How to get more leads on Instagram (1/2)

Last Updated on December 30th, 2019 at 2:35 pm

Do you want to know how to get more leads on Instagram? Most social marketers do not consider Instagram as a lead generating platform. However, when you do it right, it could be very effective.

Social media leads are potential customers who express interest in your company and give info that marketers could utilize to follow up with.

Roughly 80% of accounts follow a business on Instagram, which is already a pretty great sign of intent that marketers could tap. Even better: 80 percent of Facebook survey respondents say they utilize Instagram to determine whether or not to purchase something.

When you aren’t collecting leads on Instagram, you are missing out. Read on to learn how you could use Instagram lead adverts and other organic ways to collect more leads on the platform.

How to get more leads on Instagram

Use these tricks to take advantage of Instagram lead generation.

1. Use Instagram lead adverts

The first—and most obvious—method to get more leads on Instagram is to use lead adverts. Instagram lead adverts are designed to help businesses collect customer info like email addresses, phone numbers, birthdates, and job titles.

These adverts could help businesses learn more about customers, improve direct marketing campaigns, and more.

For instance, the real estate agents app Homesnap used lead adverts to find out about prospective home buyers. Greenpeace Brasil ran an Instagram Stories lead advert campaign to collect signatures for a petition.Instagram lead ad by Homesnap

To make Instagram lead adverts, you will need an Instagram business account. Which means also need a Fb Page.

All Instagram adverts are created in Facebook’s Ads Manager. To create an Instagram lead advert, choose Lead Generation as your marketing objective. Fb recommends you choose Automatic Placements to make sure cost-per-lead is optimized and kept to a minimum.

selecting "Lead generation" as the objective of your Instagram lead adselecting "automatic placements" on your Instagram lead ads

To ensure your advert runs on Instagram, your creative has to adhere to the Instagram ad specifications. Think about including pre-filled sections to your forms, as they often enhance completion rates. Instagram could pre-fill email address, full name, phone number, and gender utilizing info from customer accounts.

Customer info collected from Instagram leads could be utilized to fine-tune your Instagram ad targeting strategy or set up Lookalike Audiences. These audiences assist you to target people on the platform with similar profiles, permitting you to boost exposure and reach new prospects.

2. Add Action Buttons to your profile

In case you have a business account on Instagram, you could add action buttons to your profiles. When you like, your profile could include a link to your email, phone number, and business address so people could get in touch with your firm.

In addition to these buttons, Instagram gives better options for lead generation, including Book, Reserve, and Get Tickets action buttons. These buttons bring people to forms by Instagram providers, including Appointy, Eventbrite, OpenTable, Resy, and others. You’ll need to select one that your business uses.

To add an Action Button:

  1. From your account page, tap Edit Profile.
  2. Choose Contact Options.
  3. Choose Add an action button.
  4. Select the button and the provider you want to add.
  5. Add the URL your business uses with the provider chosen.

Row 34 Instagram profile with "Reserve" and "Call" buttons Landing page that appears when you click on Row 34's "Reserve" button

3. Optimize the link in your bio

With limited link real estate on Instagram, it’s essential to utilize the link space in your bio to its fullest potential.

Your link should point customers to whatever objective you want to accomplish. That can be a newsletter subscription, product sales, or a survey. Keep in mind, you could change your link as often as you want.

Here are some pointers for optimizing Instagram bio links:

  • Keep the link short, and attempt to utilize your brand name in it.
  • Promote the link in your Instagram posts with “Link in bio.”
  • Include UTM parameters in the URL to make your link trackable.
  • Add a call-to-action above the bio link.

Facebook Blueprint's Instagram profile with custom link in bio for "expanding borders IG"

Glossier's link-in-bio is a shopping link Les Glorieuses' custom link in bio NYT Cooking's custom link-in-bio leads to recipes page

4. Design a landing page that delivers

Congratulations! Somebody has clicked on your link. Now you need a landing page that will not make them regret the decision.

The page needs to be scannable, make a seamless visual experience, and have a content that matches what people are expecting to find. Whatever promise your call-to-action sets up, your landing page should deliver.

For some brands, meaning utilizing tools that turn feeds into clickable landing pages. Shoe company Toms does this with a link to its site at the top right corner.

Page you land on after clicking on Tom's custom link-in-bio showing "visit website" button in top right corner

Madewell takes a similar approach, however makes its feed more shoppable, with posts that itemize and link directly to its products.

Page you land on after clicking on Madewell's link-in-bio: multiple instagram posts and email newsletter sign yo Madewell shoppable Instagram post, woman standing in an apron with lavendar in her pocket and the numbers 1, 2, and 3 on various items of clothing. The numbers correspond to shoppable items on the right.

Other brands elect to link to particular pages on their site. Take design house ban.do, which swaps out links relying on what it’s promoting. Around the holidays, a gift guide is a good idea.

Bando Instagram profile with custom link-in-bio

5. Use the “Swipe Up” feature on Instagram Stories

Another place where Instagram lets people embed links is Instagram Stories. In case your account has more than 10,000 followers, it is a function you need to use to your advantage.

Not convinced? One-third of the most-viewed Instagram Stories are from businesses. Plus brand-led Instagram stories have a completion rate of 85%.

Stories could tend to be more effective than a bio link since all it takes is a swipe to act on an impulse. Keep in mind, do not make somebody regret the impulse. A great landing page is needed here, too.

How to add a link to Instagram Stories:

  1. From the feed, swipe right, or tap the plus icon by your profile image at the top left corner.
  2. Capture or add your content.
  3. Click on the chain icon and add your link.

If the link will stay online long enough, consider including the story to your highlights. This increases its visibility and provides second-guessers an opportunity to revisit.

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