Instagram has released a new Post Notification feature that could be a vital tool for your brand to increase its engagement with followers on Instagram. This feature sends a push notification to users when posts go live. This increases the chances of your followers actually engaging with the photo rather than scrolling past it in their feed like they normally would. Here are ways your brand can successfully use this feature:
1. Introduce the feature on other social media networks
If people connect with your brand on Facebook and Twitter, they are more likely to follow and subscribe to your posts on Instagram. Some people are unaware of Instagram’s new feature, so promoting it across other social media platforms will help increase your brand’s chances of your followers turning on notifications for your brand’s Instagram account.
2. Come up with contest ideas
People love to win things and by creating a contest that has your followers be the first or the top 10 to comment or like a post, they will more than likely participate. For this new feature specifically, you can push your followers to subscribe to post notifications if you announce the contest in advance. People will want to know exactly when you post so they can increase their odds of winning the contest. It would also be beneficial to offer discounts that expire or promoting new products that users will want to have a first look at.
3. Keep up with competitors
Don’t forget to use this new feature for yourself too! Keep a close watch on what your competitors are up to so you’re not caught off guard. If you subscribe to their posts you’ll know exactly what they’re promoting as soon as they post it on Instagram. It’s a great strategy to consistently be in the loop with what the competition is doing.
How exactly do I turn on post notifications?
To get push notifications for someone you follow on Instagram, open their profile page and then click on the triple-dot button in the upper-right corner. Then from the menu, click on “Turn on Post Notifications.” You will know it worked when you see “Post notifications on” at the top of your screen. Now, when that account posts a photo, you’ll be one of the first to know.
How do you plan on using Instagram’s post notification’s feature?
Unleash the power of Tailwind for Instagram!
– Get more likes with our smart schedule
– Easily Regram with our browser extension
– Save hours with our intuitive desktop & mobile apps
– Post smarter with profile and post analytics
Who doesn’t love being popular? On Pinterest, being popular usually means you have a large number of followers that love to engage with your content. Of course, this sounds appealing to most companies, but there are some who have truly mastered the skill of Pinterest popularity while others may not know exactly how to go about it. If you are one of those who are unsure how to increase traffic to your brand’s Pinterest, no need to worry! Luckily, we are here to tell you how.
Have organized boards Nobody enjoys sifting through unorganized things, so why would they enjoy unorganized Pinterest boards? Each board should feature different images pertaining to the theme of the board. It can be helpful to refine your boards as much as you can. For example, if you are a clothing company, you may have a board strictly for summer clothing. However, you could take that one board and divide it into different boards such as shorts, tanks, sandals, and swimsuits. You refine the original board so it becomes easier for your followers to find what they are looking for. By doing this, you will stand a better chance of being found and followed by your specific target audience.
Stay in the loop with trending topics
Trending topics are the word that are getting searched on the site, and if you have a pin in that category you will more than likely bring in more followers to your boards. According to reports, pins related to trending topics see an average 94 percent increase in click-throughs. This kind of traffic would be significant to obtaining followers on Pinterest, therefore, staying in the loop with what is trending is beneficial. So pay attention to what keywords are ranking on Google for your industry and what’s going on on other social networks.
Post frequently to your most followed board
You will want to post most frequently to those boards that you find to be most successful. Since more people are following these boards, your chances for repins will be higher, which will then also lead to more followers. Easily see which boards are producing the most buzz for your brand by looking at your board reports on your Tailwind dashboard.
Promote your Pinterest through social media
There are several ways to build your Pinterest followers through the use of social media. You can have your brand’s Twitter and/or Facebook account linked to your Pinterest so that way your followers on those social media networks can be directed to your Pinterest page. If they already follow you on other social media networks, chances are they will follow you on Pinterest as well.
Hopefully you find these tips useful while trying to increase traffic to your Pinterest page. Happy Pinning!
Instagram alone has over 300 million monthly active users. It’s visibility and popularity amongst other social media networks make it a great tool for businesses looking to grow their brand. Instagram’s video feature provides an even better marketing platform. Videos are one of the best ways to connect with customers because they are more entertaining and appealing to your audience. Here are some ways your brand can be more successful with Instagram video.
Show upcoming products
Say you have an upcoming product release. Maybe you do not want to spoil everything about the new product, but with an Instagram video you can produce a “coming soon” 15 second movie trailer for your audience. This will spike interest in your consumers and create excitement around the launch of your products.
Go behind the scenes
Show your audience what a normal day is like at your business. Show them how products are made or what it takes to prepare for an upcoming event you’re planning to promote your business. This will give your audience insight on what your business actually does to be successful.
