the unfiltered guide to instagram for brands

Upload: desautomatas

Post on 08-Aug-2018

218 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    1/19

    The Unfiltered Guideto Instagram

    for Brands

    Type to enter text

    Share this free white paper online:

  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    2/19

    A word about the author

    Thibaut leads Content and Community at Nitrogram. If your brand or company

    isnt on Instagram yet, hes got a few tips to help get you started over onNitrograms blog. If your brand is on Instagram, he's probably following italready.

    A Quora addict, Thibaut will often be found there answering questions at 2am.Hes also a guest writer for KISSmetrics, MarketingProfs and various socialmedia publications.

    Twitter: @thibautdavoultInstagram: @thibautdavoult

    Email: [email protected]

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 2

    Credits: Jacob Goudin

    Cover photo Credits:@adidasoriginals, @americanapparelusa, @urbanoutfitters,@cocacola, @benandjerrys, @jaegerlecoultre,@gopro,@converse, @burberry, @starbucks

    This publication is not endorsed by these Instagramaccounts or the companies that are represented by them.

    http://nitrogr.am/http://instagram.com/p/L5_agzRc5F/http://instagram.com/p/L5_agzRc5F/http://instagram.com/p/RsiJXURJNg/http://instagram.com/p/RsiJXURJNg/http://instagram.com/p/StBhtdkrlq/http://instagram.com/p/StBhtdkrlq/http://gopro/http://gopro/http://instagram.com/p/Q7aIlGAeAy/http://instagram.com/p/Q7aIlGAeAy/http://instagram.com/p/UpMxUTxkB1/http://instagram.com/p/UpMxUTxkB1/http://instagram.com/p/UPWNdxgp9X/http://instagram.com/p/UPWNdxgp9X/http://instagram.com/p/UhL6CnsdPx/http://instagram.com/p/UhL6CnsdPx/http://instagram.com/p/UwYtG0HL71/http://instagram.com/p/UwYtG0HL71/http://instagram.com/p/Pw6TNILiXT/http://instagram.com/p/Pw6TNILiXT/http://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://instagram.com/thibautdavoulthttp://instagram.com/thibautdavoulthttps://twitter.com/thibautdavoulthttps://twitter.com/thibautdavoulthttp://nitrogr.am/bloghttp://nitrogr.am/blog
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    3/19

    Credits: @sachabn, @blendhamburger, @desertsongbird

    Instagram: The next big marketing channel for Brands?! 4Photos in social networks: front andcenter

    Instagram specificities in the quest for the photo holy grail

    ALL BRANDS ARE ON INSTAGRAM

    Step 1: build a thriving community ! 7Instagram and the Community Equation

    Build up and profile your Audience

    Give Contributors more Credit

    Step 2: get it just right! 11Content: let your photos say it all

    Community: play by the Instagram book

    Step 3: learn from the best! 14Oreo: SuperBowl Whisper Fight campaign (2013)

    Mercedes-Benz: #Untamed campaign (2013)

    Lipton: Liptagram campaign (2012)

    Embracing visual marketing with Instagram! 18Nitrogram in a few words ! 19

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 3

    Instagram: The n

    Step 1: build a th

    Step 2: get it just

    Step 3: learn fro

    Embracing visua

    Nitrogram in a fe

    http://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    4/19

    Credits: @gabhubert, @spolu, @trynitrogram

    Instagram:

    The next big marketing channel for Brands?

    Photos in social networks: front and center

    Some Brands have their logos anchored in our minds. White mermaid on agreen background? Curvy checkmark? Are you still trying to guess? Probablynot. And having figured this out, Starbucks and Nike now regularly remove thetext from their logos as part of a very select club of broadly recognized brands.

    Marketing has a long history of using images to make an impact. That use hasincreased dramatically with easy access to rich digital media.

    Social media revolves around photos. All major social platforms put photosand images at the forefront of their user experience. All major socialplatforms put photos and images at the forefront of their user experience. A

    key Facebook strength is its ability to share photos. It launched Timeline tobetter showcase users visual content. It recently acquired Instagram andnow hosts over 240 billion photos. Twitter released Cards to reveal thevisual content behind each tweet. Pinterest and Tumblr, two other leadingvisual social networks, also have visual content at the heart of theirexperience.

