Instagram Marketing is a Marathon, Not a Sprint
You probably heard the phrase “It’s a marathon, not a sprint” applied to a wide range of situations. Anything that requires some sort of long-term commitment and devotion to excellence and quality over time is a fair game, as far as the saying is concerned. Make no mistake, great relationships require that you stick to somebody regardless of what you feel. Marketing on Instagram is no different
Marketing is about building relationships
Think of all the aspects that can affect your personal relationships with your friends and family on a daily basis. Maybe you woke up on the wrong side of the bed, and you snap at them. Maybe you’re fine, but for whatever reason, today they’re not all that nice to you at all. Or maybe you are in sync with everyone – and everything is smooth sailing. There are all sorts of things going on around you that can affect your relationship. However, I bet you do not throw away your relationships if you have a bad day. Despite all of that, whether these threats come from inside or outside, you have to stick to it: this is commitment. This is all about dedication and seeing something all the way through, from the beginning through the middle to the end. Instagram marketing is one of these things.
It’s easy to get tricked into thinking that marketing success simply boils down to getting the right kind of software to do the right kind of job; to produce the right kind of outcomes for the right kind of people at the right time, at the right place. How awesome the world would be if things were that easy. Unfortunately, the world is not some sort of height of sales page, it is the real world. Just like anything that is real, there are all sorts of complications out there and the consequences that you really need to be mindful. Otherwise, it’s too easy to fall into a mindset that things should be quick, easy and convenient.
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The sacrifice is worth it
Anything that is worth having in life is worth sacrificing for. What exactly are you sacrificing? You’re sacrificing your sense of entitlement to things being quick, easy, and convenient. That’s what’s going on when people say that something is a marathon, not a sprint. Instagram marketing is one of these because if you have ever gotten excited about Instagram you know that it takes work.
Stay Focused On The End Game – Success With Instagram Marketing!
It’s easy to see the upside. It’s easy to see the potential, after all, Instagram has over one billion active users and 500 million active users month after month. These are people who can’t help but look for their social media updates. It’s as if, they live, eat, breathe and go to the bathroom using Instagram. Given that tremendous traffic potential it’s easy to just jump in with both feet and look for the quick payout. How hard could it be? It’s all about getting clicks to your profile page so you can direct that traffic to where you wanted to go. Unfortunately, playing the game that way leads to disappointment. You have to understand that there is no one-time, big-time strategy here. You cannot focus on short-term success. If you did that, you’re going to put yourself in a one-way ticket to failure.
It will be worth it!
Make no mistake, Instagram marketing requires a tremendous commitment of your time, focus and attention to details because of the following: First, you will be focusing on patterns. These patterns won’t happen overnight. These patterns only take place when you have enough traction. This means that you have to put in work over an extended period; you have to focus on the long-term. It’s easy to declare victory when you notice that the certain patterns that lead to your website are really converting well, but it may turn out to be some sort of statistical fluke. It may be a mirage in a big scheme; the things that you’re actually doing is wrong. It may need quite a bit of improvement. Finally, if you want to be successful on Instagram, you have to position your brand the right way. Again, this takes time, effort and sustained focus.
Master the One-two Punch of Instagram Marketing
Instagram marketing is a lot like boxing. Whether we’re talking about Muhammad Ali or Manny Pacquiao it all boils down to the combination. You know that Pacquiao’s going to knock you out when you let him set up a combination. It’s only a matter of time until he unleashes his devastating southpaw punch on you. You better hope that you’re in for a soft landing, otherwise, you might be putting your life in danger. The same applies to Mike Tyson. In fact, Mike Tyson can unleash quite a bit of an uppercut. We’re talking about not just putting people to sleep, but we’re talking about putting people into long-term sleep in hospitals. That’s right, I’m talking about a comma.
Timing Matters
I discussed one-two punches in this Instagram marketing article to highlight the point that if you set up your messaging in such a way, you can knock out your audience members and deliver to them the kind of information they need at the right time, at the right place to produce the right results with the right people, and get the right outcome that you’re looking for. The right outcome in this case, of course, means profit. That’s the bottom-line, it’s all about dollars and cents.
How To Get It Done
So, how exactly do you pull this off? The one-two punch is set this way, you draw people in through high-quality posts on Instagram. You dump that traffic onto an article that speaks to the needs of those people. This article establishes credibility in your brand and approves that you know what you what you’re talking about. When people become truly interested in whatever it is that you are to offer, they would click for an inner page because they want to know more. The deeper they get into your page, the more interested they are.
