That’s right, I said it. SEO Rules and Instagram Drools.
💥
I talk all about this in my latest SEO podcast (it’s pretty GOOD 👍 )
Part 2:
Alright, the word on the street is true.
Confirmed. I got some beef with Instagram. We’re gonna talk about it right now. We’re going to spill that tea on this episode of Jen Ruhman SEO Podcast.
Seo. Starting NOW,
Can we talk about where your marketing dollars are best spent?
Is it on Instagram or purchasing monthly SEO?
You’re paying someone to run your Instagram account?
Now, when we’re talking about Instagram, I have a lot of clients that say, Jen, right now, I’m forking out about $500 a month.
Somebody’s managing my Instagram account. They’re just making some cute little images and posting them on my behalf. I don’t have to worry about my social media. They got a lockdown and I love it. And I say, hey, that is great.
You have social media in the works running for you. That’s just marketing dollars, not ads on Instagram. Here’s where there’s some issues. If they’re a new client, I ask them, are you getting lots of sales from Instagram? Is it worthwhile for you right now?
In other words, why are you calling me?
Their response is usually a big fat no. And I know why. I run SEO reports all the time for my clients and I can track conversions. Where do I see the majority of conversions come from?
I’m not being biased. I’m just looking at the data. The majority of all the conversions are always coming from organic SEO. Another real world fact, ladies. Did you know that Kylie Jenner one of the Queens of Instagram?
So be it. Whatever. 10% of her traffic comes from social media. Now, of that 10%, about 4% of that traffic is just from Instagram. And she’s a billionaire.
Allegedly, she has deep pockets to buy whatever she wants. And guess where most of her traffic is coming from? It’s coming from her website. Coming from? Excuse me, it’s coming from Google.
It’s organic.
So she’s a billionaire. Maybe someday you’ll be a billionaire. Who knows? But what does that tell you from just the perspective of having all that money. She’s a Queen of Instagram, and most of her traffic is not even coming from Instagram.
Does that help? Does that put your marketing dollars into more better perspective? Sorry, I’m a little tongue-tied. I don’t really like Kylie Jenner. Well, let’s face it, I am actually on Instagram.
Why the heck am I on instagram if I don’t like it?
I’ll tell you why. I’m trying to help you guys out. You business owners, entrepreneurs selling services or products. I’m there.
Hopefully, since you’re there, I don’t know why you’ll find me and I can convince you there while I’m in your head. The benefits of SEO, why you should get off of Instagram and join the party over on Google. Organic searches. That’s right. Having SEO on your website brings magic.
And I hear you. You got cute little dancing videos on your Instagram. You got some cute pictures, all the little cutesy Loopsy, images and pictures of your services, which is good, which is good. But you should take that content that you have on Instagram and place it into your website and enrich your SEO efforts. For example, it’s very easy for my business owners to create video content using their phone and Instagram.
It’s a Win Win situation. However, they can put those videos, those helpful videos and put them into their website. And I’m going to give you a great example. There’s a lot of beauty medical spas all over Instagram. Sure, they get lots of likes.
Here’s why SEO is better at conversions than instagram
But there’s actually more people locally searching for those services that want to find your business on Google Search instead of Instagram.
Check this out. When people are searching with buyer intent, meaning they are more willing to go find a local business to get a service done in Google than they are just discovering things in Instagram. Someone’s researching cool sculpting before and afters.
How it works, what’s the downtime, all that kind of stuff. They’re going into Google, searching for it, learning. And guess what? They’re also going to be searching for cool sculpting near them, cold sculpting in their city. That’s like some kind of nonsurgical fat removal eliminating process.
So when you’re at a research mode, you’re looking for a local service provider to do the service that you can drive to. That’s where Google search organic searches win. So people are going to type that into Google with buyer intent. Cool Sculpting, San Diego, Cool Sculpting, La Jolla, Mirami, whatever, wherever you are. And hopefully on your website.
You can add Instagram videos / images to your website pages for SEO benefits
If you’re doing SEO, you have a city landing page catering to those keywords. Now, you can put your little Instagram video code embedded into that post into that page to help enrich it. But the page should be more focused on text and answering any questions the client might have. And the page should have additional content like before and after pictures, as well as content that helps clear up any objections a potential client might have about you as a doctor, your history, what they can expect, the whole entire procedure. And your page should also be a hub to showcase your verified reviews.
