Instagram has quickly become one of the largest social media platforms, with more than 1.3 billion daily users scrolling through engaging photos and videos. While that’s a great way to build a relationship with your target audience, it’s also one of the most essential tools for driving sales for your ecommerce store. This is especially true if you’re selling a product that doesn’t typically require a lot of explanation or information before making a purchase decision. That’s because Instagram users are much more likely to check out products, they see on their feed than those who see them in traditional advertising channels like email newsletters or print magazines. By leveraging the unique features and functions of Instagram, you can drive more traffic to your ecommerce site and increase through relevant content that resonates on an emotional level.
Let’s jump right into some of the advanced tactics you’ll need to massively boost your online reputation and potential ecommerce sales.
1 – Conduct a Thorough Audience Analysis
To get started, you’ll want to conduct a thorough audience analysis. This means identifying the interests and habits of your target audience, where they hang out online, and what they like to read or watch. You can do this by conducting surveys, observing what they comment on, and checking out the demographics of who engages the most.
You’ll also want to identify who are the influencers in your niche and learn as much about them as possible. The demographics breakdown is fundamental here because it helps determine how best to target them with ads later.
2 – Leverage User-Generated Content
User-generated content (UGC) is the gold standard for social media marketing. It’s authentic, it builds trust with your audience, and it can help build a community. UGC also creates opportunities to connect with customers in a personal way that traditional marketing can’t replicate.
You may have heard of brands asking their customers to submit photos of themselves wearing or using their products. This is called “brand evangelism.” When people share this type of content on their own profiles, they’re showing off their purchase while building brand awareness at no cost to you as the business owner.
3 – Experiment with Instagram Reels
Instagram Reels are a great way to showcase the best of your content. They can be used to show off products and services or even tell a story about your brand.
This is also a good space for sharing insights into the background of your company’s operations and connecting with your target audience in a way that transcends the “digital divide” of the screen.
4 – Use Instagram Stories to Promote Sales
Instagram stories are an excellent way to promote sales for your ecommerce store. These are like a more casual version of your regular Instagram posts, but they have all the same features. You can add text and photos, use hashtags and link out to websites or other apps. You can even make them private if you want.
The best part about Instagram Stories is that after 24 hours, they disappear from users’ feeds. That makes them an optimal option for A/B testing of different content, product features, influencers, UGC, and more.
5 – Collaborate with Influencers
Influencers are people who are known for their large social media followings. They have a following because they’re interesting, entertaining, and informative. These key players can help you reach a much larger audience than you could ever hope for on your own. You just need to find the right influencer for your brand.
You should pay influencers for their time and effort. You can use different platforms where these influencers sign up for your brand engagement or contact them directly.
6 – Consider Instagram Advertising
Instagram ads are a great way to promote your products and services. They can be used to target a specific audience, and they’re affordable. You can run them in real-time or schedule them for later on in the week or month.
7 – Optimize Your Business Profile
If you haven’t already, it’s time to optimize your business profile. To get started, fill in the blanks:
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- Use keywords and hashtags in your bio. For example: “We’re a boutique shop that sells handmade jewellery.” or “We’re an eCommerce store specializing in products made from recycled materials.”
- Add a CTA (call-to-action) at the end of your business description so customers will know what action they should take after reading it (e.g., add us on Instagram).
- Include links to your primary contact or shopping landing page.
8 – Use Instagram Analytics
Instagram Analytics is a great way to understand your audience and optimize your content, but they can also help you better understand what your competitors are doing. If you’re willing to put in the time and effort, Instagram Analytics will give you an in-depth look at all aspects of your business.
You will need to convert your Instagram account to a Business Profile. This is a free service that unlocks a ton of critical data points for improving your online experience and shopping potential.
9 – Create a Consistent Brand Image “on the grid”
Consistency is vital when it comes to branding and marketing your ecommerce store on Instagram. While you may want to change things up from time to time, having an established look will help you build trust with your followers and provide them with a familiar experience every time they visit your profile.
Many companies will use “the grid” to build a brand identity. This is the bird’s eye view of numerous individual posts that show up under your profile. It makes engaging with your brand more fun for your visitors because Instagram is a highly visual format for a social media platform.
10 – Use Story Highlights
Story highlights are one of the most underutilized features on Instagram. Story Highlights allow you to highlight a post, video, or other content and place it directly under your profile information. These are the strategic places for putting your products, most popular posts, and explanations or sales/promotions.
Story highlights are great for driving traffic back to your website because they make it easy for people who aren’t following you on Instagram (yet) to find out more about what makes your company great without having to do any extra work.
11 – Use Direct Shopping
Direct Shopping options can be a powerful tool for ecommerce businesses to drive sales and improve the customer experience. This works by integrating your products into the Instagram platform so consumers can purchase them directly without ever leaving the app. It may not be as robust as your online store website, but it will expand your sales potential to new pathways that should generate more sales for your ecommerce store and engagement.
12 – It All Comes Down to Customer Service
The most important thing you can do is provide excellent customer service. If they have any questions or concerns, they need to feel confident that they can reach out to you and get an answer quickly.
While you can always use our highly effective Customer Support for WooCommerce plugin for your website, you also want to pay close attention to any comments or DMs on your Insta profile. The goal should be to consistently interact with your customers, so they feel heard, appreciated, and served. That directly affects your potential sales revenue.
Conclusion
Social media is a powerful tool for driving sales. It’s also a great way to build brand awareness and increase traffic to your website.
We hope these advanced Instagram tactics will help you drive more sales for your ecommerce store. Remember, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to marketing on social media. You need to experiment with different strategies and find what works best for your audience to see results.
But if you keep at it and stay persistent, we promise that one day soon, you’ll wake up with thousands of new followers who want nothing more than shop from your online store!