Eventually, you would try to convert that traffic into a squeeze page conversion or a mailing list conversion. That’s how it works because it’s your mailing list that will do the heavy lifting. See how this works? The one-two punch is all about posting high-quality content targeted to a niche on Instagram, getting those people to click on the link on your profile page and then hitting them hard with your inner pages. That’s the one-two punch of Instagram marketing.
The Secret – Reverse Engineering Your Instagram Marketing Efforts
What is the secret to all of these? Well, the secret is you don’t have to break out in a sweat. You don’t have to figure this out from the get-go or come up with a hot new idea out of nowhere. You only need to improve on your competitor’s best content. I’m talking about reverse engineering them.
Do the same. Replicate their content, come up with a better version, and then replicate their distribution channels. This means that you’re going to share your content with certain accounts and you’re also going to use certain hashtags. Finally, you use this primary content on your site to lead people to conversion. Maybe they’re going to buy something, enter their E-mail address to join your mailing list, or download some sort of server. Whatever the case may be, it’s all about conversion, conversion, conversion.
Don’t Let the Fear of Fake Influencers Keep you from Instagram Success
Like the old saying goes, “Burn me once, shame on you, burn me twice, shame on me.” This saying is really what’s animating on other people’s misapprehension regarding influencers on Instagram. You probably heard the phrase “Instagram influencers” for quite some time now. Unless, you’ve been hiding under a rock, you should know very well that Instagram can deliver a tremendous amount of traffic. This is not some empty statistic, mind you, this is traffic that actually converts.
How much are we talking about? Well, there is no shortage of online store owners who make tens of thousands of dollars a month after month like clockwork, simply because they got in touch with the right influencers. What are these influencers do? These are accounts being followed on Instagram that people simply pay attention to, that’s really where it all boils down. It’s all about credibility and authority of these people when they post a new photo of some sort of alcoholic drink, some article of clothing, or even pet dogs, their followers just go crazy.
The Power Of Influence
It’s not a surprise that Kim Kardashian is able to charge thousands of dollars for one picture post, because that post is enough to generate a tremendous amount of buzz. Not only that she directly calls people to action who are actually following her own Instagram but there are all sorts of media buzz created, blog posts are written, new press releases are produced. Any simple acts by such mega celebrities on social media are often trigger a chain reaction of direct and indirect marketing. The bottom-line is influencers do produce results.
Unfortunately, finding the real influencers that you can afford can be very challenging, why? Since the world came up, advertisers such as yourself are willing to pay top dollar for influencers. There are all sorts of fake influencers accounts coming up all over social media, I’m not just talking about Instagram, I’m talking across the board: Google+, Pinterest, Twitter, you name it. What makes this so dangerous is the fact that their followers are also fake. Finding real influencers can be a challenge.
Tips For Finding Real Influencers
The good news is that this is easier than you think. You really just have to put in the time and pay attention to the right details. What you should pay attention to? One thing and one thing alone: engagement. Look at the total number of followers that an account has and look at the average number of engagements that person’s post gets. If you do the math, you should be able to come up with some sort of ranking system between different accounts. You should also pay attention to the kind of commercial posts that they published. If they give you a tremendous amount of leeway then go for them, assuming that their followers are real.
Keep these steps in mind because this can lead to you making a tremendous amount of money, thanks to Instagram. It really all boils down to unleashing the power of real influence. The key phrase, of course, is “real influence” if you want to take your Instagram Marketing to the next level. After reading the information above, you should have enough knowledge that you can tell real players from fake ones.
You will Fail on Instagram if you Don’t Choose To Brand
There’s an old saying that goes along the lines that if you do not have a brand, you have a commodity. You probably don’t need me to explain to you why it’s about idea to compete based on commodities. Commodities are interchangeable goods. A sack of rice of a certain variety will be a sack of rice, regardless of where you buy it, when you buy it, whom you buy it from, or a set of circumstances surrounding your purchase it’s still going to be that sack of rice. The same applies to corn, wheat, pork bellies, chicken or what have you. These are commodities, but there is only one difference that you can compete on, that’s the difference in course price.
Your Brand Distinguishes You
Again, you probably don’t need me to remind you that competing based on price is a way ticket to failure. You need price competition as much as you need another hole in your head. As a producer that’s the last thing you want to see happen. Unfortunately, if you do not build the brand people are going to judge based on your price. Instagram is no different. You have to build the brand, otherwise whatever content you’re sharing would fall between the digital cracks. There’s really nothing to distinguish it from the rest of the content that’s out there. Your brand is just going to be another digital face in the crowd.
