Is Instagram The Next Best Thing For Brand Exposure?

Over the past few months,  we’ve seen Instagram go from strength to strength in its platform development strategies. From the introduction of sixty second videos with options for Facebook audience advertising and more recently, a visual rebranding of the social media network itself.

The latest news is that they are now focusing on creating business accounts with more functionality than the standard personal profiles currently being used.

“With so many companies using Instagram, and many people on the platform interacting with them, there was a desire from our business community to do more. So we listened. And, after hundreds of interviews with businesses, three key needs became clear—stand out, get insights and find new customers.”

In response to the most common client requests, Instagram will soon be introducing several new features to the popular photo based application.

Here’s an overview in their own words:

Business profiles

Business profiles are a free feature for accounts wanting to be recognized as a business on Instagram. With a business profile, businesses can choose how they want their customers to get in touch with them: call, text or email with a tap of the contact button as well as get directions. Business profiles also unlock access to insights and the ability to promote.

Insights

Insights on Instagram give businesses actionable information about who their followers are and which posts resonate better than others—all from within the mobile app. By learning more about the behavior and demographics of your audience, you can create more relevant and timely content.

Promote

The ability to promote lets you turn well-performing posts into ads right within the app—helping you connect with even more customers. Simply pick a post you’ve already shared on Instagram and add a button encouraging people to take action. You can select a target audience or allow Instagram to suggest targeting for you. After that, your post will be promoted as an ad for any length of time you choose.

In light of the above additions, we can confidently say that Instagram is steadily becoming an indispensable tool for entrepreneurs seeking to create awareness, get their brand message in front of the right people, and cultivate a community of relevant followers and potential customers.

If you don’t have an account yet, now’s a good time to create one and if you already do, then you should be on the lookout for these new features that are set to roll out over the next few months, starting with the US, Australia and New Zealand.