This helps boost your conversions as well as provide an easy, accessible, easy to use contact form. And all your contact information should be right there, all nice and handy. Now, let’s compare that to getting an email or phone call from a potential client that’s ready to work with you. Ready to buy. Compared to some potential clients sending a DM to someone in charge of your Instagram account who’s going to get that information sooner?
The answer is most likely nine times out of ten, your inbox your email from your website. People want an immediate reply. That’s how you win customers a lot of times and stop them from shopping around when they go to a DM, you know how long that DM is probably going to sit there before your social media manager gets to you oh boy, that could be actually costing you, right? I hope that helps you understand the importance of SEO. Another thing to keep in mind is that your SEO is there for you.
Where will you turn to if your instagram gets hacked?
It’s going to stay evergreen the content that you create on your website is yours controlled by you. All your time you spend on Instagram creating all your real images and all that stuff. What happens if your Instagram gets hacked? What happens when that algorithm no longer favors you? Where do you turn?
Well, you’re probably going to call me. But if you do, I’m here helping you get ready for SEO. Thanks guys. Thanks for listening. Have a great rest of your day.
Bye.
Thanks for reading! BTW, If you didn’t catch my name, I’m Jen and I’m a SEO specialist in San Diego, CA running my own SEO company in San Diego.
How to Get Your Business Started on Instagram: If you’re a business getting started on instagram, this is a quick guidehow to get your business started on instagram + creative marketing ideas. (Enjoy the photos I took) With over 100 million instagram users, (source Mashable) it’s well worth your time.
Maybe you just registered your business name under a new instagram account and you’re not sure how to get started. There’s so many benefits using instagram for you business and I’m going to show you creative ideas how to start posting great visual content on instagram.
How to Get Your Business Started on Instagram
Set up Your Instagram Account
Sign up for a free account on instagram (if you haven’t already) – Be sure to choose a username that reflects your brand ,perhaps the exact same username as your twitter account and Facebook fan page. This way your social media will be seamlessly blended and easy for people to find.
Add your profile photo or logo. Use a clear picture of your face prefertably. Editing the becaground to your brand color is also ideal. It also makes you stand out! In
Here’s my NEW instagram Account for this website JenRuhman I used my targeted keywords instead! @seo.expert.sd
I’ve carefully crafted my bio to incorporate the following elements:
Name
A concise description of what I do in 5 words or less (SEO Expert in San Diego)
Identification of my target client (website owners)
Highlighting of Benefit #1
Highlighting of Benefit #2
Clear call to action (Hire me)
I’ve chosen to link to my business website, which is optimized for mobile devices. It’s crucial to ensure that the page you direct your visitors to is mobile-friendly to provide a seamless user experience.
Additionally, I’ve added emojis that align with and reflect my expertise and services!
(Copy me! This is a great profile bio to start with!)
Notice how I set up my bio.
Next, your profile feed should be visually pleasing (it looks more professional) You can use many styles such as “checkerboard” or this column style I’m using. It’s fun to scroll my feed to see the gradient transition:
This is the style I am using for my profile grid.
Tips for Instagram colors
Use a consistent palette. You want to stand out. When you post, your followers should identify your brand’s flavor / style.
REELS:
Since Instagram announced they’re becoming more of a video platform, I make sure to post videos more frequently. It’s literally every third type of content I post now. Reels are the recommended thing to post!
Connect your accounts
Connect your social media accounts to instagram. This will push all your instagram updates to your other social media page as soon as you publish to instagram. (You can connect to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr)
Example below: I added my location and connected my accounts to update on Facebook and Twitter. I also used the relevant hashtages “#wedding and #weddingdress. I also tagged the company using their hashtag #Demetrios. See how I added an emoji of a brunette bride? Fun right?
Old instagram interface
Notice, Brides by Demetrios is a national brand, with many store locations in the United States. If you’d like to focus on getting your local business started on instagram, I also wrote a more localized guide for instagram.
