Is Instagram Worth Your While?
Instagram’s success and popularity stem from its visual nature.
While people only remember 10% of what they hear and 20% of what they read, they recall 80% of what they see (1).
Online shoppers are more likely to remember content that is visually appealing, which makes Instagram a great avenue to build your brand. People spend an average of 28 minutes per day on Instagram, scrolling past photo after photo (2). The visual allure of pictures makes it easy to spend long bouts of time on the app.
Applying Instagram to Your Business
If you’re wondering if Instagram users even care if your dealership is on the app, they do! In fact, 90% of users follow at least one brand account (3). When brands post about their business and culture, it gives consumers a behind-the scenes look and helps them develop a sense of familiarity. Post photos of your store, team, events and even day-to-day occurrences to help your followers connect with you on a more personal level.
Instagram is highly useful to help your dealership engage with shoppers because it creates opportunities to develop an audience following and interact with potential customers. Unlike Facebook or LinkedIn, Instagram users adopt a more casual browsing style; they aren’t using the app to actively shop for inventory so much as to view industry-related images and gain an understanding of your brand’s culture. Instagram sees an average rate of 1.6% engagement per post (compared to Facebook’s .09%) (4). This could be due in part to the brain processing images much faster than it does text, which makes it easier for consumers to understand and enjoy visual content. Instagram posts also tend to be more entertainment-based versus promotional.
However, Instagram does give you the opportunity to promote your dealership: The shoppers who follow your Instagram page are more likely to visit your website, increasing your incoming traffic.
Instagram Best Practices
Following best practices for Instagram is essential to running a successful strategy on the app:
- Post regularly: Businesses need to post a few times a week in order to grow their audience following.
- Include hashtags: Hashtags are like breadcrumbs that lead Instagram users to your posts. They increase your engagement, and by using a consistent hashtag, you can lead your audience to more of your posts. However, don’t stuff your posts with any and every hashtag – keep them relevant and create some unique hashtags that are specific to your business, such as your dealership name.
- Add a location tag: Posts that include a location tag see higher engagement because they attract local shoppers. Tag your dealership’s city in your posts to make your store more visible to people in your area.
Running an active Instagram account can help your dealership strengthen its online presence and connect with shoppers who are visually motivated. Instagram can also get consumers excited to visit your website or drop by your store, increasing both kinds of traffic!
Looking to start an Instagram account but not sure how to grow your followers? Connect with Dealer Spike today to chat with our social media experts.
(1) Medium
(2) TechJury
(3) Hootsuite
(4) SproutSocial