Instagram: learn everything about this social network!
Instagram is a primarily visual social network, where a user can post photos and short videos, apply effects to them, and also interact with other people’s posts, through comments and likes.
July 03, 2023 16:49
Instagram is a photo and video social network created by Kevin Systrom and Brazilian Mike Krieger in 2010. On the platform you can apply digital filters to posts and share them on your profile and also on Instagram Stories.
Instagram already has a special place in our daily lives and is one of the most used social networks today, both to connect with people and to connect with companies.
Instagram is undoubtedly one of the main networks in the preference of users in Latin America. But do you know how it all started? Do you know the main curiosities about the company and its founders? Would you like to know how you can use Instagram to your advantage through Digital Marketing?
What is Instagram?
Instagram is a primarily visual social network, where a user can post photos and short videos, apply effects to them, and also interact with other people’s posts, through comments and likes.
In addition, a user can follow another to be able to follow their publications and their activities within the network. The number of followers even contributes to the visibility of the profile.
In it we also find the famous # hashtags, which serve as search engines for publications and, if you have a page for your brand, help to segment your audience.
The instagram story
The Instagram story is short, but very successful and fast growing. It was launched in 2010 by the American Kevin Systrom and the Brazilian Mike Krieger, both software engineers.
On the same day of the launch, the app became the most downloaded app on the Apple Store, and by December of the same year, it had 1 million users.
In 2011, the company, which had only 6 employees, already had 10 million users on the network.
In 2012, after the expected launch of the application in the Android version, Instagram was bought by Facebook for 1,000 million dollars.
Currently, the social network has more than 500 million users worldwide.
Means
In addition to the famous original filters inspired by the Polaroid camera, Instagram presents a series of interesting features that contribute to the user experience in the application and that have been implemented throughout its 6 years of existence.
Here we will discuss the main ones:
Image editing
Over time, new image editing options have been implemented on Instagram. Allowing the account owner to not only apply filters to photos, but also adjust their size, crop or straighten them, and insert light, contrast, and color effects.
Likes / Likes
The famous likes, which have a heart that turns red as a symbol, is perhaps the most important and beloved feature within the application. With them, you can measure the popularity and engagement of your posts and how many people liked what you posted.
Comments
Another great option for interaction between users are the comments that can be made on the publications. In addition to commenting on the photo or video in question, you can tag friends in these comments so they can quickly view the content as well.
Some business Pages and famous artists often respond to some of these interactions, which makes the Instagram user experience even more exciting!
Following
In this feature, you can keep track of what your friends and other people you follow on the network are doing. Photos that have been liked, followed by people, and comments on the photos can be viewed in this option.
Explore
The “explore” tab provides a gallery of photos of people from all over the world, inspired by the photos you like and follow.
This function allows you to discover new profiles that arouse your interest, since they somehow fit your preferences within the network.
Tagged in photos
The photo tagging option generates, within your own profile, a gallery of photos posted by other people, where you are present and tagged.
If the user does not want to, they can select the option to hide that photo from their profile, and thus it does not appear in this gallery.
Direct messages
Direct messages work as a kind of chat, connecting users who know each other, and also, if authorized by the recipient of the message, users who do not follow each other, through individual or group conversations.
In addition to this exchange of messages, it is possible to send photos from your own device, or from within Instagram.
Location
When posting a photo, you can add where it was taken. This helps other users to know the location of that image and also creates a map of visited places that can be seen on your own profile.
It is an interesting way to get an overview of the places visited in your country or around the world.
Instagram Stories
This is one of the main features of the app and it has generated a lot of controversy.
Instagram Stories allows real-time sharing of images and videos that disappear after 24 hours, and the inclusion of emojis, drawings, and handwritten texts.
In it you can determine the privacy of your stories so that only certain users have access, or so that any user on the network can see your publications.
Instagram Stories offers another way for businesses to interact with their customers within this social network.
Due to its more dynamic format, it allows you to create a more intimate relationship. It is possible to show what is happening, basically in real time, so that users feel part of the day-to-day business.
Now, let’s see the main resources of Instagram Stories.
- The first is Boomerang, which allows you to create short, animated GIF-style videos that run infinitely. Every time the video ends, it starts over. After you create your video with Boomerang, you can share it to your Instagram feed.
- The second feature, which you are probably already familiar with, is filters. You can add stickers and emoji, text, or freehand markup to your story. Stickers are the last option. They can be weather, time, location or other themes (such as Christmas). You can include multiple elements. Text boxes can be aligned to the left, right, or center of the video.
- The third is to tag people in your InstaStories. Just include text directly in the story, with @username. The text will be underlined and become a link to the mentioned profile.
