3 Skills a Marketer Should Have to Master Instagram

Mastering Instagram today is not such a hard thing. You have plenty of educational resources and other third party apps that can help you do whatever you want.

I believe that almost everyone can start an Instagram account for a business and do the job very well. More of that, even Instagram is giving resources and case studies from where marketers can get inspiration..

But what if I told you that mastering the Instagram game is more than just using some third party apps or reading a lot about what others do?

Every time I have the opportunity to talk with someone who uses Instagram for their business I’m very curious about the person and not about their business strategy, what hashtags they use or other technical parts.

I’m curious about how does that social marketer create the strategy, about the brand and also about the app. For example, I heard from a social media marketer that he’s taking his inspiration from David Carson, who is the father of Grunge art movement.

And also I love to talking to Instagrammers, who are not really into the Instagram marketing for business angle but use the platform constantly. I’m curious what they do to keep their head in the game and how they are doing it.

In fact, I’m more curious about the person behind the brand then the brand itself.

So after talking with a few of specialists and also a few power users, came to the point where I can say that you need to have minimum 5 skills to master the Instagram game.

1. Research

The road to have success on Instagram is paved with a great strategy and plan!

So, if you want to be a master of the Instagram Game you should start thinking about doing some research.

I recommend you to research this 4 key points:

• Competitors: Who are they? What are they posting? How are they posting on Instagram? How do they communicate with their community? When do they post?
• Influencers: Who are the influencers in your industry? What are they posting? Do they use more photos or videos? What are the most common hashtags they use?
• Community: Who can be your community? What are their hobbies? What others brands do they like?
• Hashtags: What are the most used hashtags in your industry? Who uses them? How relevant can they be for your business?

If you want to master the Instagram Game, you should look at this platform differently than your friends or family. That’s because you want to gain some results, maybe some conversions, more than some likes and comments.

Research is not only a one time practice.

You should be in a constant research when you are about to embark into Instagram. Every time you open the app, start scrolling down your feed, this is when you do research. Not so hard, is it?

Research on Instagram is something you should do constantly.

2. Copywriting

Copywriting is an important skill for every marketer who wants to gain more on Instagram. Writing better captions enables you to convert more users into followers or even customers.

But that doesn’t mean that you need to invest more in copywriting and less in creating visual content, such as photo or video.

From time to time I find myself having the copywriting block. I have no idea what to write on a picture when I want to upload it on Instagram. So what am I doing? I start looking at the ones I’m following and observe their approach on writing captions, what language they use, if they ask questions or not. This helped me have a clear idea on what I want from the content I want to upload on my profile.

As Shirley Polykoff said:

Copy is a direct conversation with the consumer.

So make your caption count in every photo or video you are preparing on Instagram.

3. Communicator

This is what Instagram is about. It’s not only a platform where you can post a photo, edit a photo, or post a video you shot with Boomerang.

Instagram it’s about how you communicate with the ones who are following you.

For example, if you are a photograph who loves traveling and exploring new places but you also want to connect more with your followers you should start talking with each of the ones commenting to your photo or video.

Even more, you should start embracing Instagram Stories. I wrote about the 6 ways on how brands can use Instagram Stories but I believe that personal accounts can also take leverage from this strategy.

So, if you want to master the Instagram Game I recommend you to start talking with your followers.. Let them know that you’ve seen their comments and just hit them a reply.

If their Direct Message you, send them a reply. It takes you a few seconds, but it means a lot to your followers!

Let them know that you are here for them.

Communication is the key!

Conclusion on How to Master Instagram

Research – Copywriting – Communication.

Instagram is not only about beautiful pictures with sunsets or cups of coffee next to Macbooks. Instagram is a place where people spend their time to get inspired and also to communicate with other users.

Now back to you, let me know which one of these 3 skills you want to start developing and how you will do it.

And if you’re looking to create an Instagram strategy, check out this video below!

Photo by UX Indonesia on Unsplash

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