Brands that rock Instagram.
Instagram:
Instagram is a very important social media platform for businesses and brands as it allows them to share their products, highlight experiences and connect with customers, with over 800 million monthly users. It allows a brand to tell a story to the public and gain an emotional connection with the brand’s audience. Its the perfect way to build relationships with the customer and gain feedback through comments on posts. This ever-growing social media platform should be apart of every brand’s business plan.
Whats Instagram about?
It allows users to upload and explore content/images. Its all about content exploration, curation and content control. Both regular people and brands access this platform and it allows them to express their feelings and goals. Instagram is all about engaging and being visually stimulating. Both brands and people can engage and this is why more and more brands are turning to Instagram as an important digital platform.
According to Business.com, it allows for business to engage and be creative. The facts it has a range of mobility it is thriving on the market.
Content Strategy:
- Brands must make sure they pay attention to how often they post and when they post their content. Every brand needs to post regularly to maintain its relevance and be kept mainstream but they need to keep in mind that they cant over-post as it will viewers bored and angry about too much content, seeing content too much can be very annoying. Brands must also pick certain times to post so that its relevant to the audience and so that it works best for the business.
- Changing the use of themes is also important for a brand. Changing different themes will keep content and visuals interesting for followers and viewers, it will help you attract more followers due to the creativity aspect of your brands
- Brands must have different style takes on different topics and different posts. All brands will have different style techniques such as hashtags, emojis and use of imagery. This is how a brand can be separated from another and allows them to be consistent.
- Brands must be engaging with followers on Instagram. They must reply to comments and get customers engaging and talking about their products/services. This engagement is a huge must for brands on Instagram
This interesting video shows the importance and how clever Instagram can really be:
Brands:
One brand that really uses Instagram well is Tesla, the motor vehicle company. They have a very visually appealing but also informative and engaging through different posts daily. Their content is very detailing and it highlights the small but very interesting details about their car ranges, they really show what they offer for customers
They also include very engaging imagery that gets interactions with customers and people sharing their content and products, both of these aspects are very important as it gives the customer something visually to get excited about but also details about the brand and maybe why they should interact with Tesla.
Irish brand:
An Irish brand that is on the rise and has a very interesting marketing sector is O’ Donnell’s crisps. This brand thrives itself on making the best potatoes and hand cooked crisps in Ireland. They base their brand on having natural ingredients and are very much a homemade/Irish brand. Their Instagram is run very well as they really show and inform us viewers about their campaigns which is very engaging
According to Entrepreneur Europe engaging and giving inspirations to your customers is very important for brands that use Instagram regularly. This storytelling and journey will bring you closer to customers, emotional responses will help your brand in the long run and O’ Donnell’s crips love to go out in the marketplace and meet with customers face to face
I also feel as if O’ Donnell’s post relevant and appealing content for “us” Irish viewers and if makes us feel as if we are one with the brand and we can connect with us through images such as:
These are real Irish feeling photos and are appealing to all markets as it shows how these hand cooked crisps are cooked and how people enjoy them (in the sun). These types of visual content are needed for your marketing strategy as it allows O’ Donnell to get their brand across the board and into different audiences feed. I believe these stores and relatability of O’ Donnell’s makes their business/Instagram very relatable and it gives them the image of a trustable brand.
Why Instagram?
According to Statista, there are over 1 billion active users on Instagram and its ever-growing so this Instagram market/trend is one if would advise for brands and companies to start using and familiarising themselves with it as I feel as if its just the start and there is a lot more potential from this type of social media marketing platform and as we can see from above many brands are doing it the right way and its really benefitting them as a brand and business.
Canva:
Instagram posts for informing your customers about sales or prizes being given away you can use this simple site called Canva that allows you to create original and high-quality content for your customers to see, just as shown below;
Youtube bumper ads!
About YouTube:
Youtube has over has over a billion users and according to studies over 45% of people watch over an hour of Youtube videos a day. More than 500 million hours of videos are watched every day on Youtube. Due to this huge and ever-growing audience, Youtube came up with the idea of using bumper ads at the start of videos.
