Instagram has been a hot social app since its debut. There are more than five million users on the social network, despite the network’s almost exclusive mobile usage. Instagram is more than just a collection of photos. Unlike Pinterest, it can be essential to a digital marketer’s strategy. However, monetizing Instagram hasn’t been a slam dunk for all marketers.

Instagram is no longer just a place to scroll through your friend’s baby pictures. It’s a place where consumers can more intimately connect with celebrities, bloggers and brands. That personal connection makes Instagram the perfect place to promote products and services. Learn more about monetizing Instagram in 2017.

2017 Instagram Marketing Tips

If you can’t handle managing Instagram in house, look to a professional agency for monetizing Instagram. Vibbi specializes in Instagram-related marketing and strategies, offer services and tools to help you improve that aspect of your business strategy. Instagram promotes your brand, backs up your content and keeps you on top of the latest trends – making it worth your marketing dollars and manpower.

Newness is key. In order to stay relevant and top of mind with your followers, it’s important to publish new content regularly. The quality of the photos you post is important to your success. Diversify the content you post, but don’t over-post. Posting too many photos a day can lead to unfollows. While you’ll want to promote your products, it’s important to post about other related subjects as well.

Use hashtags no matter how lame you think they are. We all have that one friend who posts twenty hashtags with each post. While it may seem lame to you, hashtags do work. Without hashtags you make it difficult for users to find you on Instagram. With proper hashtagging you can target people searching for the products or services you are promoting.

One of the biggest issues with building a brand with Instagram is the inability to post product URLs. This prevents everyone from bloggers to big brands from driving sales. According to Mizzen+Main CMO Jen Lavelle, bigger brands like Target already have this capability, allowing them to post a photo and link product URLs. “It creates an amazing customer experience, and it’s something we hope to be able to offer in the near future. It’s an awesome way to let your customers buy something straight from Instagram without navigating away from the native application.”

What do you think about Instagram as a marketing tool? Has it worked for you? How have you made it work? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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