Infographics? Yawn. Press Releases? Boring. Instagram? Bingo! Long gone are the days of outdated tactics. Infuse some selfie-platform engagement in to your marketing strategy. Instagram is arguably the social media platform with the most opportunity for brands, but don't post what the CEO had for lunch, or gasp, a gym selfie! Take a few notes on these kinds of Instagram photos your current and future followers want to see.
Announcements
Two leaders in the delectable guilty pleasure world are Dunkin' Donuts and Oreo. Not only do these sugary brands rule our calorie intake, they rule in the social media world. But what happens when these two vices collide and need to inform their drug like followers? They announce the partnership via Instagram. #Drool
Let your most loyal advocates know first of any brand news. This kind of first-hand knowledge will inflame word of mouth buzz between fans, and uphold the importance of following your brand across its social media channels.
Teaser
Our beloved 49ers are getting the stadium of the century. So how do you celebrate years of happiness, tears of joy, and the little heartbreak that took place at the soon-to-be-demolished Candlestick Park? You reunite the very people that evoked these emotions for one last legendary football game. Jerry Rice, Joe Montana, Steve Young, and Eddie Debartolo, were just a few of the heroes in attendance for the Legends of the 'Stick game. A meeting of such epic superstar-ness couldn't be captured solely through Instagram. The 49ers posted a series of teaser photos of the football gods with enticing captions such as "One more time at the Stick. #JoeMontanta More at 49ers.com," to directly drive traffic to their website.
Do you have a highly anticipated event or a yearly sale coming up? Upload attention-grabbing posts with a call to action that your followers won't be able to refuse.
Themed
Can Red Bull do anything wrong? Their marketing strategy is out of this caffeined up world. Naturally, they celebrated the World Cup, but in their own Red Bull way. They glorified their iconic silver cans by remaking a few country flags, and appropriately hashtagged them #worldcan. The message not only screams, "we're international" but it also aligns their brand with current events and places it in relevant conversations around the World Cup.
Themed posts not only stir up interest because of their out-of-the-box appeal, they create a relationship between audience and brand, as followers will have something to look forward the next time they post a theme-related image. In the fitness industry? Create a weekly #MondayMotivation series around inspiring fitness quotes to fuel audience workouts. Own a restaurant? Start a month long recipe theme that features methods on how to make your chef's favorite pastries. One week can be pastries with strawberries, the next week can be dessert even vegans will enjoy, and the week after can be a party-friendly pastry for a Friday night potluck followers may be attending.
Fan Photos
"Wear it. Share it." is Forever 21's Instagram motto. No other brand celebrates their fans more than the trendy clothing chain. Almost 80% of their posted images are reposts from their fashionable following. Accompanied with a tag, and a catchy caption, Forever 21's social media team lets their devotees do all the work for them. Granted this brand has more than 4 million Instagram followers and a lot of tagged photos to choose from, Forever 21 knows how to earn and use advocate generated content with their designated hashtag #F21xMe. They believe in earned media so much, they have a dedicated section on their website to promote and broadcast the partnership. Appropriately named, the #F21xMe hashtag portrays the clear message "Forever 21 by me."
Brands from all kinds of industries can create a designated hashtag specifically for groupies to show off their swag. The cosmetics brand Benefit launched an entire campaign around users showing off their real eyelashes. Tagged #realsies, the unique hashtag encourages beauty-buffs to post a selfie using one of Benefit's mascaras. Launch a "how do you [insert brand name here]" movement. The generated electronic Polaroids will not only bring in earned content [which can be evergreen content], but these will inspire participants' friends to get in on the selfie action. This not only strengthens the relationship between brand and advocate, but also reaches advocates' own audience.
Instagram is not only the quintessential platform for posting those duck face selfies, but when strategized, it can bring a flood of audience engagement. Your devoted followers want to see exclusive content; give them something to "like."
What kinds of photos do you want to see on Instagram? Let us know below or tweet us a selfie!