold mine for generating your Instagram leads.
You can leverage your Instagram stories to share high-value content with millions of users who log to check stories posted by their favorite brand.
If you aren’t sure of how to make stories from scratch, use Instagram story maker to create beautiful visuals for your followers—for free.
Moreover, instead of uploading ad copies or promotional material, focus on adding a personal touch by sharing actual testimonials from existing customers.
Another Instagram marketing tactic is Swipe Ups.
Swipe up stories allow businesses to add links to their stories where users can swipe up and land on the redirected page. You’ll, however, need 10,000 followers to enable this feature.
Speaking of videos, go for the ones that reminisce how customers have had a positive experience with your brand. You can also conduct interactive live sessions to talk with your followers and address their concerns.
Here are a few basic tips on how you can market on Instagram when you go live.
- Ensure all your tools for your upcoming interactive sessions are around.
- It’s good to have a glass of water handy too.
- Pin your topic in a comment.
- Start engaging with a lead-off question.
- Be open to taking questions from your audience.
- Keep in mind that there may be trolls, too, so you do not get caught off guard.
- Remind your audience about your next session and your call to action before wrapping up.
- Thank them and take your leave.
5. Work with influencers.
In any other social media site, partnering with influencers is a highly productive lead generation technique. Similarly, brands can increase visibility, generate leads, and raise conversions on Instagram by creating collaborations with leading influencers in their niche.
Identify some influencers that you’d like to represent as brand ambassadors. Since they command a great social following, they can add wonders to your brand’s character and encourage your followers to take action.
6. Leverage Instagram lead generation ads.
One of the simpler and quicker ways of bringing your content mainstream and creating leads is to start an Instagram lead generation ads campaign. It works every time for all brands, irrespective of their sizes or their followers count.
You may target a particular audience with your Instagram advertisements. This involves targeting users depending on their interests, preferences, geo-location, designation, hobbies, etc.
The positive thing about making Instagram advertisements is that the process is quick. You begin by defining your marketing target, which is lead generation in this case.
Next, you determine your target audience and choose the desired criteria for ad placement. Later, you choose an ad-format and build your lead form. In the end, you use a valuable opt-in offer that your audience cannot say no to, and they end up sharing their contact details.
7. Track your Instagram campaigns.
You must know by now that Instagram marketing takes a lot of work. So, when you have spent a lot of time and energy, it is only reasonable to calculate your ROI to make sure that your tactics are working and you can generate the most return out of it.
Thankfully, there are many ways you can monitor your Instagram campaigns by tracking:
- Lifetime customer value
- Landing page click rate
- Customer acquisition cost
- Landing page conversion rate
You can also track the number of clicks to the link in your bio. Google Analytics will help you with everything mentioned here.
Wrapping Up Instagram Lead Generation
You can perfect the art of Instagram lead generation by following the above tips.
Apart from those, contests are also an ingenious means of quickly achieving lead generation. You can offer exciting prizes for winners.
Remember, consistency is key. Only by keeping your users engaged at all times you can generate maximum leads.
If you have any other Instagram lead generation hacks in mind, please share it with us in the comments section below.