How to use markup as part of your marketing strategy?
An alternative is to tag influencers in stories. Thus, whenever someone searches for the profile of these influencers within Instagram, they will also find the stories of your business.
InstaStories is always evolving, with the latest updates, for example, the user can let go of the “Record” button while filming a story. This function was called hands-free camera. Therefore, you gain more mobility while producing the content.
Additionally, verified accounts can now place external links in their stories. That way, you can lead users to learn more about a product or company by directing them to the official website.
Live video
Instagram recently announced that it will be launching a live video feature. The proposal already exists on Facebook, and it can also look like InstaStories. However, there will be some differences.
With Live Video, users will be able to broadcast in real time through the app’s camera. The detail is that the transmission will be deleted immediately, as soon as it ends. Nothing will be recorded in the user’s feed.
The Live Video will have a maximum duration of one hour and a fixed comment can be inserted, so that all the followers who are following the transmission can see it. They, of course, will also be able to leave comments.
The best Lives in progress will be displayed in the Explore area of the Instagram app.
Live Video will make its own contribution to marketing. With it, companies will be able to promote accessible and exclusive webinars for their followers, which will contribute to lead qualification.
Instagram for Business
Still new in Mexico, is the option to create a kind of Fan Page on Instagram. It allows people to contact companies directly by phone or email.
This facilitates communication between organizations and the public, as well as reinforcing the importance of separating profiles for common users and brands.
The contact button is one of the main features of Instagram for Business. By clicking on it, the user will see three functions: Call, Email and Directions. In this way, you remove all barriers and give the customer access to find you and talk to your company.
Instagram for Business also has different metrics, which are called Insights. They allow you to track the performance of your company profile.
We are talking about:
- Impressions: monitor the total views of your posts
- Reach: Track the number of users (unique accounts) who have seen your posts
- Profile Views: Track, of course, your company’s total profile views
- Website Clicks: Track how many users were redirected to your website from Instagram for Business
- Followers – Control various aspects of your followers’ profile, including when they are most active.
- Top Posts – Monitor posts to determine which posts have the most views
Finally, Instagram for Business also adds an ads feature. With it, you choose one of your best-performing posts, include a CTA, and thus get the most conversions. Also, check out the best times to post on Instagram.
You can personally define who will see the ad or, if you prefer, Instagram will do it itself. It also sets the time period for this content to be promoted.
Instagram for business is free. However, only businesses that already have a corporate Facebook page can use this feature. Also, your Instagram profile must have at least 100 followers.
Go to the Instagram settings menu, tap on the business profile option and fill out the required fields to create your Instagram business profile.
Do you want to know more about Instagram for companies? So, take a look at this complete article that we prepared on the subject!
IGTV
Finally, IGTV, launched on June 20, 2018, is a video platform that allows the creation and dissemination of content in up to 60 minutes.
The idea behind its creation was to allow content producers and influencers who are already present on this social network to produce longer videos that would be centralized exactly where they have the most followers, without having to migrate to other platforms like YouTube.
But it is worth mentioning that not all users can post 1-hour videos, because the feature is only available for verified or high-reach accounts for now, while others will only have access to post videos up to 10 minutes.
Apart from that, despite being an independent Instagram application, it can be used 100% integrated with it, that is, it can also be found within the photos app.
It is also possible to use the same Instagram account to access the new video application, which makes this connection even easier for the user.
This new app represents, in addition to a new stage for Instagram itself, the great trend that has been emerging in vertical videos and that is gaining more and more sympathy among users.
Curiosities
With twelve years of life and a resounding popularity, it is clear that the social network already has many remarkable stories and curiosities to tell. Get to know some of them with us:
The photo with the most “likes” in the world.
The photo with the most likes in Instagram history is, curiously, that of an egg!
The first sketch
On his Instagram account, Kevin also posted the sketch of the app’s first logo, which refers to the famous Polaroid camera, also a reference to the app’s first filters.
Since its creation, the icon has undergone some changes, until reaching the modern brand proposal that we know today.
The first desk
In addition to various posts recorded by Kevin, there is a photo of the founders’ first workplace, which was a collaborative office in San Francisco.
Most visited places
The most tagged places on Instagram are the Disney Parks and Universal Studios, followed by Times Square and Central Park in New York and the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre Museum in Paris.
How to create a profile for your company
Having an Instagram profile for your business has become an almost essential requirement.
Especially for brands that have a great aesthetic role! After all, this is a visual network. Learn how to create a profile for your business and connect even more with your audience!
Record
After downloading the application for iOS or Android, it will be necessary to include the registration data on the home page.