Help Your Audience Connect With You
Make no mistake, people follow brands. They’re looking for some sort of connection. They’re looking for some sort of persona that they feel can connect with their hopes, fears, dreams, aspirations and other worthy goals and attributes. In other words, people choose to become loyal to personas. People are not dumb. They know that the persona of Kim Kardashian on Instagram, social media and on TV is probably going to be very different from the real Kim K but people don’t care. People just what to see some sort of reality that they read into. That’s the cult of celebrity and this happens with brands all the time. If you do not play the game this way on Instagram, you are not going to be building your community. Chances are, you’re going to be positioning your brand for ultimate failure.
You have to understand that content expertise can only go so far. Sure, it’s a great thing that you know what you’re talking about. It is an amazing thing that people can bank on what you are saying, but you have to deliver something more. You have to go the extra mile. This is where branding comes in. If you don’t brand, you are generic. That’s the bottom-line. What’s so wrong about being generic? What’s so wrong about being, yet, another digital face in the crowd? It’s this simple, “If you are just another player, you are all too forgettable.” Forget about making money. Forget about breaking even or registering a profit. Forget about making a lasting impression. That’s just not going to happen if you don’t have a brand.
How to Call Instagram Users to Action the Right Way
As the old saying goes, you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him drink. How many times have you heard that saying? How many times does the idea of convincing people up to the last minute, only to fail had crossed your mind? I know that its distressing. It can definitely be downright frustrating. After all, it happens all the time and it really would suck to put in all the time, effort and attention to the details, only to come up with a whole lot of nothing.
Direct your audience to take action
The real problem here is one of the details. A lot of Instagram marketers focused on the big issues. They focused on saying the right things at the right time. They’re talking about using the right content and network of influential people. This is all well in good. They’re on the right track. They’re doing the right things, but the problem is they’re so focused on making sure that they go through their content quality checklist the right way, that they ignore one very important factor. It turns out that this is the decisive factor.
Be Direct
If you fail to call a person to action, you wasted all that time, effort and energy getting that person to pay attention to you and to believe you. It simply goes up in smoke or, if you prefer, you flushed it down the toilet. Regardless of the analogy, it’s all a waste. Really, it’s a waste! The sad fact is that too many Instagram marketers fail at the most crucial time. They fail to get the person that’s reading their content to take the right action.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that they did not try. I’m not saying that there is no absolutely any call-to-action text there. Unfortunately, when we study their call-to-action text, they might as well have left it out. It’s really is that bad. Why? Most of the stuff lack imagination. In efforts to master Instagram Marketing – think outside the box!
They say, “Click here, visit my profile page, check out my profile page for more information, click on the link to find out more.” You know what? People don’t care about that stuff. They really don’t, because they’ve seen that many times before and when they see that they blank out. It’s as if, you did not write that text; those words did not appear on the screen. They’re completely blind to it. Instead, you should focus on writing effecting call-to-action on your reverse engineered, high-performance content. What is this type call-to-action? It has to be specific to the content. You can’t keep copying and pasting, click on the link or check my profile. That doesn’t work.
Give your reader a reason to connect
Second, you have to get the reader excited about the content that your profile page contains. You’re going to be making promises. You’re going to be speaking to people’s fears, needs, and a sense of inadequacy. In other words, you are going to tap into psychological needs here, that’s why you have to as descriptive as possible. You can’t just go through the motions or spit out boilerplate text that is all too forgettable.
Finally, you have to speak to the needs of the reader. If you were able to do this, you were able to speak with authority. Why? Most of your competitors are simply going to the motions. They’re just going through a list, then they are just cranking out generic texts and it’s really not having much of an impact. It’s just a waste of time. It’s like talking to somebody who’s flapping his/her lips and not much of anything is going on. That’s how pointless it could be.
You are capable of so much more. You’re capable of much better results and that’s why you really have to speak to the needs of the reader. Unfortunately, nobody can figure this out for you. First of all, people are not mind readers. Second of all, you are in the best position to understand what the needs of your readers are.
Use that information. Use that position to come up with a text that truly call people to action because these can pay off tremendously. It really would be a shame to work this hard to get people to your page only to drop the ball at the very last moment.
Remember to take your time. Stay committed and connected and you will see results. Instagram Marketing will not lead to success instantly….but if done consistently, it will get there!