Bumper ads:
Bumper ads are six-second ads that try to tell a compelling story and grab the attention of the viewers. These bumper ads are supposed to make an impression. They need to incorporate an important message within these six seconds. They must feel the brand message and experience. When it comes to advertising using bumper ads brands must keep it simple so it can be easily taken in by the viewer. You must include the most precise elements into the bumper ads so it gets taken in by all viewers. An example of a great bumper ad is shown below:
Key aspects of bumper ads:
According to Smart insights, you must define your campaign with the bumper ads. The viewers must quickly understand what’s being advertised and what brand it is, that’s why defining your ad campaign is important as you don’t have time to mess with.
You must also structure your ads so your specific message is conveyed and that you capture the viewer’s attention. The message in the ad must consist of this type of structure:
- Attract- Use of humor and imagery
- Brand- What the brand means e.g. its service
- Connect- using an emotional connection
- Direct- What the user should do e.g. search/buy
These YouTube bumper ads are a powerful online tool that turns prospects into customers and it creates but online and offline conversations all through a six-second ad on YouTube.
Why bumper ads?
As people all around the world watch over a billion hours worth of YouTube content every single day, this gave businesses/brands new opportunities to advertise. It’s the perfect way to deliver brand messages quickly and effectively. Bumper ads produce a significantly higher lift on ad recall. Googles research found 70% of bumper ads drove a significant lift of brand awareness, these can be conveyed on both mobile devices and on a desktop. Bumper ads don’t waste your time as a viewer and they are perfect as they can be displayed in the go.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=5&v=qeT9nw9dfi8
YouTube effectiveness:
When it comes to viewers on YouTube they are very active and engaging with ads and what they see on the screen in front of them. This is why relevance is key as once you get to your right audience these bumper ads will begin to work their purpose and create brand awareness, thus allows you to respond with the right message and have a successful bumper ad campaign.
From what I’ve studied, its all about ad awareness and ad recall. Pulling in and attracting consumers through a bumper can be difficult but through sight and sound, it can be achieved.
According to Think with Google, they really stress that these ads can be most effective when there are based on a single, simple purpose. Bumper ads are designed to reach viewers in moments when they’re receptive to a quick, focused message. This point alone highlights and sums up YouTube bumper ads. They also think that brands should have a little showcase for their products in these bumper ads, which allows for ad recall and adds to the brand story. Ensure that your product features prominently on the screen. An example of this can be seen below:
Conclusion:
Overall, you have to make the most of these six seconds when it comes to these YouTube bumper ads. From what I’ve learned the message conveyed in these videos must be simple and to the point. Consumers must remember and take away something from these ads whether its the image of the product, imagery or the brand logo. All must be conveyed in a way that benefits both the brand and consumer.
Marketing to digital tribes
What are digital tribes?
Tribes are social groupings, which are characterized as fluid, occasional and in constant formation. This was all formed and discovered Maffesoli. These so-called “tribes” have strong similarities in subcultures such as emotion, style of life, new moral beliefs and consumption practices. Us, as consumers, chose to be in several communities or tribes.
Digital tribes have three functions:
- Sharing of functional knowledge
- Place of social bonding
- Creation of collective rules
Examples of tribes:
Tribes surround us on a daily life and they can be things such as Apple Mac Book users, this creates a user group and people apart of it are within a tribe. This helps distinguish themselves from others. These tribes share collective rules and behaviors. Another example of tribes would be Harley Davidson owners who all own and have a love for the lifestyle. Both of the above are examples of digital tribes and through these tribes, they will communicate with each other.
Digital tribes peer to peer communication:
These digital tribes can communicate with each other in many different ways and one way that is very evident for us to see is through forums and online groups on the web or on Facebook. As seen below, these are examples of peer to peer communication within tribes which I have taken examples of Mac users communities pages.
Most tribe communities and members will communicate through pages set up on companies sites such as Apples or Toyotas car page, through these groups tribe members will be able to ask questions and converse on topics relating to the brand products or service.
Tribes can also be utilized for product innovation and testing as these tribes are loyal to the brand and will know what’s best for the future in certain cases and listening to tribes gives them what they want as well.