Remember, you don’t want to over promote your business by just showing product shots. Get “behind the scenes” Mix it up. Ask, “What does my target market want to see?” Try using the 80/20 rule – 20% of your posts to promote your services/brand and 80% that really visually engages your audience.
Video/photos of an office tour
The customer experience
New product prototypes
Products coming soon
Employees working with clients
Products in action
Promote your customer’s photos
Use beautiful photos to promote blog posts
Engage your brand with trending hashtags
Hop on a trending video idea with music or voiceover!
YOU! Try to show YOUR personality and what it’s like working with YOU!
The filter selected below called “Mayfair” gets the most likes. Here I am modeling my wedding dress at Brides by Demetrios, sharing my customer experience. If I was the company Brides by Demetrios, I would promote this photos. (great example) Noticed I used the instagram filter Mayfair.
Include related/trending Hashtags and Emojis
Do a little research what hashtags your competitors are using. There’s also an amazing companion app for instagram called: Hashtags. You can pick a hashtag category and copy/paste the hottest trending hashtag recommendations into your instagram post. Also be sure to include some related emojis to add some visual interest to the text description and hashtags.
Below: I was at the bridal store Demetrios and they set up a backdrop for customers to share their dress shopping. This is my “I said yes to the dress face.” Brides by Demetrios should also promote this pic
Creative ideas for marketing your business on instagram Have a branded backdrop set up in your business for taking photos
Another creative idea for marketing your business on instagram
Showing “the process” “behind the scenes” what a bride can expect during the alterations process. See the pins?
creative ideas for marketing your business on instagram
It would be great to share the customer’s experience from start to finish, telling a story in a series of posts. (I’m in my dress getting pins placed for alterations)
There you have it. I hope you enjoyed my creative ideas for marketing your business on instagram or just How to Get Your Business Started on Instagram.
Looking to get inspired with creative ways to use instagram for business? Be honest, take a look at your instagram photos right now and tell me if they’re interesting and grab your attention. If it was a total snooze fest (boring) let’s pump up the jam and get it going on with these top 10 creative ways to use Instagram for business.
Instagram Posts IDEAS List | 60 Content Ideas
OK, I made a list:
Introduce yourself
Show where you work
Share a DIY
Show yor product in action
Show client testimonials
A highlight of your day
A pitfall of your day
Working behind the scenes
National ____ Day – creatively share your version
Co workers in action
Your work process
Benefits of your business
Your cleint’s pain points
Your commute to work
Quotes
Selfie
Morning routine
Breaktime
Packaging your products
Shipping your products
Manufacturing your products
Launching a new product or service
Milestone celebration
Share your goals
Company get together
Outfit of the day
Uniform
What’s in your bag
Say something silly
Share a case study
What are you snacking on?
Company pet spotlight
Your mission statement
Causes you support
Answer FAQs
Follow a funny video / music trend
Go in depth about a product
Who inspires you?
Throwback thursday!
Statistics
How to hire you
Join my email list
Recent purchase
Speaking at an event
Time with family
Nature
How you like to relax
Getting ready for the day
Your favorite place
Fun facts about you
Blooper
Contest
Tag a friend
Promo codes
Share photos you’re tagged in
User generated content
News
Whats in your desk?
What other Instagram post ideas do you have?
If your instagram account needs more pizazz, followers, and likes, take it to the next level with these 10 creative ways your business can use Instagram
1. Pick a color theme and stick to it!
You can have the “wow” factor when someone visits your account easily by using a color theme!
We want to see your current projects! People are always fascinated how other people live across the globe or what your daily workspace looks like. Here’s a photo of my desk. Just snap a photo what your desk looks like. What snacks are on there? Is there any interesting art hanging on the walls? Birthday cards? Are you messy creative genius or a neat freak? It reminds me of the weird fascination people have looking in your refrigerator. Remember the show, MTV cribs? People that care about your brand will love to see your workflow and where it happens.