If you want, simply log in via Facebook. This measure is faster and more practical, and it can also help you locate your friends in the application.
Name and Image
After completing registration, you will be able to choose a name for your Page. Be simple and objective, this makes it easier for users to search and it will be easier to find your profile this way.
Now just choose a good profile image that translates and identifies your company brand well! For this, it is necessary that your visual identity is already established.
Biography
The biography is important because, in a few words, it will define what the purpose of your company is.
Be sure to include a URL to your website or blog and your phone number for as long as possible! The goal here is to facilitate the relationship between your audience and your brand.
How to use Instagram in Digital Marketing?
We know that to be remembered you have to be seen. Therefore, being present on social networks is very important to have an effective marketing strategy.
Instagram, despite being remembered as a younger and less “serious” social network, is a great tool to promote your brand and products.
Here are some tips that will help you have a good marketing strategy and good practices within Instagram
Interact with your audience
The objective of social networks is interaction and the main focus is the relationship between users.
Create posts that encourage interaction among your followers and make them feel important! Like their posts whenever possible and follow some profiles.
Announces
Paid Instagram ads have proven to be very effective for businesses.
Using an algorithm very similar to Facebook’s, the app identifies users who have similar interests to its target audience and presents its ads to them.
In addition, the ads allow you to include hyperlinks in the publications that can direct the user to a purchase page, for example. Which is not possible when we publish a photo without advertising.
#Hashtags
Hashtags, initially used by Twitter, work as a kind of keyword, which makes it easier and helps to classify the type of audience.
Creating your own hashtag can be of great help and it is a widely used strategy, since you can create a community that associates it with your brand or product.
But be careful not to create a tag that is too long or too specific and ends up not being used by anyone!
Instagram Stories and Digital Marketing
With this resource, it is possible to create a closer relationship with your followers, since it will be possible for them to follow the day-to-day activities of the company or learn more about how the products are manufactured.
Don’t know how to create an Instagram Story? We made a special post that will help you with that!
Quality is key
This rule applies to both content and images!
Invest in good images! Remember that Instagram is a visual network, and well-produced, featured images will always be remembered and appreciated by your audience.
No need to post only images of your product! Sharing images of what your company’s day-to-day is like or what your employees do helps even more to bring followers closer to your brand.
Subtitles are also very important. Bet on a more humanized language and don’t be afraid to talk about your product, as long as this is not the only focus of the page.
Engaging your audience through promotions and calls to action is also a great way to keep them interested.
Remember that people want to be surprised and have good experiences that are associated with you.
How to make Instagram Ads: know the step by step
But, in practice, how to use Instagram Ads efficiently? We listed some tips that must be used, check them out!
Understand how ads work
The first step is very simple: understanding how ads work.
Regardless of the industry or the size of your company, knowing more about the channels to be used is a competitive differentiator.
Without that, how can you be sure that your strategy will generate the best possible results? How will you know that your performance will not be affected by the rules of the platform?
So, you need to dig deeper and know about Instagram ads.
From these answers, you will be able to build a stronger and more efficient campaign in the long term.
Create the ad campaign
Now that you know all the rules, it’s time to create your ad campaign.
For this, it is necessary to understand more about your audience, your segment and also what are the best communication strategies to speak to your audience efficiently.
Without this, you may have the best offer for the wrong audience.
The more information about your audience, the greater the chances of building a more efficient and precise message. In practice, this can represent an even higher ROI for your action.
Define how the ad set will work
To define how the ad set will work, it is necessary to build a broader plan, focusing not only on a conversion, but on the analysis of the entire flow to attract that customer.
What will be the attraction-focused message? What content will be designed to achieve conversion? All this must be analyzed before the publication of the ad.
Post the ad in the admin
Have you defined all the strategies and do you know exactly how the ad will work? Excellent, now the easiest step has arrived: publish the ad in the manager you are using .
But do not forget to review all the information of the piece before publishing it, avoiding problems that may arise in the future and ensuring that the campaign does indeed generate the expected results.
Follow the results
Did you post your ad? Excellent, but the work is not yet complete.
As one of the great benefits of the digital environment is being able to monitor your actions in real time, you need to closely monitor all the results of your work on Instagram Ads.
This means knowing which are the points that are being worked on and which still need to be improved.
In this way, you ensure that the adjustments increase the use of your campaigns, increasing the performance of your ad and ensuring that your message impacts more qualified users.
We know that, more and more, social networks are the greatest allies of those who want to grow and stand out in the market. So make sure you follow these practices and always be up to date with new trends.
We have seen Instagram spread rapidly and win the hearts of users around the world through its intuitive platform and innovative features.