Bring entertainment
Even if you do not consider yourself a class clown, find a coworker who is and film them pulling a friendly prank on someone else in the office. This will make your business more relatable to your audience. You can also promote your brand in other entertaining ways. For example, when the ALS ice bucket challenge went viral, many employees from different brands filmed themselves taking the challenge. This not only was for a good cause, but was entertaining for different brands’ followers to watch.
Show your customers
User generated content is a huge trend in content marketing right now, so go ahead and jump on board. If you hold a contest, post a video of your customer using the product they won. Depending on the type of product your brand sells you can post videos of your customers, their kids, their pets, etc. This will show your audience how your brand makes a connection with customers.
Instagram Video Pros:
Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream In this video, Ben & Jerry’s show their followers how one of their flavors is made in their “Flavor Lab”.
Nike
In this video, Nike is promoting one of their upcoming products at the time to their followers.
PetCo In this video, PetCo shows their customers (a dog and it’s owner), purchasing products together.
These are just a few of many brands who have rocked the Instagram video feature to grow their business. Hopefully these tips and examples will help you too. Can’t wait to see you on the small screen!
Unleash the power of Tailwind for Instagram!
– Get more likes with our smart schedule
– Easily Regram with our browser extension
– Save hours with our intuitive desktop & mobile apps
– Post smarter with profile and post analytics
Do you think you can pin 10 Pins in 10 Seconds? It all depends on how fast you can type and click, however, here at Tailwind we can make bulk pinning and scheduling simple for you.
Step 1: Press the Tailwind Publisher at the top right hand corner of the window.
Step 2:
Whether you’re on Pinterest or a blog click through all 10 images you wish to pin and they will be highlighted with a light blue frame.
Step 3:
At the bottom of the page you should see all 10 images you selected. In the bottom right corner, press the “Go Schedule” button.
Step 4:
A new window will appear where you will type in which board you want the 10 pins to be placed. Once you have done that, press “Save for Later” at the top right corner of the window.
Step 5:
You will now need to log-in to your Tailwind account and press on the “Drafts” tab on the left side of your dashboard. You will see all 10 pins you selected previously on Pinterest.
Step 6:
When you validate that all 10 pins are there, you can now schedule your pins by pressing the “Schedule All Drafts” button at the bottom right hand corner of the window.
Step 7: Double check that all pins have been scheduled and you’re all finished! …See that wasn’t so bad.
Here’s a video in case the pictures above just aren’t cutting it for you:
https://youtu.be/6aYBfZJIsDY
Even if you were a little over 10 seconds, no need to worry, you’ll improve with each pinning spree! Happy Pinning!
If you still haven’t tried Instagram marketing for your company, now is the time. There are over 300 million users on Instagram who discover various companies and their content through this app daily. Instagram is the perfect way to promote your brand and reach your target consumer in an easy and fun way.
Create Unique Pictures
One of the best ways to intrigue Instagram users to follow your account is to post creative, unique, and fun photos. Take advantage of the editing tools Instagram offers, come up with fun, witty captions, and most importantly think outside the box. For example, Taco Bell posted a picture of a wreath made up of Taco Bell Sauce packets during the 2013 Christmas season. They incorporated their product with something relatable to their followers. Taco Bell is one of many companies known for providing a variety of pictures and creative depictions of their products.
Interact With Your Followers
Interacting with your followers is another golden rule you’ll need to abide by in order to master marketing on Instagram. When your followers tag you in their photos or mention you in a comment, it is smart to acknowledge as many of them as you can. This way, your followers will have a sense of appreciation because you liked or commented on their photo they tagged you in or you re-posted their original picture of your product or brand giving them a special shoutout. Genuinely connecting with your customers will keep them happy and love your product or service even more.
Use hashtags
The use of hashtags is one of the most important features of Instagram. This is how majority of people will find your account through their Instagram searches. You need to take advantage of popular and trending hashtags in your posts, however do not over do it or you’ll seem desperate. Be sure to use hashtags that include your company name along with having creative hashtags that people will associate with your company if you ever run contests or campaigns. The use of hashtags also encourages customers to take pictures showing how your product fits into their daily lives, creating a vast photo record of fans’ interaction with the brand.
Host Contests
One of the fastest ways to gain followers almost instantly is to host a contest through Instagram. You will catch your followers’ attention by providing some type of prize for whoever has the most likes on a photo or has the best photo of your choice. As discussed earlier, you need to create a type of hashtag your followers can use when they upload their pictures, so not only can you view them, but the rest of the world can too. Once your followers post a picture promoting your brand, it starts a chain reaction. Their followers see the post, they become intrigued, then they will post, and so on. Even if they do not win the prize, they are still following you for upcoming give aways or promoted products.