3. Show how your products are made:
After all, there is a popular TV show all about it. Show us the different steps of the manufacturing process! Get super creative and post a daily photo showing the next step of the process and keep me coming back for more! Everything from production to delivery. This creative instagram photo idea works for every business. You’re a bakery? Sweet! Show us a video of the giant dough mixer and of course making donut holes, yum. You’re a jewelry designer? Show us the beads and tools you use, perhaps a video of finishing a pair of earrings. You’re a photographer? Show us your favorite lens. Are you a realtor? Show us your favorite kitchen.RELATED POST Benefits of using instagram for Business
4. Creatively show off your products:
If you sell multicolor products, arrange it in a fun creative way. How about arranging them by the colors of the rainbow? Make interesting photos and apply beautiful filters to them. You can always find fabric and textures to place your products on. I like to place products on the grass, wooden table or wooden floor, place onto of a leather jacket, polished stone, granite countertop, on the sand at the beach, in front of a local landmark, you get the idea. Anything is better than just using a boring white background. Also notice if you’re selling a luxury item, place it next to other valuable things such as designer purses or stage it in a formal living room.
5. Consumers using your products – let others do the work for you!
Your customers have probably used your hashtag or tagged you in a photo using your product. What better incentive, than featuring them in your instagram feed. Use their photo and tag them back. Win win for everyone.
Use photos of different age ranges using your product. Ask your audience to hashtag a photo of themselves using your product in a unique way. This will also advertise all the amazing uses of your product. Pick the most creative user generated content to share on your instagram. This way, you can pick the best photos.
Only post exclusive previews of products on instagram. Invite users from twitter and Facebook to follow your instagram just for product releases. For example, maybe only your twitter account gives away promo codes, and your Facebook has more editorial photos.RELATED POST Top 10 Snapchat Facts Marketers Need to Know
7. Take instagram users with you:
Are you going to a tradeshow? Walking to the coffee shop? Share a fun moment of your day! A concert? Celebrity sighting? Perhaps the Pope? Take video, now share and tell!
Related: 5 tips how to get local instagram followers
8. I spy with my little eye:
Play a game, ask your instagram users to find something in your photo.
9. What’s trending?
Is there a hashtag that’s trending, like “the ice bucket challenge?” Use your company’s branding to put your own personal touch on it. If you’re a marketer, you know how important trends are for launching successful advertising campaingns. There’s also 10 amazing facts social media marketers need to know about instagram.
10. Go behind the scenes:
Unlock the mysteries of your business. What’s behind those huge doors? Show us what it looks like getting a large shipment of your product. Let’s see some unboxing of your product. Interview your employees what they’re up to. Show us the fun photo shoot you’re doing. What’s your office decor theme? Show us what it looks like behind the scenes of a press conference, at a star studded event, your company holiday party. Did a customer bring a cute pet with them into your business, show us. Better yet, model the pet with your product.
BONUS
11. Random weirdness:
Have fun! Did you stumble upon some interesting architecture? Amazing piece of art at a flea market? Show us, instagram is all about being visually engaged. When we’re amazed on instagram, we notice your username / brand.RELATED POST How to Get Your Business Started on Instagram
Final thoughts
There’s so many benefits of using instagram for business and having the most creative and visually appealing photo stream gives your business a competitive edge. Whether you’re just getting your business started on instagram or you want some new ideas to grow your local business, I recommend you take thirty minutes and try taking some creative photos right now and save them for future use on instagram. People are going to love your new creative photos and most likely be intrigued to learn more about you. That’s why it’s very important to make sure you have your profile optimized for instagram. I talk about optimizing your instagram profile in this article for setting up a small local business on instagram.
Instagram facts that marketers needs to know. Instagram is a free app and powerful visual media platform every marketer should be using. After reading these amazing 10 instagram facts, be sure to read the top benefits of instagram for business. Here’s the latest instagram stats for September 2015. If you’re a marketer please read more: Top 10 Instagram Facts Marketers Need to Know.
Top 10 Instagram Facts Marketers Need to Know
Intagram Stats Septemeber 2015
Instagram photos that have filters applied are 21% more likely to be viewed + warmer tones get more comments. Source: dailyMail.co.uk
Instagram currently has 2.5 Billion daily likes. Source: instagram/press
Benefits of using instagram for Business: Here’s 8 amazing benefits of using instagram for business that you need to take advantage of today.