    Photos and images are becoming the cornerstones of companies' digitalstrategies, particularly in social media as image-based content createsbetter engagement. On Facebook, a photo album drives 180% more

    engagement than an average post on a business page.

    This report focuses on Instagram. Its aim is to introduce the goals, indicatorsand mechanics that can lead brands and professionals to a successfulpresence on Instagram and a fruitful relationship with its 100M+ active users.

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 4

    Still guessing?

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    5/19

    Instagram specificities in the quest for the photo holy grail

    Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr and Twitter are the leading social networks that arepublic by default and well suited to display and share visual content. Indeed,any user can follow any other user and view their content, and content feedsare optimized to display users images and encourage discovery. Some of

    Instagrams features separate it from the other platforms:

    Photos onlyInstagram is the only platform to enforce strictconstraints on the format of shared content:square photos only. The others support freeformats for images, GIFs and videos.

    Content creation first and foremostInstagram focuses on the creation of originalcontent straight from the camera: it is onlypossible to publish photos on Instagram from the

    mobile app itself. Pinterest, Tumblr and Twitterare fueled by the reposting of existing webcontent through their web interfaces.

    Limited virality to boost content originality

    While Pinterest, Tumblr and Twitter encouragereposting via built-in mechanisms (repins,reblogs and retweets respectively). Instagramdoesn't have a repost feature which increases theimportance of original content creation.

    Likes and Comments support conversations

    All platforms allow for appreciation of other userscontent. The Comments below photos onInstagram allow for active conversations betweenusers similar to those on Twitter while commentsare tied to reposts on Tumblr and remain marginalon Pinterest.

    Limited external links for an in-app experienceThe only place to link on Instagram is in the

    Accounts bio. Any link added to a photo caption will come out as plain text.Again, this differs from other networks where hyperlinking is commonplace.Pinterest and Tumblr are thus used by brands to drive referral traffic towardsspecific products, which cannot be done with Instagram.

    Jan 2011 Jan 2012 Jan 2013

    2011-2013 Growth of four leading visual open social networks

    (MAU for Instagram, Twitter - MUV for Pinterest, Tumblr*)

    *MAU: monthly active usersMUV: monthly unique visitors

    58M127M

    (+120%)

    210M

    (+65%)

    100M

    (+900%)

    10M

    (+900%)1M

    10M48M

    (+380%)(n/a)

    20M56M

    (+180%)

    80M

    (+43%)

    Mobile Posting

    only

    Repost

    mechanism

    Like

    mechanism

    Comment

    mechanism

    Active links in

    comments

    Comparison of Key features on Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, Twitter

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 5

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    6/19

    ALL BRANDS ARE ON INSTAGRAM

    A popular platform with end users for its addictive social features and vintagephoto filters, Instagram is also increasingly used by businesses. As of March2013, over two thirds of the brands included in the Millward-Brown BrandZindex (90 out of 130) have an official Instagram account. This adoption rate is

    largely dependent on the brands respective industries, and is led by consumer-facing brands in the automotive, soft drinks and fast food sectors. These brandshad on average over 110,000 followers each in May 2013.

    The ability for users to tagtheir photos with hashtagscombined with the by-defaultpublic nature of Instagramcontent means that brandsare increas ing ly be ingdiscovered on Instagram

    through content produced byfel low Instagram users,whether or not they decide tomanage an official account.This content is easy for other Instagram users to discover via the applicationspopular explore section.

    The Millward-Brown BrandZ Index companies still due to officially join Instagramare actually already on the platform, discoverable through photos shared onhashtags referencing their brand or products. As of March 2013 these 40brands are referenced in a total of 10 Million photos and an average of 250,000photos per brand shared with at least one hashtag relevant to one of theirproducts or services.

    All brands are on Instagram, some are simply not taking advantage of thispresence yet.

    100%

    50%

    Instagram adoption by Millward-Brown 2012 BrandZ index Brands (total: 90/130 or 70%)

    Sectors from left to right:cars, fast food, soft drinks, apparel, telcos., retail, luxury, beer, personal care, financial institutions, insurance, tech, oil & gas

    Part of the explore interface in the Instagram IOSmobile app. A search can point to users... Or hashtags.

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 6

    70% of the Millward-Brown

    Brandz Index brands (90/130)

    - all car and fast food brands

    in particular - are officially on

    Instagram.

