How to Use Instagram For Your BusinessThe best way to get your audience to engage with you is through user-generated content

Having a business account for Instagram is all but a necessity currently, with the social media platform skyrocketing in usage numbers. There lies an immense opportunity to drive your business goals through the platform specifically if your industry is a visual one like the wedding space is.

So, How Exactly Can You Unlock Instagram's Potential to Boost Your Business?

Leverage User-Generated Content:

One of the top reasons why people follow brands and influencers is because of their realness. While two years ago, glossy Instagram photos were all the rage, in current times, realness wins. So leverage user-generated content even if it's from a good phone camera and you will be surprised at how much more engaging that is as compared to stock photos. In the wedding industry images of real brides, videos of their dance performances shot by their friends all do extremely well because they give us a tiny peek into the wedding like a virtual wedding guest. Generating this kind of UGC is hard, so come up with innovative ways to incentivise and reward users sharing UGC

Try Different Formats:

Instagram allows your brand to play with creativity and communicate smartly. The three formats offered- Instagram stories, Insta posts and IGTV videos are all uses for different purposes. So while Stories generate the most amount of conversation and actual traffic to your website, your posts will help you land in the discover tab and grow your Instagram presence. IGTV videos, on the other hand, have extremely good reach and can be used from a larger brand engagement perspective.

Leverage Other Apps to Win On Instagram

There are a host of apps in the market that can help you win on Instagram. Right from apps that can help you plan your feed, to those that can apply cohesive filters to your images to those that can research hashtags, download past Instagram data for reviews and more. Leveraging the world of Instagram related apps can give your account a little creative boost even without a professional design team

Leverage Topical Viral Hashtags

Whether the latest buzz on the internet is for the new #gameofthrones episode or some new social challenge like the #mannequin challenge- find ways to post related to topical hashtags to get your post discovered on a hashtag which is already headed towards virality.

Retarget Your Insta Audience

An audience that's already following you on your social platforms is extremely relevant. Retargeting this audience with your ads can result in a better return of investment as compared to reaching out to new users with ads.

Have a Clear CTA

Let's hear the truth, your brand is on Instagram for a reason. All the engagement you get is great but it means nothing unless you have a clear goal of what you want these users to do - You may want to drive sales, drive traffic to your website, or drive app downloads. Whatever your call to action (CTA) is, stick to one clear communication in each post and change the link in your bio accordingly. It keeps things simple.