How to Start Using Instagram to Build Your Brand and Drive Product Sales

7 minute read

Today, Internet users spend an average of 53 minutes a day on Instagram – just five minutes less than they do on Facebook. And according to the current trend, people will continue to spend more time on Instagram in the next five years.

So, if you want to get closer to your target buying audience, it’s time to start building a stronger brand on Instagram. We’ll go over how to do it the right way in this post, so you strengthen your e-commerce brand and drive more customers to buy your products on Amazon or anywhere you sell. Even if you’ve never been active on the ‘Gram, we’ll walk you through the key points every ecommerce brand needs to succeed.

What to Write about on Instagram

Instagram is a visual social media platform. But it doesn’t mean that visual content is more important than text. If you want to create a strong brand voice, you must use the right words to communicate your message to your audience as well as strong visuals.

Now, you might think that your major task is to write about your products. But it’s not. Talking about your products all the time won’t build relationships and entice followers. To develop relationships with your customers, you need to have a conversation. Show who you are and show interest in others. Don’t just talk about yourself.

Here are some content ideas to engage your Instagram followers.

Present your values on Instagram

What are the core values of your brand? What is the mission of your ecommerce company? You should be able to answer these questions in detail.

Write comprehensive posts that explain how your company works, who your suppliers are, and where you source your products from. Also, share the story of your brand to make people understand when and why you started your ecommerce business.

Be honest with your prospective buyers, and don’t be afraid to share insights. Your efforts will be rewarded with higher sales and stronger brand loyalty, whether you’re selling on your own website or Amazon.

Be proud of your employees

If you are a solopreneur, you can write a few posts about yourself. If you run a big ecommerce store, you can share stories of your key employees. You can write about their personal and professional achievements or explain their roles within your company.

Your customers will be glad to learn more about people who stand behind your brand. If you write about your employees, you’ll help your audience to trust your business and your products more.

Value your customers on Instagram

Your ecommerce business is worth nothing without your dedicated customers. So if you want to build a strong brand voice on Instagram, you should support your buyers and share the posts they create. It will help you to improve relationships with your existing customers, as well as increase brand exposure.

When it comes to user-generated content, you don’t need to write long captions on Instagram. One sentence or even a short phrase is enough. The only thing you should never forget is to add @mention. Give credit to your customers – and you’ll make them loyal to your brand.

Appreciate influencers who support your brand

Instagram is a crowded place. To help your ecommerce brand to stand out, you can collaborate with influencers whose personal brands align with your company’s values.

Enlisting influencers will help people to understand what your brand is all about, and it can boost your sales. Best of all, you don’t have to know one of the Kardashians. Social media microinfluencers, those with smaller followings, have been proven to be a powerful force. Sometimes, more influential than mega-watt celebrities.

How to Write for Instagram

To build a strong brand voice, you need to know not only what to write about, but also how to write. Know your target audience and take their preferences into account. Here are a few things you should consider when writing for Instagram.

Tone of voice

To make sure that your brand message will be delivered in the right way, ask yourself some questions about the tone of voice you’ll use:

– Formal or informal
– Playful or serious
– Educational or entertaining
– Technical or non-technical

The appropriate tone of voice can change for different posts, but you don’t want to go dramatically off-brand. It also means not mixing funny, playful captions with serious, educational captions.

Language style

To promote your brand effectively, you need to know the right words to engage your followers. Analyze the preferences of your target audience, and find out whether it’s appropriate to use:

– Slang and shortened words (binge-watch, woo-woo, slay, etc.)
– Internet acronyms (IMHO, TBT, IDK, etc.)
– Professional jargon (e.g., medical jargon: chest film, fibrillation, etc.)

For instance, if you sell affordable lingerie to Millennials, you can use slang and internet acronyms. But if you sell luxury jewelry to older generations, you should avoid using types of words more appropriate for a younger demo.

Grammar and punctuation

Even if you set an informal tone of voice and use slang words, you still need to take grammar rules seriously. You should edit and proofread every caption to fix spelling errors and typos. It’s important because even one misspelled word or misused comma can change the message you want to deliver. Sloppy writing also harms your brand credibility. If you can’t write a coherent sentence, what else can’t your company do well?

To proofread your captions easily, try services like Grammarly and Studicus. It will save you time and help ensure the quality of your posts.

Personalization

If you want to boost your branding efforts, be sure to personalize your posts. “Make your message sound personal and intimate to make people trust in your brand,” recommends: Clara McArthur, a marketer at TrustMyPaper. “If your posts make your followers smile, it will help you to form positive attitudes toward your ecommerce brand.”

The Bottom Line on Creating a Strong Ecommerce Brand Using Instagram

If you want to establish, create, and maintain a desirable brand voice on Instagram, don’t just post product photos. Write compelling captions and share posts generated by your customers. Analyze your target audience to understand what type of captions will resonate with your audience, and keep fine tuning your content. Find influencers and partners who align with your values. Over time, you’ll create a brand-boosting Instagram presence that drives customers to your products on Amazon and other marketplaces or to your own website.

This article was contributed by freelance writer Diana Nadim Adjadj of www.3to5marketing.com.