With over 153 million users on instagram (source MindJumpers), just about any business can benefit using instagram in a multitude of ways.
It’s never too late to start an instagram account for your business. Better yet, If you’re a business marketer, let your client know the benefits of using instagram for business they’re missing out on.
No matter what industry, instagram is a perfect platform to increase revenue for your business. No joking, from fashion, fitness supplements, dog breeders, etc. I’ve seen each category gain from dozens to thousands of likes on instagram but most importantly traffic to your online business or blog. Even if you’re a small local business owner, there’s advantages of using instagram just for local business.
I have experienced all of these instagram benefits for my own business and my clients, that’s why I had to write this article for you – small business owners especially. Get ahead of your competitors, download the instagram app and start gaining these benefits of using instagram for business today.
Amazing Benefits of using instagram for Business
1. Gain Trust for your Business
Gaining trust is one of the many benefits of using instagram for business. Businesses that are “up to date” understand the importance of appearing relevent and ahead of their competition. Social media has leveled the playing field for businesses across the globe. The United States ranks #1 with 40% of the total share of instagram users.
Instagram offers a quick and straightforward way to provide real-time updates and offer a behind-the-scenes look at your business and services. It’s as simple as capturing a photo or a short video, applying a filter, and incorporating relevant, searchable hashtags.
What’s even better is that you can engage in direct conversations through your Instagram account, leave comments, tag individuals in your photos, and even establish or tag a location, all while harnessing the power of hashtags. This accessibility and engagement are invaluable.
This approach fosters trust, which is a significant advantage. Trust is a powerful asset because as people become more acquainted with your business and can easily interact and ask questions, they are more likely to make a purchase. Instagram is a valuable tool for building rapport and enhancing your business’s credibility.
Social media has finally become a requirement for businesses and many simply cannot afford not to leverage the traffic among many benefits because of it.
You might be thinking “instagram users are not my target market.”
True – instagram does have a younger audience, however – you could possibly gain more younger customers.
Case Study: One of my clients has an eyelash extension beauty salon. She said her customer base was women in their late 30’s – 50’s. She began using instagram and utilizing hashtags for her city and services, also showing amazing before and after photos. People took notice, started following her, and started booking her services. Her customer base now has a broader age range.
2. SEO – Gain Traffic to your Website or Local Business
Gaining traffic to your website is a top priority and is a huge advantage of using instagram for business. Take advantage of this simply by making sure you have your website in your profile or posts! Your instagram account can possibly surpass your search driven traffic if you have your website’s link in your bio. Also, SEO tip: Having a link from your instagram account will give you a good high quality back link.
When you tease people with your amazing instagram content, they tend to want to learn more about you and your business so they check out your website. This could be your Etsy store page, website store page, youtube channel, affiliate marketing store page, blog, etc.
Case study: The possibilities! Imagine having an Etsy store and one of your hand crafted original pair of earrings have gone viral on instagram. People start taking screen shots of your earrings and sharing them. Because you placed a watermark on your image, people are visiting your Etsy store directly and making purchases.
Pro tip: Put a direct link to your product in your instagram profile. Mention in your photo’s description that the link is in your bio. Place some researched has tags, for example: #earrings #fashion #jewelry. Throw a relating emoji in there and you’re golden.
Local Business: If you have a local business, I’ll show you how to gain foot traffic to your business.
It’s official, Intagram has 10 times more user engagement than Facebook and Twitter! Why is that? It’s all about the images, the user is quickly scrolling, it’s QUICKER! Fast paced, purely driven by mobile users “on-the-go.” Instead of reading posts, the images do all the instant talking for you! The only text is the interactions, making engagement easier and faster. It’s the butter to your bread! Enjoy all the tasty “likes” and comments to your images.
And reply to your users! Be humble and courteous they have an interest in your photos. (Shh! Don’t forget, you can also have your instagram content simultaneously posted to your twitter, Tumblr, Flickr, foursquare, Email, and facebook accounts too!) Higher user engagement is one of the best benefits of using instagram for your business. Your users are more likely to click on your website link.
