3 Beginner Steps to Building Your Business on Instagram Using Sponsored Posts –
Why Instagram Sponsored Posts are the best way to reach new users looking for a business like you!
Creating Instagram leads is not simple and requires planning, strategy, creativity, and iteration.
While the traditional methods of building your Instagram business work magically, they don’t tend to reach nearly as many users as a powerful sponsored post. – Dumpor
When Facebook started, organic access was simple. With less competition and emerging technologies looking for more and more users, it was actually very easy to post something on Facebook. If configured correctly, you will reach new users who are not familiar with your business.
Then once it had a large enough user base, the organic reach was curtailed and eventually became almost mandatory to pay to promote a post in order to reach new users. – Hjdh
Instagram hasn’t gone into a pay-per-play model yet, but that doesn’t mean there’s no serious value in paying to push a post to new users (called “promotion” on Instagram).
Which is right for your business: Pinterest or Instagram? Find out here: Pinterest or Instagram. Which is better to build your business on the Internet?
So what is involved in promoting a post and how can you do it right so that it reaches the right people for your business? Here are 3 strategies to follow:
1. Create a business profile
The first step is to convert your profile into a business profile.
Just tap the sun icon (iOS) or three dots (Android) depending on your device.
Now click on “Switch to Business Profile”. You’ll need to make sure your account is set to public as well.
Enter the required information and click Done. It’s easy!
*Note* If you have not already done so, it is important that you are added as an administrator to the linked Facebook page
2. Develop a strategy
Strategy is key when getting the most out of job promotion. It is helpful to have the post you are going to promote ready before you begin.
The reason is that you can make choices not only about what you post and who you are going to promote, but also where they will see it.
With Instagram, your posts will appear in both the Stories and Feed sections of the user account. If you want to opt out of your post to appear in Stories, you will need to use the Facebook Ads Manager.
Both are viable options, but the admin interface has a lot more options than Instagram originally offers, so if you have admin privileges on the linked Facebook account and it’s already online, it’s a good idea to take advantage of the more powerful system.
If you need any help with this at all, please contact us and one of our social media experts will be happy to help.
Now think about the end user and how they will see your post. If you have already identified your ideal customer, you should be able to see competing brands. Clean up the most popular and see what performed best.
This can give you a real insight into what will be most effective for your own posts.
Once you’ve settled on your design and know who it was designed for, it’s time to promote it.
3. Post upgrade
Depending on your choice to promote through Instagram or through Facebook Ads Manager, you will have a lot of options here.
Your first creative post. By the way, if you haven’t checked out our guide to building your Instagram business yet, you should. This will ensure that your post improves performance before you start paying.
Now go back to your post and look at the bottom right and where it says “Promotion”, just click on it.
Once you click on it, you will see several options for who you want to reach, how long the promoted post will run, and how much you are willing to pay to reach them.
The options may be limited as to who you can reach, so make a note of the people you tried to reach through the post and next time you can try different criteria to see if they will be more effective.
It’s never as straightforward as typing in what you want and click Done. Find the related interests that your ideal customer will have or the general categories they fall into.
If you are promoting through Facebook Ads, you will need to log into your Facebook profile associated with the business and select “Ad Manager”.
You will need to go to the ad level for this.
The process with Ads Manager is more complicated but has a lot of options. You will select the design by clicking “Use current post”. You will then be able to select the linked Instagram account and choose your post from there.
Your options here for targeting are much better.
This method is a mid-level exercise, so if you are new to using social media for your business or you don’t find the interface intuitive enough, contact us. This process shouldn’t take long so if you’re at all struggling, let us do the heavy lifting for you.
If you can find your way through the settings and set it up correctly, you’ll just choose the budget and duration and you’re all set.