    All brands are on Instagram

    (through hashtagged photos)

    but 30% of top brands arent

    leveraging that presence yet.

    TWITTER

    TWITTER

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=%22All%20brands%20are%20on%20Instagram%20-%20through%20hashtagged%20photos%20at%20least%22%20%20-%20from%20@nitrogram%27s%20white%20paper:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=%22All%20brands%20are%20on%20Instagram%20-%20through%20hashtagged%20photos%20at%20least%22%20%20-%20from%20@nitrogram%27s%20white%20paper:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=70%25%20of%20top%20brands%20are%20officially%20on%20Instagram,%20cars,%20fast%20food%20and%20soft%20drinks%20in%20the%20lead%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=70%25%20of%20top%20brands%20are%20officially%20on%20Instagram,%20cars,%20fast%20food%20and%20soft%20drinks%20in%20the%20lead%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=%22All%20brands%20are%20on%20Instagram%20-%20through%20hashtagged%20photos%20at%20least%22%20%20-%20from%20@nitrogram%27s%20white%20paper:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=%22All%20brands%20are%20on%20Instagram%20-%20through%20hashtagged%20photos%20at%20least%22%20%20-%20from%20@nitrogram%27s%20white%20paper:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    7/19

    Credits: @krajczar_lilla, @silvialee666, @auchstore, @musicman216

    Step 1: build a thriving community

    Instagram and the Community Equation

    It is important for brands on Instagram to gain a better understanding of theusers they will be interacting with. These users are their community which because of the public nature of content on Instagram is made up of twogroups, followers and contributors.

    Followers of an official brand account form its "audience", while users sharingphotos with tags relevant to that brand, its products and campaigns are"contributors", an equally important group that greatly increases the reach andvisibility of that brand on Instagram. While contributors do not necessarily followthe official Instagram account, they are keen to show a connection with thebrand through photos they post. They can also express important customercharacteristics such as aninterest in purchasing aproduct.

    Using the number of theirfollowers and the numberof photos posted on theirhashtag it is possible tomap brands to measure

    the importance of theircommunity along its twocomponents. The Community Equation on Instagram

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 7

    The Instagram equation for

    Brands:

    Followers of the account

    + Contributors on hashtags

    ------------------

    = COMMUNITY

    TWITTER

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=The%20Instagram%20equation:%20%22Followers%20PLUS%20Contributors%20EQUALS%20Community%22%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=The%20Instagram%20equation:%20%22Followers%20PLUS%20Contributors%20EQUALS%20Community%22%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    8/19

    (2) Audience Leaders

    (3)

    Community

    Heroes

    Comparison of Audience and hashtag presence for some Millward-Brown BrandZ index Brands

    (1) Contributor Favorites

    (not on Instagram)

    Increasing nb.

    of photos

    on hashtag

    Increasing nb. of followers on account

    Not to scale: relative positions of logos do notreflect exact differences in follower count ornumber of hashtagged photos

    Millward-Brown Brandz Index brands occupy very different positions in theaudience/contributors matrix. Three groups in particular stand out:

    1. Contributor Favorites (over 1.5M photos posted on relevant hashtags)2. Audience Leaders (over 250K followers on an official account)3. Community Heroes (both Contributor Favorites and Audience Leaders)

    A comprehensive brand strategy on Instagram should develop both aspects ofthat brands community to optimize its reach.

    Build up and profile your Audience

    Brands seek to build audiences of engaged users on their Instagram accountthat match the profile of their customer base. Because Instagram accounts donot support content localization, any audience will be treated as one uniquegroup of followers, presented with one unique content stream. This impactscopywriting in the captions of photos as well as the topics covered (for example,seasons are different in different hemispheres in which summer is a relativenotion). This is also true for and age-restricted material, and has led somebrands to specifically restrict access to their account in their profile bio.However, branded accounts currently have no means to enforce these

    restrictions. The minimum age limit to join Instagram is 13 and brands shouldanticipate a wider-than-targeted audience to potentially follow their account.

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 8

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    9/19

    As for any social presence,brands should continuallyanalyze the profile of theaudience they are building bymonitoring the gender, age,location and purchasing

    power of their followers.Though commonly used fora u d i e n c e t a r g e t i n g i nm a r k e t i n g , t h e s e c o r edemographic insights are notcurrently available withinInstagram.

