Next up in our Pros and Cons of Social Media series? Image sharing platform, Instagram.

PROS

GROWTH AREA

Instagram is one of the fastest growing social media platforms, with two thirds of users using the platform daily – meaning it has a very high engagement rate.

Instagram holds strong appeal for Millennials (those born in from the early ‘80s – ‘00s) and young adults, whose buying power continues to increase year on year, however many brands struggle to connect with the younger generations and many well-established brands are competing with young start-ups for a share of their spending.

ENGAGEMENT AND VISUAL APPEAL

Images and videos encourage users to like, comment and share their own content; often users come to Instagram in the spirit of inspiration and discovery. Businesses must harness the power of the visual medium, otherwise it is extremely difficult to make an Instagram profile successful.

GOOD FIT FOR RETAIL

Instagram is now able to serve ‘shoppable’ ads that actually click through to a landing page – something that was not available previously. This is particularly useful in the retail space, as the shopping ad unit lends itself well to fashion, lifestyle products, as well as travel.

HASHTAGS

The effective use of hashtags provides a targeted filtering tool which helps organisations connect with users actively searching for a particular term, and vice versa – thus extending reach. Users are familiar with discovering content in this way.

MOBILE SPECIFIC

This can be a positive or a negative, depending on how you want to look at it. On one hand, the fact that is was created specifically for mobile devices means it offers an effective platform for mobile users and can be accessed more readily, on the go. With mobile/tablet use on the rise, this is certainly prudent.

On the other hand, this also restricts your reach to only individuals who own a smartphone or mobile device. With smartphone usage at over 15 million in Australia*, this does leave a number of consumers (mainly the older demographics) that cannot be targeted through this platform.

CONS

EXPENSE & POTENTIAL RESISTANCE TO ADVERTISING

Instagram advertising is currently in its infancy, so whether you are purchasing an in-feed unit or a blogger/influencer is advocating your product, this ultimately can become an expensive exercise.

Instagram must also be careful not to serve too many ads as it may jeopardize the ad-free user experience, one of the primary attractions of the platform to start with.

NO LIVE LINKS

Instagram doesn’t allow the use of clickable links in unpaid posts unlike Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. As a result, it can be difficult to conduct a low cost campaign that’s specifically designed to drive traffic to a website.

There are paid units available which contain a live link button, but for unpaid posts, you are relying on users copy/pasting the URL into their browser, which makes attribution and tracking difficult. This would need to be a unique link in order to be infallibly attributable to Instagram.

This also has implications in terms of SEO, as without active links, the website would not be getting the search engine exposure needed.

ZERO TO HERO

Unless you are a well-known brand, it won’t be easy to snake your way into the world of online marketing. You’ll need to dedicate more time towards it to put your brand in a stable position where it can compete.

HOW TO

Here are some helpful guidelines to follow when embarking upon Instagram advertising:

• Get branded. Stay true to your brand’s voice and personality with every post.
• Showcase beauty. Take advantage of the visual platform to showcase simple yet sophisticated landscapes, products and their benefits.
• Share experiences. Use videos and pictures to give users an experience, take them to new places or share an adventure.
• Incite action. Encourage people to respond to your campaigns and promote your posts using hashtags.
• Get to know customers. Find out what they like about your brand and then use those insights to build relevant, unique posts.

Your target must be engaged by your content and want to follow your brand, you have to speak to them in their own language. Even though Instagram has its limitations, weigh up the advantages against the downsides and assess whether or not the platform can meet your business objectives.

Reference:  Stats from Nielson & IAB ‘The Mobile Story – July, 2015’

With the plethora of social media channels available today, it can be a tricky landscape to navigate. So how do you know which ones best suit your business’ needs and objectives?

We’ve taken a look at some of the biggest platforms and analysed their advantages and shortcomings. The first in our Pros and Cons of Social Media series? Facebook.

PROS

MICROTARGETING

As the most popular social network, Facebook boasts over a billion users that cover almost every demographic. As such, there’s rich information available to assist in accessing your target market.

Using the information provided by users, Facebook allows you to microtarget specific groups based on everything from location, age, gender, employment status, income, marital status, interests and hobbies. If you have thoughtful and comprehensive buyer personas and goals, microtargeting can work in your favour.

ANALYTICS

The more you use Facebook, the more you’ll start getting better insights into how fans engage with your business, through Facebook’s suite of analytic reporting. This provides information such as the day and time your fans are most likely to be engaging online, how much they interact with your posts (like, share, comment) and visits to your page amongst many other metrics.

INEXPENSIVE

Small budget? No problem. Facebook has one of the lowest cost per 1,000 impressions amongst any online advertising avenue. Provided your campaign has a specific purposes and quantifiable goals, funds should definitely be allocated to Facebook advertising.

HIGH ENGAGEMENT

Facebook has the highest engagements levels, more than 30 billion pieces of content are shared every month. Businesses can use Facebook to start a conversation with individual consumers and generate rapport.

CONS

TIME & RESOURCE COMMITMENT

Allocation of time and resources can be one of the biggest drawbacks. Businesses need to be aware that setting up a page does not mean people will automatically follow you.

Lack of interaction and regular content on Facebook, can reflect poorly on a business. You need to be committed by posting regular updates to fans and useful, relevant content. Participate in the conversation, share images and provide exceptional service that portrays your business as a reputable organisation.

REPUTATION MANAGEMENT

Any Facebook page runs the risk of having negative comments posted, consequently the page will need to be monitored often to ensure the reputation of the business is maintained

It is essential that businesses use any adversity they’re faced with to respond efficiently to problems and ensure an amicable outcome either on the page, or privately via a support email address. To show not just the commenter, but any other users reading, that the business can and will address problems properly.

ADVERTISING BUDGET REQUIRED

As a free marketing tool for businesses, Facebook is moving towards being a paid-only platform. The periodic adjustments made to their algorithm, impacts the visibility of posts, as Facebook begins to optimise towards paid content over organic. 

Look out for the next instalment, where we'll be discussing Instagram.