Business have been using Instagram for quite some time now. With over 1 billion active users logging in regularly, and over 80% of these users following at least one brand or company, it makes sense to start using Instagram for businesses.
However, this post isn’t dedicated to those who are just starting to consider starting using Instagram as part of their digital marketing strategy (Although we could make a whole post about that later on). This blog is for those who are already deep in the Instagram ecommerce game and want to step up their game.
Now, we have good and bad news. The good bad news are, you might have to change your current Instagram account and overall marketing strategy, but the good news are, it isn’t as complicated as it seems.
Instagram ecommerce: Get to know the changes that are coming this 2019
According to the statistics shown by Sprout Social, approximately 71% of US based business are currently using Instagram as part of their active digital marketing strategy, as a direct way to make sales and direct people to their ecommerce site.
However, this wasn’t always like that. As a matter of fact, back in 2016, only a roughly 48% of US based business used Instagram as part of their marketing strategy. Which means there was an increase of 23% in only a year, and you might be wondering why is that? Well, it’s thanks to Instagram business profiles.
Now, Instagram profiles aren’t something new, this option has been available ever since 2016, when they gave people the option to change their profile from regular to business and have access to a set of tools that would allow them to increase their sales and upgrade their digital marketing strategy.
Since may 2016, brands using Instagram could access the same type of content, with Business accounts having some extra tools. However, since December 2018, Instagram changed the rules.
The whole change made by instagram early december 2018 can be resumed in two main points:
- Changing to a Business account is more important now than ever
- The way you perceive UGC (User generated content) on your feed will change if you upgrade your account.
Keep in mind, these changes were made back on December 11, however, companies and brands don’t know exactly what this means, and might not be seeing the changes themselves. So we are here to explain it.
Instagram Business Accounts: What you need to know about it
Like we said before, switching from a regular Instagram account to a Business ones represents having access to multiple tools, data and other features that will help you increase your sales and reach more people.
However, thanks to Instagram’s recent changes, the main reason to switch accounts is so you can still have your UGC feed updated, otherwise, it will stop updating automatically.
Let us dig on this a little bit more. If you’re a business, company or brand that is ONLY showcasing and uploading regular Instagram content, chances are your feed won’t be affected at all.
However, if your content differs from this, you need to change to a Business Instagram account right now and have enough time to make the proper adjustments to keep up with your strategy.
The thing is, people (marketers) don’t want to do this change because they are afraid this will change their range and scope, which is a lie. As a matter of fact, according to an statement made by Instagram to TechCrunch, changing accounts does not, in any way, affects your numbers or engagement levels.
Leaving the typical “But changing to Instagram Business account will hurt my numbers!” excuse, it is time to talk about what actually making this change means and how it will benefit you.
Switching from regular to business accounts
Like we said before, the main reasons to change the settings on your account is so you can still have access to UGC and the data that comes with it without it being affected.
To put it simply, you will be able to:
- Continue showcasing user generated content directly on your site as well as access Instagram account engagement data
- Upgrading the apps you are currently using to ones that are both approved by Facebook (owner of Instagram) and compatible with the Instagram Graph Api.
However, these are not the main benefits you will access once you make the switch. Actually, the main benefits/reasons to change to a Business Instagram account are:
1: Integrate Instagram native shopping features
If you have been paying attention to Instagram lately, you probably already realised you can tap on a photo and see the name and price of an object, and have the option to buy it by just typing the picture.
This is one of instagram’s native shopping features, and in order to access it, you have to be a Business Instagram account. Of course, Instagram must approve this particular feature on your profile, but to even qualify for it, you must be already using the business account, not the regular one.
Having access to this shoppable feature and allowing your customers to buy directly from your feed can (and most likely will) increase your sales almost immediately
2: Gain access to your own analytics
Analytics are everything when running a digital marketing campaign, they help you understand your public, get an insight on how everything is working and improve future campaigns.
By switching to a business Instagram account you get access to all kinds of analytics brought to you directly by instagram. Meaning you get fresh data and information of your followers, your content and your account delivered to you on regular basis, data that if, used correctly, will significantly improve your content and online engagement with your public.
3: Continue working with third-party Instagram Apps
We briefly touched on this before, but let’s discuss it again. Using an Instagram business account allows you to keep running third-party Instagram applications (Like the ones that allow you to show your Instagram feed on your website).
Although it is true you still can access some Instagram features without having a Business profile, it is better to have full access to the complete set of features by having a business account already.
If you would like to know more about this solutions, don’t forget to contact us! The Rootstack team is ready to help you achieve your goals by creating a customized software solution that suits YOUR company’s necessities.
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