News

5 reasons why retail brands need Instagram

15.11.16

Once used as a purely photographic tool that enabled photographers to share images publicly, Instagram has changed a lot over the last few years. Now it is one of the fastest growing social media platforms around and owned by Facebook. As well as this Instagram has harnessed its power to promote products by moving closer and closer to becoming a full ecommerce site.

While images still reign supreme on Instagram and you are unlikely to attract followers or engagement without strong, powerful and attractive image posts, it is making it increasingly easier for retailers to sell products through its platform. If you are a retailer and your brand has yet to embrace Instagram, here are five reasons why you should set up an account today

Target audience
​Instagram attracts a large female audience who use the platform regularly. As well as this it has a high number of users in their 20s and 30s. This makes it a key platform for targeting females in their 20s and 30s who often have disposable income and who are confident purchasing products online. This age group have grown up with the concept of online shopping and social media, so will not think twice about purchasing a product found through a social media platform.

Display your products
If you have attractive products, Instagram is the ideal platform in which to display them. Instagram not only enables you to take great photos, but its filters and editing abilities help to make products and images look sleek and professional with minimal amount of resources being used. As well as this, the platform is constantly bringing in new facilities, such as Instagram Stories, that offer new ways and potentially creative ways of showing products.

Engaging customers
Today customers are more demanding from brands; consumers expect brands to engage with them by having two-way conversations rather than just talking at them. This expectation is only set to continue as a new generation of consumers who have grown up with social media from birth become a spending force. Instagram is a great platform in which to engage with customers; it allows you to like and follow key high profile influencers, such as bloggers, as well as run competitions.

Shoppable tags
Although still only being trialled and in the US only at the moment, Instagrams’ shoppable tags on photos shows how seriously it is taking ecommerce on its platform. This new tag enables users to tap onto a view products button which shows the product’s price, description, photos and a Shop Now button that enables them to buy the product. If rolled out to all brands in all countries this new function could transform how retailers use Instagram and how users interact with the platform.  

Paid advertising
Brands can promote their content through sponsored posts, which is paid advertising. It works very similar to advertising on Facebook, with brands able to merge their sponsored posts into users’ feeds, plus it enables businesses to target specific audiences through their interests and demographics. Sponsored posts are a great way of ensuring products are viewed by your target audience, especially in the run-up to key events such as Summer Sales or Christmas.

 

Written by Derin Clark, Content Strategist 

Share
5 reasons why retail brands need Instagram

Related News

All