Take a Look at the Professionals
The best way to figure out what could work for your brand or company is to peek in on what the best accounts are doing. Below is a list on the Top 10 Fortune 500 companies with the most Instagram followers and photos via heidicohen.com. Look at how these companies run their accounts from how they interact with their followers to how they use creativity when promoting their products and brand through pictures.
These are just a few tips for you to market your business in a creative and compelling way on Instagram. Go out and try these tips to see what works best for you to maximize your brand and company on Instagram.
Unleash the power of Tailwind for Instagram!
– Get more likes with our smart schedule
– Easily Regram with our browser extension
– Save hours with our intuitive desktop & mobile apps
– Post smarter with profile and post analytics
Pinterest is different than any other social media network. While other social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter focus on news updates and your friend’s statuses about how they need another cup of coffee, Pinterest users log on to find inspiration for a new recipe, place to travel, craft to make, or product to buy. Users can also see advertisements from their favorite brands and companies automatically in their feed thanks to what is known as “Promoted Pins.” However, smaller companies have not been able to apply for this feature on Pinterest until recently.
On January 1st, 2015 Pinterest announced that anyone can now apply to use their Promoted Pins. Advertisers who want their target consumers to try something new, whether its a product, event or anything else need to apply for Pinterest’s Promoted Pins. While Pinterest’s competitors have been advertising for years, Pinterest has the upper-hand because it provides it’s users the ability to create boards for products they want to buy, or information on places they want to travel. These advertisments work just like regular pins, only they have a special “promoted” label, along with a link to learn more about what that means.The best part is that they look exactly like regular pins on Pinterest (see below). This way users do not become frustrated with annoying pop-up ads that open to a new tab.
According to Cnet.com, Joanne Bradford, Pinterest’s Head of Partnerships, said a test was ran in June on a handful of companies using the Promoted Pins.
“Tens of millions of people have added more than 30 billion Pins to Pinterest and brands are a big part of this…Brands help people find inspiration and discover things they care about, whether it’s ideas for dinner, places to go or gifts to buy. We hope Promoted Pins give businesses of all sizes a chance to connect with more Pinners.”
Different brand advertisers see Promoted Pins “re-pinned,” or shared by users, an average of 11 times per advertisement. That means that every advertisement will be seen, on average, by 30 percent more people than the brand had originally paid to show it because users have shared the advertisement with friends by “re-pinning.”
Long story short – If you want to reach out to potential consumers, Promoted Pins are the way to go. You can target certain demographics and reach customers who are searching for or have shown some type of interest in what your company offers.
You can apply to advertise through Promoted Pins on Pinterest here.
Social media marketing mistakes are easy to make and easy for employers to find. It offers a very public insight to our lives and if we aren’t careful, our status updates and pictures could come back to haunt us. Here are some of the most common mistakes people make that turn employers away:
1. You do not believe that people will Google you: If you type in your full name on Google and the first image that comes up is of you participating in drinking games, you more than likely won’t land that dream job you’ve worked so hard for. According to TheUndercoverRecruiter.com, 69% of employers did not hire a candidate because of what they found on their social networking sites. Although it is important to market yourself through social media for future employers to see, it is also important to be cautious about what they could potentially find.
2. You are unaware of privacy setting options:
Most, if not all, social media networks have privacy settings. You can limit status updates and pictures for only your family and friends to see instead of the entire world. Privacy settings do give us more privacy, however, be aware that anything you post online always has the chance to go viral. It is better to play it safe and not post anything that could come back to haunt you. If you don’t know where to change your privacy settings on your different social media accounts, here are the following: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Now, go on and make sure you have permission to be tagged or untagged in those photos from last weekend.
3. You bash current/previous employers:
You may not always be a fan of everything your boss does but venting out 140 characters on Twitter will not get you anywhere. Employers will be searching for this type of information on your profiles because they wouldn’t want to hire someone who won’t have any respect for them either. You don’t have to like everyone you work with but make sure you keep those opinions to yourself.
4. You give too much information:
We all have that friend who posts what seems to be a play-by-play of his or her entire life on social media. If you don’t have that friend, then you’re probably that person to your friends. No one needs to know every thing you buy, or everywhere you’ve been. Everything you do throughout the day is not important to most people. This can lead future employers to assume that you do not use your time as productively as you should be.
When all else fails, use common sense and good judgment. On the bright side, employers are also looking for reasons to hire you. If you use your social media networks to reflect your skills, character, and expertise you could land the job you always wanted.