Professional looking photos of your products / services are a visually appealing benefit of using instagram for business. Filters can magically make photos appear more interesting and pretty. Instagram features some wonderful filters that can correct and balance the lighting of your photo and add a creative look and feel to your photo. Fun. Fun. Fun! Let your creativity come out and play! You can really have fun playing with these boxed filters.
Making money or increasing your company’s revenue is one of the many amazing benefits of using instagram for business. Usually a favorite benefit of instagram. In addition to getting more traffic to your website, showcasing your products and services on instagram is a great platform to run your marketing, leading to profits!
Bottom line – the more followers you have, the better chance you have making sales. The downfall – the more followers and people you follow means the more time consuming to maintain instagram friendships. Usually the more interaction you have with a customer, the more likely they are to purchase from you.
My own personal instagram shopping obsession: When I see my favorite beauty gurus posting updates of their makeup looks, I will check their photo description of which products they used. As you can see the example below, Amrezy lists the brands of makeup she used by sharing their instagram accounts. From there, I click on the “@” links and visit their website on their bio description.
benefits of using instagram for business -Follow @Amrezy
7. Free Models/Advertising
Free advertising is one of the great benefits of using instagram for Business. Instagram is a goldmine for seeing your product in action and getting brand exposure! You can easily do this by having a contest on instagram asking fans to re-post a photo and hash tag it! (People That hash tag can get popular really fast and go viral.
Many brands will also send popular instagram users products for free in return for mentioning them in their description. This often gives the brands a large amount of exposure, and an increase in sales.
8. Learn what your customers want and like
Knowing your customers wants and needs is one of the most valuable benefits of using instagram for your business. You can gain useful insight what your target market likes and dislikes. For example, if you’re a clothing store. you may notice a certain style getting more likes than others.
Case Study: A client was designing packaging for their skin care product. They used instagram to see which bottle design would receive the most likes. When one bottle design received an overwhelming amount of likes, they decided to use that preferred bottle design.
9. Having fun
Instagram is seriously fun. Even if you don’t feel like posting an update, you can scroll through the latest updates and usually laugh or learn what your competitors are doing. You can get inspired and learn what fits best for your business.
Thank you for reading 9 Benefits of using instagram for Business.
How to get local followers on instagram for your business.
Check out my top 5 tips to easily grow your local followers on Instagram.
If you have a small business, you need local Instagram followers. It’s truly how you can get local instagram users to notice your business and get them started into your sales funnel or marketing goals.
Today I’m sharing a few powerful ways how you can attract, interact, and gain local instagram followers.
This method is not focused on taking better instagram photos… Pshhh. This tutorial shows you how to take action!
It’s quick and easy!
It gets better,
You can get local followers for free on instagram.
That’s right. You’re tapping into over 100 million instagram users… there’s defiantly instagram users that are nearby your local business.
It’s time to gain the benefits of instagram for your local business and get local users’ attention to notice your brand!
If you’re like most small businesses you probably can’t afford to hire a social media expert.
That’s OK. If you have ten minutes to spare per day for instagram, I’ll show you how you can get local instagram followers that will help boost your sales.
Having local instagram followers is beneficial for any small business
It helps you gain trust with your customers or potential customers
Spreads word of mouth
Gets foot traffic to your business
Creates a sense of community and branding
If you have a small business that relies on foot traffic, you need local marketing.
Ready to get started?
Here’s five tips how to get local followers on Instagram
NEW AWESOME Bonus tip: Follow the business’ next door’s instagram followers!
For example. The BBQ restaurant’s instagram I manage. There is a mechanic shop next door with lots of LOCAL customers following their instagram account. We simply gave the mechanic shop a coupon to share with their customers for 10% off their entire meal. (these customers usually wait around while their car gets fixed)
Let’s give them an incentive to get them into our restaurant! Guess what happened? They posted the coupon on their instagram account. Now all their followers see the deal. And I swoop in and follow all the people that liked the post AND I followed all the mechanic shop’s followers. We now have an extra 100 followers. Skimming through the users, they are all based in San Diego. Awesome!
People love using their local hashtags such as their city or exact location in their instagram posts.
Check out an example, I typed in “#SanDiego” (my city btw I’m using my laptop)
How to Get Local Followers on Instagram
See all the local potential?! Over 13 million posts.