    Accounts can benchmark thegrowth and nature of theiraudience against fel lowindustry players, as the

    number and ident i ty offollowers of accounts is publicinformation on Instagram.

    It is important to analyze in detail how followers are gained (and lost) to improvethe rate at which an account grows its audience. Brands can for example gainpost-by-post understanding of the impact of their publishing strategy on thegrowth of their follower base. Since there is no "repost" mechanism inInstagram, driving likes on individual photos is an efficient way to gain visibilitybeyond an account's follower base. Indeed, Instagram users will see theirInstagram Likes appear in their Instagram activity, and can also elect to addthem to their Facebook newsfeed, displaying images they have interacted withto their connections on both

    networks. Successful posts willincrease the probability ofsecond degree connections(hopefully also in the brand'starget demographic) to view theaccount's photo and follow thebrand account.

    Brands can also grow theiraudience by increasing theirvisibility beyond their Instagramprofile. The first method involves

    cross-posting their Instagramcontent on other social channelsthey may hold (Facebook,Twitter) as Instagrams desktopsite allows users to followaccounts. Using the recently-released photos of you featurecan allow brands to be presentin Instagram photos across accounts and to be all the more discoverable. Beingmentioned in the photos of another user can drive a transfer of followers. Thisapproach is used by Instagram influencers taking part in branded campaigns.Brands can contract popular Instagram users to cover their events and increase

    their visibility with those accounts' audiences. A strategy embraced by Puma,which promoted its sailing sponsorship efforts with the help of ten Instagramphotographers who were invited in during the Volvo Ocean Race to documentthe branded boats performance in the race.

    Veuve Clicquot Instagram Profile page, which you must be of the legal drinking age to follow....

    Photo by popular Instagram user @bridif of

    the Puma boat during the #volvooceanrace

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 9

    Grow your audience on

    Instagram:

    - be tagged in influencers'

    photos

    - get Likes that show in FB

    TWITTER

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=Grow%20your%20audience%20on%20Instagram:%20%0A1/%20be%20tagged%20in%20influencers%27%20photos%0A2/%20get%20Likes%20that%20appear%20in%20FB%20%0AVia%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=Grow%20your%20audience%20on%20Instagram:%20%0A1/%20be%20tagged%20in%20influencers%27%20photos%0A2/%20get%20Likes%20that%20appear%20in%20FB%20%0AVia%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    10/19

    Give Contributors more Credit

    The importance of content creation on Instagram reinforces the need to useother users not only as an audience, but also as a publishing force. SomeInstagram users, without necessarily following corporate or branded accounts,

    share about brands via the photos they post. After a recent purchase, before aprojected purchase, or simply to include a brand as part of the description oftheir picture: users can include the brands hashtag in the caption of their photo.These photos are then added to all those associated with the given hashtag,and as such become discoverable to other users searching for the hashtag.

    The hashtags used on Instagram cannot be controlled bybrands, and can only at most be influenced by their marketingefforts. With a goal to associate themselves and theirproducts with tags of their choosing, brands have increasinglyturned to Instagram campaigns encouraging users to takephotos under certain constraints, and tag them using certain

    hashtags. By multiplying campaigns associated with emotionsor topics that it considers relevant to its market positioning, abrand strengthens its discoverability by a certain targetaudience on the platform.

    Branded hashtags have become addresses for brands: theyconnect to a certain unfiltered aspect of a brand's onlinepresence. Whether the result of an engineered campaign or agrass root spontaneous association, brands are addinghashtags to their lexicon. And not all brands are createdequal in this, as hashtags are not like unique URLs. Brandsshould seek to encourage distinguishable hashtags for theircontributors to use. Otherwise, brands with non-specificnames (Mini, Orange, Apple, Target) face the risk of not beingconnected to relevant photos which reduces theirdiscoverability by the rest of the Instagram community.

    Contributorsare as important to a brandas users following theirofficial account. They aree x i s t i n g o r p o t e n t i a lcustomers, possibly with a

    large audience themselves,and have expressed asufficient interest to includea brand in their conversationon Instagram. The top 10car brands on Instagramhave 7 times more photos on their hashtags than they have followers!Monitoring and actively involving them in the brands representation should bepriorities for managers overseeing Instagram as a marketing channel. In-depthmonitoring of contributors should be an important goal. With each photo posted,the audience of these contributors also becomes relevant to brands, as thereach of their hashtags is increased. Sweepstakes, photo contests and other

    activations on Instagram should all support reinforcing a set of hashtags and agroup of contributors credited to seeing a brand as a top-of-mind when sharingcontent on their Instagram account.

