16 Top Instagram Tips For Business in 2023

Let’s face it: social media is an extremely important marketing tool for businesses. While there are many social media platforms where you can promote your business, Instagram is one of the most important. Here’s a list of Instagram tips for business to make your brand successful on the platform.

1) Switch To A Business Account

Instagram allows companies to switch to “Business Accounts,” which differ from regular personal accounts. Business Accounts are important because they allow you to i) get real-time data insights, ii) easily share your business’s contact information, and iii) sell directly to the consumer. To switch to a business account, go to settings, click “Account,” and then tap “Switch to a Professional Account.” From there, you can select “Business.”

2) Connect Your Instagram Account To Your Facebook Page

Connecting your Instagram account and Facebook Page allows users to easily switch between the two platforms. It also makes life easier for you because you can auto-post across each platform. By having a presence on both platforms, it shows potential customers that you are a legitimate, polished brand.

3) Create and Share Instagram Reels

Instagram is moving from a photo-sharing app to a video-sharing platform. This is evidenced by the addition of Instagram reels in late 2020. Reels are basically short, entertaining videos that allow you to reach audiences of users who are not currently following you. While they take more time to create than a still image post, their rewards can be lucrative. Instagram has given reels their own feed, which shows the emphasis the platform is placing on video content. This is one of the most important Instagram tips in this article.

4) Display a Business Category

With a Business Account, Instagram allows you to select a “business category.” For example, Cadenza Digital Marketing’s account was able to select “Marketing Agency,” which is displayed under our name. To select a category, tap “Edit Profile” and then click “Business Category.” From there, choose your category and go to “Profile Display” to ensure the category is not hidden. Check out the below image for an example.

5) Develop A Clean, Branded Instagram Aesthetic

Using your brand colors and voice, create posts that are cohesive and clean. An aesthetically-pleasing Instagram feed is an additional signal to customers that you are a legitimate business with well-defined messaging. To do this, select a handful of colors and fonts to use for your posts, and stick with them for the long haul.

6) Maximize Your Hashtag Usage

Hashtags are one of a few methods businesses can use to reach untouched users on Instagram, so it is important to make the most of them. Each Instagram post can include up to thirty hashtags. Every post should include all thirty of these hashtags, as each one is an opportunity to reach a new audience. Your hashtags should have a varying number of “mentions,” or popularity. Instead of choosing super generic hashtags with millions of mentions, try to niche-down. You should have a good mix of hashtags with under 500K mentions, but more than a few thousand (of course, including a few hashtags that are super popular is totally acceptable).

7) Partner With Other Brands And Leverage Their Audiences

This doesn’t apply to every business, but if you can partner with another brand to mention each other on each’s account, you should do it! Leveraging existing audiences of other brands is a great way to grow your followings and reach. Of course, only partner with brands that you feel align with your mission and values; getting featured on an account with lots of negativity or questionable content is something you want to avoid.

8) Post Different Types of Content

Instagram rewards accounts that post different types of content. On Instagram, not only can you post photos, but you can also post reels, IGTV videos, stories, guides, and product lists. Instagram shows users content that they are most likely to enjoy, and some users prefer stories or reels. For this reason, you should have a variety of types of content on your account.

9) Run Paid Advertisements

Of all of these Instagram tips, this one will cost you money. Paid advertisements aren’t for every business, but they can be extremely lucrative. On Instagram and Facebook, you can run ads that generate leads, increase web traffic, grow general brand awareness, and more. Generally, you are a good candidate for paid social media ads if i) you can afford to spend more than $10-15/day in ad spend and ii) your target audience is active on the platform.

10) Share A Display Link In Your Bio

There are many reasons businesses might want to share a link to users: a website link, a link to a product, a link to an informational video, etc. Unfortunately, Instagram does not allow users to click on links in posts, or pretty much anywhere else on the platform, with very few exceptions. One of those exceptions is the link in the account’s bio. We recommend sharing a website link or a LinkTree/Bitly link, where users can click through to different pages.

11) Use Instagram Highlights

Highlights are different categories of stories that your account makes over time. You choose the categories and the stories you would like to “place” within each category. They appear as bubbles underneath your profile heading, and are an opportunity to share additional content and create an even more visually appealing aesthetic for your profile.

12) Offer Promotions/Giveaways To Your Followers

If you have spent time on Instagram, you have probably seen companies sharing either special offers or giveaways for their products/services. Both of these methods are great ways to build followings and remind current followers about your promotions. It is common in giveaways for participants to follow the account and tag a few friends, which encourages even more people to follow your account.

13) DM Customers And Stakeholders

One of the greatest benefits about Instagram is that you can message your followers and other users. This is a great way to keep in touch with your customers and stakeholders.

14) Geotag Your Posts

When you create a post, Instagram gives you the option to “geotag” your location. Typically, this location is where the photo was taken. By doing this, your post is more likely to be shown to other accounts/users in the geotagged area, which is a great opportunity to boost your interactions. Unless the post is completely unaffiliated with a specific location, we strongly recommend that you always geotag your posts.

15) Save Posts For Future Inspiration

Instagram offers the ability to “save” posts via the ribbon icon below each image/photo. This allows you to revisit content that you find interesting or inspirational for future posts. For businesses, saving the posts of competitors, vendors, and customers allows for future analysis down the line.

16) Be Consistent With Content and Engagement

One of the most important tips for Instagram is to be consistent. Check out our earlier blog post for information on how often to post. To sum it up, you should post no fewer than once per week, and no greater than once or twice per day. You should not only be consistent with content, but also with engagement. Try to spend at least fifteen minutes per day messaging customers, responding to stories, and following new accounts if you want to see great results.

I don’t have time to create social media posts. Can you do it for me?

Absolutely. Content creation and community engagement are our most popular services. There are lots of features to leverage on various social media platforms, as demonstrated by the Instagram tips in this article. We will make sure that all of these features are being utilized to grow your online presence. Send us a message today to schedule a free social media strategy consultation!