Check out the most recent Instagram posts for this hashtag and interact.
Like their photo AND leave a comment.
2. Interact with the most recent local posts
Keep your comments professional and start a conversation, perhaps ask a question. You can even just leave an emoji.
Why should you interact with the most recent Instagram posts?
I recommend that you interact with the most recent photos because these users are most likely still using instagram or have their phone in their hand. They’re awaiting to see how many likes they will receive or how many comments their photo will earn. (millennials… right?)
You have a better chance interacting with them, making an impression.
You want to interact on photos that have no likes or comments, be the first!
For example:
How to Attract local instagram followers
Let’s click on this photo:
How to Attract local instagram followers
Now let’s follow, like, and leave a comment. Notice other hashtags we can use too? #SanDiegoCA
3. Leave questions as comments
Now, you might want to leave a more creative comment than “congrats” Notice the address above the man’s head? Point that out, say 4750? You’re practically my neighbor. We’re an IT company in San Diego. Congrats BTW! :)”
The best types of comments to leave on Instagram are questions!
You want to “stir the pot” “create buzz”.
Your goal in this process is to get the Instagram user to click on your Instagram username to see who you are.
Time for a fun example….
Let’s peek into an Instagram user’s mind:
The local instagram user’s mind might work like this:
Local Instagram user: “Hey….. who’s liking and leaving me comments on my account?”
(sees five new likes and one new comment from you)
They will most likely click on your username to check out your profile and photos before commenting back.
The point is that you succeeded “getting into their head”
They now know there’s an IT company in San Diego nearby that follows them. (you’re an IT company in this example)
Local Instagram user: “I just looked at their profile, they seem ok… I’ll write back.”
Local Instagram user: “I’m gonna return the favor and like some of their photos now because they liked a bunch of mine…”
Fast forward months from now
4. Interact with your Instagram news feed
Now that you’re following a good amount of instagram users in your area, be sure to like their photos!
It’s important to continueto like their photos and comment. Eventually the local instagram users you follow will follow you back and interact with you.
It does take time and you need to be persistent. However, don’t act desperate or be pushy.
5. Leverage the Geo-locate feature:
Let’s leverage the geo-locate feature in this Instagram post. The user here allowed Instagram to use his location and include it below his instagram username as circled in red. (example pictured below)
If this is a nearby business and it has your target market of customers, in this case it’s a car dealership. They attract people with money in the market to purchase a new car. 🙂
This place is already receiving foot traffic and they’re your neighbor.
Click on their location
Look for users that recently took photos here
Follow them! (in this example it’s mostly the car dealership that populates the “most recent”) However, you’ll find some customer posts.
6. Follow your local competition’s followers!
This is HUGE! This is quick and shameless tip. If there’s a local business that’s a competitor, check out their inastagram account.
Study what they’re posting, see what’s working for them. It doesn’t hurt to follow their ideas, you can perhaps think of even better ideas, brainstorm with your employees.
If your competitors have followers, they might be more likely to follow you back since they already like the same type of business.
Bonus: How to get local business to follow you on Instagram
Depending on your product or business, you may want to only attract local business owners or local businesses on Instagram.
Sometimes, that’s more of a bigger client and can be a bigger sale.
For example, it you’re an IT company, you most likely want small businesses nearby to follow you and hire you for your local IT services. You’ll want to simply search for targeted keywords. Use the city you’re located and add “businessowner” for example, #SanDiegoBusinessOwner.
Bingo, do a quick search in Instagram for “#SanDiegoBusinessOwner” and 62 posts show:
How to get local business to follow you on Instagram
You should follow and interact with the most recent posts. Leave comments and get a conversation started. Connect! Network!
You can also do a google search for any specific businesses nearby.
For example, if you wanted to connect with only dentists in San Diego, do a google search “dentists San Diego” Click on their links and website to find their instagram account.
Thanks for reading “How to Get Local Followers on Instagram.”
Do you have any tips how to get local followers on instagram?
I LOVE Ranking Small Businesses Higher in Google Search Results! My favorite moment is when my clients call me saying… “Jen, whatever you did to our website, we’re finally getting more calls and emails…THANK YOU!!!”