    For popular car brands the number of photos posted

    on hashtags exceed the brands audience (Source: Instagram)

    Non-specific brand tags can harm discoverability

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 10

    The top 10 car brands on

    Instagram have 7 times more

    photos on their hashtags than

    they have followers TWITTER

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=Top%2010%20car%20brands%20on%20Instagram%20have%207%20times%20more%20photos%20on%20their%20hashtags%20than%20they%20have%20followers%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:%20&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=Top%2010%20car%20brands%20on%20Instagram%20have%207%20times%20more%20photos%20on%20their%20hashtags%20than%20they%20have%20followers%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:%20&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    11/19

    Credits: @cadebowman, @widyatmaja, @vespr, @timothyjoseph

    Step 2: get it just rightOnce brands have a presence on Instagram and have established clear goals interms of audience, community and engagement, they need to continually fine-tune their strategy to both increase their impact on their existing following and toaccelerate the growth of their audience. Improving the content they produce andshare is an obvious first step, as each photo is a new opportunity to reinforcethe ties they have with followers and attract other Instagram users to join them.

    Beyond the creation of originalcontent that fits both the spirit ofInstagram and the preferences oftheir followers, brands can turn toother Instagram users for help:

    well established profiles and themass of their advocates alreadysharing content are levers brandscan activate to grow.

    In order to successfully engagetheir community, brands mustmake sure to favor an open andspontaneous attitude with otherusers, trusting them to producebeaut i fu l content that wi l lstrengthen them one photo at a

    time.

    Monitoring engagement velocity and audience growth after a photo is posted

    (Credits: @coheteboy on @disneyland - Analysis: Nitrogram)

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 11

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    12/19

    Content: let your photos say it all

    The images posted by a brand can share a lot about the culture of the companybehind it and the products and services it offers. Brands can closely monitor

    their audience's response andoptimize their posts based on theircommunity's preferences. Brandsneed to remember that all their postswill be visible to all their followers.

    The coherence of posts, theirmoderate frequency and originality willbe rewarded. Inconsiderate overflowof repetitive photos can rapidly lead anaudience to disengage. By identifyingthe regions of the world in which theiraudience is based, brands can

    optimize the rhythm of posts by hourof the day and day of the week.

    Because it is not possible to schedule posts or publish from another platformother than the native application itself, the required effort to actively manage anInstagram channel need to be anticipated.

    Engagement with Instagram photos is immediate: up to 50% of engagementcan be expected within one hour of the photo being posted (this does not takeinto account the possibility to re-sharethe image on other networks later), withclose to 90% of overall engagementwithin 24 hours of publishing. Weekdays

    generally drive most of the engagementof an audience but depending on thetopics covered and the spirit of a brand'schannel, weekends may be a veryrelevant time window to share content.

    The use of filters or creativea p p l i c a t i o n s t o e n h a n c ephotographic content must not beunderestimated: some brands seeup to 60% increases in averageengagement with certain morepronounced filters. Brands should

    make sure to explore a widespectrum of filters to identify thepreferences of the audience that they wish to build.

    The hashtags used to describe the content posted will influence thediscoverability of the photo by certain communities on Instagram.Descriptive tags are preferable to generic ones, as the latter can attracttraffic of lower quality and only fickle engagement. As a last comment oncaptions, a short reminder: words which are not hashtagged will not besearchable in the application, and it is therefore important to highlight allrelevant terms (emotion, location, product category, event). Three to fiveterms are usually enough to guarantee a precise description of the content

    posted. Excessive use of generic hashtags that are popular on Instagrammay not be the best strategy to build a lasting audience of engaged usersthat are genuinely interested in a brands posts.

    Which days of the week and times of the day drive highest levels of engagement?

