Instagram is one of the most dominant social media platforms world wide. It was launched in 2010 as a photo and video content sharing platform, and has been bought by Facebook in 2012 for one billion dollars. At the time of acquisition, Instagram had about 30 million users and zero revenue. Facebook bought Instagram during a competitive rivalry between Twitter, Facebook, and Google+ (at the time).
In that time, Instagram proved to be a great acquisition as it assisted Facebook in transitioning from desktop, to mobile devices, and gave Facebook the competitive edge over other companies. Currently Instagram has about a billion active users, and generates almost 40% of Facebook’s total revenue !
With more and more companies/brands joining Instagram, there are many pitfalls and mistakes you will need to avoid, in order to make sure you get the most reach you can, and have your brand stand out in a growing and overcrowded platform. Below, are the 5 most common Instagram mistakes that I have seen with customers:
Horizontal Images: Instagram is not optimized for horizontal images. Ideally you would want to use 1:1 ratio when creating Instagram posts, in order to maximize all allocated space. Also, 1:1 ratio will take up more space in someone’s newsfeed, rather than just a horizontal photo.
Not using all of the hashtags: Instagram uses hashtags to provide relevant content to users and searches. Currently, a post can have up to 30 hashtags, so make sure you use them all. Conduct your hashtag research, and find the most popular hashtags for your post.
Call to Action: Just like any other platform, when you post something and you want consumers to engage, use a “call to action” button. In Instagram the “call to action” can be to “save” the post, or “like”, or “comment”.
Daily Posts: Just like using Facebook, posting too many times in a day has a cooling down effect on your customers, to the point that they might even unfollow your page just to stop seeing you every 2 hours.
No engagement: If someone comments, likes, or follows your page, send them a message or comment back. Engagement is key for the Instagram algorithm, and it is also for building relationships with your audience. If you don’t engage with them, then you will lose their interest. Instead, you need to capitalize on the fact that they were intrigued by your post, and took the time to take an action on it.
These are the 5 deadliest sins on Instagram that can quickly stop your momentum and growth. Make sure you don’t commit any of these mistakes. Instagram is a catalyst player in social media platforms if properly used.
I hope you have found this article helpful and useful. All feedback is welcomed. Don’t forget to Like, Comment, and Share with a friend !