According to the Brand base, all business must really get the buzz of these tribes and figure out how to connect with them and what are the factors that drive their online experiences and how they have changed marketing. Brands and companies need to start talking to these tribes which will help them understand what they want as tribes/consumers. These tribes can be used as a benefit for your company as well.
Difference between a market segment and tribe segment:
Marketing segmentation is a process where you split the market of potential customers into groups based on characteristics such as traits, needs, location, interests etc.
Whereas with tribe segmentation you have to interact with them and breach boundaries as they tend to stick to rules and not chose other products. You have to find out what they value most, which may indicate how you can help and sell to them. You can also seek out the boundaries of a tribe so you can understand them and thus be able to see what’s blocking their views in the market.
Digital tribes:
Companies like “Dove” are a prime example of brands that reach out to their tribes to get information and ideas of how to improve their products and service provided. They get onto both groups of women and men to talk about their products and what they are doing well and bad. As we can see from time to time, regular women are used in Doves ads to talk about their products and experiences with Dove. These women in these ads will be apart of Dove’s digital tribe. This is how a company can utilize tribes to their benefits. Video show below:
5 Top Tips for improving your Facebook Page
Ensure your profile picture displays your brand name
The profile picture used by Powerscourt Hotel clearly shows the brand logo and brand name
The profile picture utilized by the Europe Hotel and Resort does not indicate the brand name or logo and would confuse Facebook users if it came up as a suggested page.
According to Postplanner.com your profile picture more important than your cover photo. They reminded us that you never get a 2nd chance to make a first impression. To find out how to upload high-quality cover and profile photos or ant photos to Facebook without any compression or loss in quality, check out the video below.
2. Time posts strategically
When a business is creating content on a post they must also take into account when they post it and how often they post their content for others to see on Facebook. They must perfect what day they should post but must important not post to often which can annoy their users and potential users.
Businesses have to nail down the best times to post where everyone will see their post and be most active on social media to get the most out of the post. You have to take into account when people will use their Facebook also.
Businesses like Apple will post every second day to keep up to date with customers but not too frequently to the extent where they will unfollow the page. When a business takes all this into account they can publish great content on their page, in contrast to Facebook pages such as Motorola that can go without posting for a few days.
Examples of both pages are shown below:
3. Importance of the use of images
Companies Facebook pages need to contain high-quality images that highlight their services and products that they provide to customers. Compelling images tend to draw in more customers and in turn, will increase sales and publicity. High quality and engaging images will draw in customers to your Facebook page.
4. Have a complete About Section
The about section is the first thing that a customer will see when they visit and brands Facebook page so it’s important they know exactly what the company/brand is about, all the key information needs to be shown. Companies must include the main points and information clearly so everyone understands what the company is about and why we should become apart of their brand. You should include both long and short descriptions in your about section and use specific categories for different subjects so it doesn’t confuse the audience
According to Susan Greene copywriter, you must include facts in the about section so that all of the customer’s questions can be answered and that you list all your best information in the about section.
5. Have a clear and effective cover photo
When people visit your Facebook page you want them to recognize you immediately and a clear cover photo will allow for this. Companies must make sure that cover photos are of a high quality and must relate to your brand and the service you provide. To keep your cover photo interesting and up to date you can change it for different events and for different times of the year(seasons)
For example, take Coca Colas Facebook cover photo which indicates fun and happy times which is linked to the brand, as seen below.
Whereas businesses such as Pepsi they have a less engaging cover photo compared to coke and the more engaging and eye-catching photo will lead to more views and clicks for the business, Pepsi cover photo is shown below.
About Daniel Carroll
Hi, I’m Daniel Carroll, a marketing student in CIT, Cork, Ireland. To find out more about studying in CIT, check out the video below
I am born and raised in Cork and I’m 20 years of age. I chose to study Marketing in college as I was always interested in business in secondary school and I felt as if this course would suit me. I felt as this course had many opportunities it could offer me, regarding job opportunities and experience.
Daniel Carroll- Social media marketing blog 
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