    Photo stitching by @asos

    for an #outfitoftheday

    Too good to be true: generic hashtag clouds drive

    traffic and short term engagement, not theconversion of target users into loyal followers

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 12

    Filters matter: engagement onInstagram can vary by up to

    60% between photos with

    different filters

    50% of engagement on an

    Instagram photo can be

    expected within one hour of it

    being posted TWITTER

    TWITTER

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=Filters%20matter:%20engagement%20on%20Instagram%20can%20vary%20by%20up%20to%2060%25%20between%20photos%20with%20different%20filters%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=Filters%20matter:%20engagement%20on%20Instagram%20can%20vary%20by%20up%20to%2060%25%20between%20photos%20with%20different%20filters%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=50%25%20of%20engagement%20on%20an%20Instagram%20photo%20can%20be%20expected%20within%20one%20hour%20of%20it%20being%20posted%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=50%25%20of%20engagement%20on%20an%20Instagram%20photo%20can%20be%20expected%20within%20one%20hour%20of%20it%20being%20posted%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    13/19

    Community: play by the Instagram book

    In addition to optimizing their content produced and shared , brands shouldkeep in mind the open and casual nature of the Instagram platform.

    C o m p a n i e s h a v e a nopportunity to share a different

    side on Instagram . Whilesmal ler companies maydecide to share internalsnapshots to insist on thehumanity of their brand, largercompanies like Paypal havedecided to trust an Instagramstar (in this recent case@trotterpup) with contentcreation for a limited period.The goal here is both toappeal to the audience of the

    @trotterpup account and tomarket the company and itsproducts as compatible withthe friendly image of the guestposting.

    No matter how innovativebrands are with their own

    channels, their most valuable opportunity remains with their customers,potential customers and numerous advocates already using the photo network.By encouraging content to be shared with hashtags that relate to them, brandsare increasing their reach across Instagram by gaining a presence in the feedsof the followers of their contributors.

    E-commerce brands in particular have benefited from this through thedevelopment of unboxing experiences. As their customers share photos of theparcels they receive, they are encouraged to reach out to the brand by addingthe appropriate hashtag.

    The natural inclination of individuals to sharetheir experiences with their network is earnedmedia at its best for brands, with the addedbenefit of Instagram being an open platformallowing public content to be visible andconsumed without limitation. In order to

    encourage the development of positiveearned media, brands need to monitor thehashtags they can potentially be associatedwith, actively reply to mentions and reach outon photos in which their are tagged orhashtagged.

    Lastly, for brands with physical locations, it isalso key to monitor them as Instagram has enabled users to easily tag theirwhereabouts using Foursquare data. Content shared in stores is also generallydifferent from content shared on a brand's hashtag from a remote location,which reinforces the need to track both. It is unfortunate for luxury brands or

    theme parks to overlook and not interact with the geo-located content shared byforeign tourists because it does not mention hashtags.

    @trotterpup was invited to guest post on the official @paypal account in May 2013

    Guess which day of the month people receive their #birchbox?

    the days when 3.5X more photos are shared, thats right...

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 13

    3.5X more photos are posted

    on #birchbox on Instagramduring parcel delivery days

    TWITTER

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=3.5%20times%20more%20photos%20are%20posted%20on%20the%20birchbox%20tag%20on%20Instagram%20during%20parcel%20delivery%20days%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=3.5%20times%20more%20photos%20are%20posted%20on%20the%20birchbox%20tag%20on%20Instagram%20during%20parcel%20delivery%20days%20-%20via%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    14/19

    Credits: @meesh_23, @timtms, @funkyfrostholm, @cccmanhattan

    Step 3: learn from the bestBecause Instagram is an effective channel for motivating and engaging withUser Generated Content, strategies led by international brands with the photonetwork are often designed around crowdsourcing content.

    By encouraging the development of earned media, brands aim tofurther their reach and visibility thanks to Instagram campaigns.The success of such campaigns is measured by the number ofentries, the number of unique participants, and the total visibilitygained thanks to the campaign, both online and offline.

    Ben and Jerrys Capture Euphoria campaign, launched inNovember 2012, generated over 17,000 photos, some of which

    were used to create print ads and billboards.Levis crowdsourced the casting of new models on Instagram inearly 2012, an operation still mentioned in the press a year later.Clothing brand Nasty Gal is enhancing its official website with adedicated pageon which new Instagram photos from customersare posted.

    Oreo, Mercedes-Benz and Lipton ran campaigns worthy of amore detailed analysis. Each of these brands, often inpartnership with digital ad agencies, addressed critical questionsrelevant to any marketer working on the conceptualization of anInstagram activation.

