Finding the right social media platform for your business or brand depends on your goals, niche, your own skills, unique voice, and other factors.
But you might be realizing that online networking services like Twitter, and even Facebook, aren’t what users prefer that much anymore. What’s more, it’s not where the money is.
The places to crush it now are Snapchat, Pinterest, and – of course- Instagram.
I’ll now focus on the third, because I find it fascinating, and millions of individuals and businesses have found unique and creative ways to build a massive following, make a ton of money, and get numerous leads to their websites or product pages every single day.
If you haven’t really thought about it, for you Instagram might be just a photo (and now short video) sharing platform, where users upload pics all the time, use filters and hashtags, and connect with each other.
Well, there’s more behind that.
It used to be just that in the beginning, but became the most popular tool used to take instant pictures and share them with friends and the world. In fact, ever since 2010 it’s been growing and is now one of the most dominant social media channels ever.
500 million people are using the app actively every month. It was bought by Zuckerberg for $1 billion 18 months after it was created.
So that should make us pay more attention to it. All types of people are there, and so should we if we want to improve our brands, sell our products, reach out to customers and influencers in the niche, and – ultimately – make money.
Top Reasons Why Instagram is Crushing It
Free to use
No ads
The founders were very clear about that from the beginning, and even Zuck followed their philosophy. And although some brands have the chance to advertise now, Instagram is still one of the few places you can go to where you won’t see ads.
Aesthetics
Photos themselves are a more pleasant way to communicate, to share details about your life, to promote what you have to offer, to ask questions, etc. And the filters the service offers make them even more beautiful.
Almost any account you’ll see that has a big following, is aesthetically pleasing. Brands and influencers have a content strategy, follow a pattern and make their whole feed a work of art.
Instagram managed to make daily life classier and much more attractive.
Engagement
Another cool thing about it is that people are actually engaged. Unlike Twitter, for instance, your old posts won’t be forgotten.
People still find them through hashtags, or by scrolling down when opening your profile. What’s more, Instagram users like, comment and follow all the time.
The platform never sleeps. The more you use it, the more engagement you get back in return.
Simple interface
Speed
You can quickly take a photo, make it look better with a filter, and post it. It’s then immediately visible to others and you start receiving feedback.
Fun
People don’t really like to read text, but pictures are a source of information everyone is hungry for. Y
ou might see individuals promote their services, share quotes, remind about upcoming events or ask questions in the form of photos. People love anything visual, and on Instagram, you get a huge amount of that.
It makes you feel special
We all want that one way or another. And Instagram managed to do it in multiple ways.
First, we feel like professional photographers to some extent because we can make our photos way more beautiful than they actually are. Which also turns our daily life into a creative experience and others see it this way too.
Second, we can gain a lot of followers and likes in no time by consistently posting valuable or eye-pleasing content and using hashtags, and thus we become popular.
Then, we scratch the itch for telling people what we do during the day in a way that doesn’t seem like we’re bragging. Instagram allows us to do that by taking a quick picture of our meal, recent purchase, the place we’re at, the book we’re reading, and more.
Lately, however, the platform is becoming a leading advertising channel for brands, and also a fantastic way to become an influencer and make a fortune.
It’s crazy how some people became known simply by posting a specific type of photos on their feed and gathered a following without even realizing.
Soon after that, they monetized it, either by sponsored content (promoting other people’s accounts or products), or selling something they created (by using a single link in their bio to send people to the sales page).
What’s the conclusion?
That you must be on Instagram. You must find your niche, set goals, have a strategy and be consistent until you build an audience and decide how to monetize it.
At the same time, you’ll be learning what works best, will be having fun, and making friends along the way.
