6 reasons why Instagram is perfect for your business

Instagram is a mobile app that allows users to instantly take and/or upload photos and quickly edit them using a unique set of filters and a branded tilt-shift feature (3-D effect) that sets them apart from the rest. It’s gained popularity faster than any other mobile app, and is very likely the reason why the person in line next to you at Starbuck’s is snapping a picture of the pastry box for no apparent reason. Instagram is addictive and has a whole nation of iPhone and Android users hooked. And where the public goes, your business must follow.

If you are the owner of your company and/or the person responsible for the brand and social networks, you must know the 6 reasons why Instagram is perfect for your business:

1. Instagram is instant

There’s no need to wait until you return to your home or office to take full advantage of Instagram for branding. Using your iPhone or Android, take the photo, edit, upload, add a comment (remember the #hashtag keywords), and share from your brand profile in seconds.

2. No duplicate accounts needed

Unlike Facebook and Google+, where you have to set up an extensive personal profile before you can set up a brand page, you can go directly as a brand on Instagram without any consequences. It’s a fairly easy setup process.

3. Everyone has an inner photographer.

Many business owners are at a loss when it comes to using social media to grow their customer base for the most part because they don’t have a way with words or don’t know how to hone their creative juices for content marketing. But everyone likes to take photos, and let’s face it, almost all of us feel we have a gift behind the camera. While darkroom results often prove otherwise, easy and foolproof Instagram editing will, in fact, make it the herbal rhythms content marketing of your product/service.

4. Makes your brand look interesting

This is the best thing about using Instagram to showcase your product/service. Instagram filters make office supply vendors, garbage collection services, and even internet marketers look cool. Use Instagram to showcase your product/service and even your corporate culture by capturing candid moments in the office. Instagram albums give brands personality in a way that no other sharing network has been able to do so far.

5. Create a location page for your business

Google Places and the new Google+ local pages for businesses have shown the importance of having a physical location attached to your brand’s online presence. Instagram’s integration with Foursquare’s location database allows you to geotag the location the photo was taken from (i.e. your place of work), allowing you to add it to the location page on Instagram. If users search for photos based on their location and see a product of yours that appeals to them within their area, you may have a new customer. If a location is not listed, you can add your business to the Instagram/Foursquare database.

6. It is easier to get followers

Because you can’t post links on Instagram, your audience won’t feel like they’re getting spammed when they follow your brand account. If you frequently post interesting images featuring your product service on Instagram, customers are more likely to follow you there than on any other social network. It will be easier for you to build brand recognition with a larger fan base. Because Instagram easily links to your Facebook and Twitter accounts, it helps those social networks grow for you, too. However, the same social media marketing rules apply: engage (comment and like) and follow your customers FIRST. On Instagram, they actually follow me.

Conclusion:

While it doesn’t provide the linking opportunities that many Internet marketers are too obsessed with, Instagram is the easiest and most fun-to-use social sharing network out there and can be a tremendous tool for building your company’s brand image and in gaining brand recognition with its online customer base.