Instagram has more than 300 million active users and 68% of these regularly engage with brands. In comparison, only 32% of Facebook users engage with brands. Given that, Instagram is clearly the foremost social media platform for marketing opportunities.

A big question is, are you leveraging Instagram smartly to promote sales on your eCommerce store? Here are some tips to up your Instagram marketing game.

1. Optimise your profile

Ensure that you have a profile picture, ideally your brand logo. Your username should be your brand name, which should also reflect in your eCommerce website’s domain. Include a short description that tells your audience who you are and what you do. Be sure to include your online store link in the bio.

Artchetype Studio, an eCommerce store that offers creative desktop essentials and stationery has a point-by-point bio on its Instagram handle, @archetypestudio, that covers all important details about the business. It has more than 34,000 Instragram followers.

2. Build consistent brand imagery

Instagram is built on the concept of sharing pictures. Create attractive imagery and creatives to post on your page. Ensure you have a consistent theme across your page in regards to anything from colour, patterns, or styles. Consistency equals trust, and when people trust your brand, they are more likely to buy from you.

Find an image style and colour scheme that works for you. Scope out your competition and see what they are doing to get some ideas. Keep your imagery distinct, though. Beware of some common pitfalls. Too many product photos can appear too salesy. Multiple similar photos posted one after another won’t make a good impression, either. Get creative with online tools like Canva and ColorZilla to create your images and have a variety.

The recommended Instagram image sizes are as follows:

Square Image – 1080 x 1080 pixels

Vertical Image – 1080 x 1350 pixels

Horizontal Image – 1080 x 566 pixels

@archetypestudio has a consistent image palette of pastel colours, featuring soft pinks, grey and greens, lending for a visually appealing feed.

3. Create engaging posts

Along with captivating images, you need to put up engaging and inspiring posts to make an impact. Keep the tone of your posts light-hearted and fun. In India 75% of Instagram users are between ages 18 to 24 years. So your posts need to appeal to a youthful audience.

The below post, of a Vision Board and Annual Planner, has an engaging caption and is ideal to post during the last two months of the year as this is the time people buy planners.

4. Make it clear how followers can buy from you

You may have great content with a growing number of followers, but your social media activities must convert into actual sales. For this, it’s vital that you clearly mention how followers can buy your products. Instagram does not allow you to add a clickable link with posts, so input your store link in your bio and mention ‘eStore link in bio’ in your posts to direct followers to shop from you online.

5. Use hashtags to maximise your reach

Just like Google uses keywords as part of its ranking, Instagram uses hashtags (#) to allow users to search for content by different keywords. For example, if you want to have a look at annual planners, you can go to the ‘Search’ tab, click on ‘Tags’ and then type in Annual Planner. You will find that there are more than 1000 posts of videos and images with #AnnualPlanner.

If you use a hashtag that is popular, your post can be seen by many users searching it. If your visuals and content is engaging, it could even become a top post. Hashtags also  makes it easy for people to find you. On the other hand, if you use no hashtags, you will not show up in searches because Instagram will not be able to categorise your post. This will limit your follower base.

6. Use Instagram stories

Instagram Stories is a feature that allows users to take photos, add effects and elements such as text and gifs, among others, and then add them to their Instagram story. Stories expire after 24 hours. Brands can use this feature to share content on the go. It gives eCommerce businesses a chance to engage with users for 24 hours and publish fun content that may not be as polished as something they would put on their profile feed.

This feature is a great way to keep your followers appraised of what you do on a daily basis and it’s one of the best ways to humanise your brand.

Check out this fun Instagram Story by @archetypestudio of a shipment going out!

Also read: 8 ways to use Instagram stories to build your brand

7. Share user-generated content

Customers trust social proof as much as they trust personal recommendations. They are more likely to choose products with positive testimonials than ones with low ratings or negative feedback.

That’s why you must include user-generated content on Instagram. Ask customers to share product reviews as well as photos and videos of them using your product with the appropriate hashtags. You can share these on your profile and tag your customers.

8. Run Instagram contests

Another great way to increase engagement is to run creative contests. You could ask people to follow your account, or like or comment on your post to participate in a contest and explain the participation requirements. Contest winners get prizes, you get user generated content, leads, or other outcomes as per your contest, and everyone is happy! It also helps increase your followers.

9. Interact with your followers and fellow Instagrammers

Be interested in fellow Instagrammers. Follow their accounts and actively comment on their posts. Once they get a notification that you are following, they will most likely check out your profile, follow you back and visit your eStore.

10. Pay attention to analytics

The in-app Instagram analytics provides useful information to help you increase engagement. In the audience tab you can see the timings during which your followers are most active on Instagram so you can plan your posts accordingly.

Keep track of the photos that get the most likes and engagement. This will give you, insight into what interests your audience the most.

The beauty of Instagram is that it does not require a huge budget for promotions. This is why many brands around the world use the platform to market their online stores. Moreover, Instagrammers enjoy shopping, so put these tips into practice and start increasing your online sales!

Also read: Most important social media trends to know in 2020

Image source: shutterstock.com