An Instagram profile has many advertising benefits for small businesses. Not only can you target a specific audience and collaborate with influencers, but visual images can get your point across much more quickly and effectively than blog posts or other social media content.
You want your content to reach as many potential customers as possible. You need followers, and the easiest way to generate a following is to provide links to other social media content and blogs. In return, they may link back to your posts and content.
Instagram only lets you put one link in your bio, but you can find a way to get around this. Keep reading to learn how to use your Instagram profile to drive revenue.
Putting Links on Your Instagram Personal Account
If you plan to use Instagram for business, a personal account doesn’t really make sense, but you can choose this option to start and change to a business account later if you want to publish paid ads.
Whether you have a personal or a business account, your bio can only have one link. You can change this link whenever you want and add a call to action or link to individual posts, but the drawback is that any followers browsing older posts will be directed to the new link, even if it’s not relevant to that post.
Alternatively, you can use your single link to direct people to your website or Facebook profile and keep your links there. If you’re using Instagram to inform people about your promotions or specials, you could have your bio link directing users to a promotion page on your business website.
Conversely, link your Facebook and website to your Instagram account so your followers can easily find you on all platforms.
Another free service to consider is Linktree. Essentially, Linktree is a mini-website for your Instagram that hosts your links and also provides you with some free analytics.
Once you’ve signed up for Linktree with your Instagram account, place that link in your bio and add any new URLs you want there. You won’t need to change your link in bio very often, just the links on the Linktree.
You can also link your posts or photos to other Instagram users by tagging them in the image or the comments. If they reciprocate, you could gain followers.
None of these options are perfect, but a well-managed Instagram account will benefit your business.
Putting Links on Your Instagram Business Account
An Instagram business account remains the best option for marketing. If you have a personal account, you can easily convert it to a business account in your account settings.
There is no extra cost for a business account, but you will need to have a business Facebook page to use the Instagram business tools. Instagram will ask you to link the Facebook page to your Instagram business account.
With an Instagram business account linked to your Facebook page, you’re ready to add links directly to your posts. Although this is a paid service, you can definitely make some decent returns on your investment.
Post an image and click the blue promote icon. You’ll be redirected to Facebook, where you add your link and submit the payment.
You can boost a post for around $1, including analytics. Unfortunately, the only way to add a link directly to an Instagram post is to pay for iy.
Tips For Your Instagram Business Account
Once you get your Instagram business account set up, you’ll want to make sure you’re using it to its full potential. Here are a few bonus tips to help you out:
● Use your business email and Facebook account so your customers can find you easily.
● Place links to your Instagram account on your business contact page and any other social media pages you’re using to promote your company.
● Have a clear marketing strategy for Instagram and stick to a formula.
● Make sure that your Instagram posts are relevant to your business and overall marketing strategy.
● Research trending hashtags and include them in your posts, but keep the hashtags to a maximum of three per post to avoid spamming your customers.
● Use an Instagram scheduler to easily upload posts to all your social media accounts.
Conclusion
Although Instagram allows only one link on your profile, you can find ways around it. Manage your profile correctly and use other social media sites and contact options to promote your Instagram profile.
Be sure to use your Instagram business profile for your business and resist using it for frivolous posts. After all, this is all about bringing in more customers and followers.
“The opinions expressed by BizWitty Contributors are their own, not those of BizCover and should not be relied upon in place of appropriate professional advice. Please read our full disclaimer."
