Let’s talk Instagram. You are on it, right? You love to post pics and “heart” those family vacation photos? Maybe you’ve even posted a picture of your fancy dinner or a selfie with friends. If so, you are one of 800 million active Instagram users!
Those 800 million users don’t just follow their favorite people though. 80% of users follow a business Instagram account.
That’s a whole lot of people who are looking at products, services, corporate branding, and marketing messages. In fact, 60% of people say they discover new products on Instagram.
How to Set Up an Instagram Business Profile
Those stats I mentioned above make a strong case for getting your business on Instagram. Whether your company already has an account, or you’re going to do it right after reading this blog, make sure you get the set-up right. ????
First, make sure you have a Business Instagram account. Do this right away if you are starting a new profile, or convert your existing account if you’ve had it for a while.
Why have your business on an official Business Instagram vs a regular account? Here’s why –
- Access to Insights (data- for example, how many people see your posts)
- Connect it with your Business Facebook Page
- List phone number and website in your profile
- The ability to create promotions (advertisements) out of your posts
Set Up Your Profile
Our Instagram Business profile settings
The first thing you want to do is set up or maximize your profile.
NAME & USERNAME
Your Username is what follows the “@” symbol and is your official Instagram handle. Make sure your Username is searchable and makes sense to your customers. You are limited to 30 characters for your username, so you may be tempted to get creative and abbreviate words or use symbols. Be as clear as possible about who you are when you create your username.
Fill in your Name completely (you have more room in this area). Your business name, spelled commonly, is best for this section. You want people to easily find you when they type your business name into the search bar.
PROFILE PIC
You have a little tiny circle for your profile pic, so chose something that is business focused and relevant to who you are and what you do.
BIO
Your profile bio is your chance to highlight who or what your business is. Give it a business focus and include any brand hashtag(s) you use. Make sure people know why they should follow you and how they can find out more about your business.
If your business requires TWO Instagram accounts (hey, we don’t judge your business needs), Instagram has recently introduced a way to link accounts and hashtags in the bio.
Your bio will also support the use of emojis or extra spaces to make it eye-catching and easy to read.
It’s also important to include a call to action if you can. The bio limit is small, only 150 characters. Pack the most punch in the fewest letters, numbers, and pound signs.
CATEGORY
Your Business Instagram will pull the category automatically from whatever is on the Facebook Business page. Double check to make sure it’s correct and edit on Facebook if you need to.
BUSINESS INFORMATION
Within the profile set-up, you will see “Contact Options” with an arrow to the right. Click on this, and you will see a place for filling in:
- Phone
- Address
Filling these spaces in will create buttons in your profile for people click to contact you, or if you provide an address, a map to your business.
If you’ve made it this far, you have the tools you need to set up an amazing Business Instagram profile. We can’t wait to see your pictures!