Instagram is one of the most widely used social media platforms, and therefore an excellent marketing channel.

#1: Grow a real and engaged following

With all the buzz around about Instagram now, it’s easy to get swept up in all the fanfare and neglect the basics.

When you are looking to generate sales from social media, be it Instagram or any other platform, you need to come across as real and authentic. Buying followers, spamming people via direct messages, and pumping out lots of ordinary content, might increase your “followers” but none of them will know who you are, what you do, or why they would want to buy something from you.

Instead of applying spammy and low-brow tactics to grow your influence on Instagram, build a real and engaged following with smart automation and an active presence. Here are some tips for making this work without tearing your hair out:

• Plan all your content in advance and use an Instagram scheduling tool to automatically share the content at an optimal time.
• Instead of following and unfollowing people, which Instagram is trying to ban, like, comment, and engage with relevant posts shared by people within your target market.

#2: Use hashtags

To attract customers and boost your sales, even more, you can use hashtags relevant to your services or products. When you use the right combination of hashtags, it becomes easier for your target consumers to find you. This method will increase the awareness of your brand.

But it’s not as easy as it sounds to come up with the right mix of effective hashtags. You need to invest your time and effort into extensive research. Make sure you use a balanced combination of unique and common hashtags on your Instagram posts.

Experiment with different combinations to see which works best for you. Also, if you are working with influencers, ask them to use the same mix of hashtags.

#3: Only post compelling images

Instagram is a visual platform. So first and foremost, you should only post high-quality images.

Ideally, your images will be creative and eye-catching, and appropriately highlight the products you wish to promote. Once your customers land on your profile, they must be able to recognize your brand immediately.

Ensure that every image you post on Instagram matches your overall branding and business strategy to lend them that authentic brand feeling. If your branding is sleek and minimalist, it should be sleek and minimalist on Instagram.

Pick an aesthetic and stick to it. This extends to Instagram captions. Do not switch between different tenses and tones of voice. Keep it simple. Consistency is key.

While original images are always best, sometimes stock images can help add some variety to your account. There are many different royalty-free image websites where you can source amazing high-quality photos. Better yet, web tools like Canva allow you to create custom images to promote discounts, giveaways or contests.

Remember, visual representation of your brand online may be the first experience your customers have with it, so make sure it’s great.

#4: Make friends with influencers

Influencers are Instagram personalities who already have an established audience. Their followers look to them for purchase recommendations and advice, so it should come as no surprise that increasingly brands are turning to influencers to promote their products.

As a visual platform, Instagram offers the perfect avenue to engage your target audience using the help of influencers. A good Instagram influencer marketing strategy can help you get high traffic and more engagement, which ultimately brings higher returns/conversions.

Instagram influencer marketing is also a great way to boost your search engine ranking because it literally gets more people talking about your brand. Studies have revealed that in comparison with paid advertising, customers generated through word-of-mouth advertising have a 37% higher retention rate.

#5: Show your products in action

Although high-quality images of your products may grab people’s attention, they may not always be enough to drive sales alone.

For your Instagram content to have a real impact, showcase the experience of actually using your products. Tell a story through your Instagram content using photos and videos that show your products in action.

For example, if you’re selling a particular ingredient, you can post images of dishes that can be made with the ingredient. Include the recipe in the caption, and perhaps describe the perfect occasion in which to enjoy the dish.

Alternatively, if you’re selling clothes, you can show people wearing the clothes in different contexts. Include a caption that describes the experience of wearing the clothes or evokes the texture of the fabric.

GoPro does an excellent job of showcasing their product in action. All of their Instagram posts are photos and videos taken using their camera.

#6: Embrace user-generated content

User-generated content is another form of word-of-mouth advertising. Your existing customers help create content that showcases your product. This in turn helps promote your product or service to the new customers or their followers.

What could be easier, right?

However, some customers may not readily share images of your product without your encouragement. To encourage them, you will need to offer a reward or incentive, such as a chance to win something if they post photos featuring your product or hashtag.

For example, you could offer a chance to be featured on your official Instagram account, or a chance to win freebies or gift cards. Make sure you encourage them to use that branded hashtag to help you track the effectiveness of your efforts.

Celebrate your existing customers. Think of content from them as a kind of living social proof for prospective customers who still have doubts about buying from you.

#7: Be witty and relatable

Humor goes a long way in engaging an audience. To increase sales, try to implement witty puns and relatable humor into your Instagram posts. The goal is to improve people’s perception of your brand. And you already know how much positive brand perception can affect sales!

Also posts fan-submitted photos with witty captions.

If humorous content doesn’t fit with your brand, aim for thought-provoking and inspiring – both recipes for shareability. Instagram is the perfect platform for aspirational posts that are very, very relatable for ordinary people.

#8: Offer discounts or giveaways

Offering discounts or giveaways is one of the most effective ways to boost your sales on Instagram. It’s a cost-effective method to promote your products and increase sales.

Through this method, you can also increase the awareness of your products or services as customers share news about the offer with their friends

This then increases your engagement rate. Once your Instagram followers engage with your content in some way, you can acknowledge them and offer them a discount.

When you offer giveaways or discounts, it naturally attracts prospects and encourages them to buy your product or services. If your customers love your products or services, they won’t hesitate to talk about your brand and promote it. To reward such loyal customers, you can give them attractive offers such as a VIP discount or a membership to the top tier of your rewards program.

#9: Leverage Instagram stories

Instagram has released their Instagram Stories feature, through which you can post and share videos and images with your loyal followers. Brands can really take advantage of this feature to boost their sales.

But how can you use it effectively?

Here are a few suggestions that can help you create effective and impactful Instagram Stories. When implemented correctly, these tips can significantly boost your sales:

• If you have shaky hands, buy a tripod. A tripod will keep your smartphone or camera stable and steady when recording videos and taking photos.
• Capture and share the brand’s story or journey with your followers in your Instagram Stories.
• Use your product images to create a video and share it in your Stories. Make sure you use natural lighting.
• Capture and share the experiences of your customers using your products or services.

Take some behind-the-scenes shots and videos, relevant to your product or services, and include them in your Stories.

#10: Don’t post pushy or salesy posts

You must keep in mind that Instagram is not a platform meant for selling and buying. People are there not to buy from brands but rather to socialize virtually. So you should post content that is not too pushy or salesy.

If you want to utilize Instagram to sell your products, you have to do it in a creative manner. This means you need to provide prospects valuable, engaging content.

To do so, you can post pictures inspired by real-life situations or share pictures of customers using your product. You can also post photos and videos with tips or recipes including your products.

You could even take it a step further and work with Instagram influencers. Influencers are known for their ability to promote products in a way that’s convincing without being pushy. So, you could try finding relevant influencers in your niche who would speak on your behalf.

In conclusion

Social media is constantly evolving, and Instagram is no exception. The above tips should give you some great ideas on how to increase your sales on Instagram.

As you can see, influencers can make a huge difference to your marketing efforts and provide even more opportunities to engage with fans and share great photos and videos.

With more than 600 million monthly active users, Instagram is giving brands some great results. It’s a place where people turn their passion into purchases.