    Winner of the Ben & Jerrys #captureeuphoria campaign

    featured in an ad in Rolling Stone Magazine

    (Photo: @benandjerrys)

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 14

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/http://theclick.nastygal.com/http://theclick.nastygal.com/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    15/19

    Oreo: SuperBowl Whisper Fight campaign (2013)

    Detail of the #cookiethis / #cremethis campaign sitehomepage(all credits: Nabisco)

    In February 2013, Oreo launched an official Instagram account. Designed bydigital agency Wieden+Kennedy, the Whisper Fight campaign debuted with aTV ad spot that aired during the 2013 Super Bowl. A simple call to action wasgiven to fans, who were left with a vote to make: did they prefer Cookie, orCreme? Fans took to Instagram in droves.24 hours after its first live broadcast, Whisper Fight had already improved themetrics of @Oreo, the brands official Instagram account, which saw a jump in

    its followers count, from 2k to 35k. Just one day later, @Oreo had gathered anaudience of over 50k.

    T h e c o n t e s t shashtags, #cremethisa n d # c o o k i e t h i s ,s e r v e d t h e d u a lpurpose of being acatalyst for entrantsto pick a side in avirtual fight, and ofset t ing the lega l

    context for Oreo tore-use the photosshared. A team ofartists worked aroundthe clock for 3 daysto select subjectsamong submissionsand transform theminto cookie or creme-made sculptures. Byp r o l o n g i n g t h e

    broadcasts of the TVads after the Super Bowl, and mentioning the campaign on its packaging, Oreomanaged a sustained promotion and kept a high interest level among itsaudience until after February.

    Campaign Overview:

    Duration:

    Main activation over 3 days

    Method for choosingwinners:

    Editorial pick

    Dedicated mini site:

    Yes

    Moderation before display:

    Yes

    Geographic scope:

    USA

    Over 5,300 unique participants to the Whisper Fight over 4 days with #cremethis a clear leader...

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 15

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/http://brands.nabisco.com/oreo/cookievscreme/http://brands.nabisco.com/oreo/cookievscreme/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    16/19

    Mercedes-Benz: #Untamed campaign (2013)

    #untamed campaign sitehomepage (All credits: Mercedez-Benz)

    Every car manufacturer listed on the Millward-Brown BrandZ index has at leastone Instagram account attached to it. As an early adopter, Mercedes-Benz hasbeen uploading consistently since early 2012, paving the way for competitors tofollow in its wake.In February this year, Mercedes used Instagram to promote the launch of itsnew CLA model, with the large-scale Untamed campaign.Fans were invited to log in to a mini-website using their Instagram account andselect 3 of their own Instagram photos to participate. A score was thencomputed automatically, selecting pictures to be shown in a real-life exhibition

    based in Paris.

    The submission process and exhibition were builtwith Instagram's API, which required in-depthtechnical implementation and introduced extracost, but also maximized the freedom in thecontests design. The Paris exhibition in itselfwould not have been possible without custom-made sof tware. More complex than astraightforward Hashtag campaign using thirdparty plug-ins, this submission process ensuredthat only willing fans entered, and ruled out therisk of having people inadvertently join the

    contest.

    Untamed was one of the first Instagramcampaigns also promoted via paid social mediachannels: its reach was expanded throughFacebook ads as well as a Youtube videooutlining the key steps of the operation to targetadditional potential participants.

    Finally, Mercedes also involved Instagraminfluencers like @anasbarros (an architect bytrade) and @laurenlemon (a professional

    photographer) to upload quality Instagram photoson the @mercedesbenz account. These photos were then used in theFacebook ads.

    Campaign Overview:

    Duration:

    2 months

    Method for choosingwinners:

    proprietary algorithm

    Dedicated mini site:

    Yes

    Moderation before display:

    Yes

    Geographic scope:

    USA

    Additional features:Built using Instagrams API

    involved Instagram

    influencers

    Mercedez-Benz #untamed Facebook ad

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 16

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://www.untamed-installation.com/com/en/http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/http://www.untamed-installation.com/com/en/http://www.untamed-installation.com/com/en/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    17/19

    Lipton: Liptagram campaign (2012)

    Liptagram campaign cover (all credits: Lipton)

    Early in 2013, tea brand Lipton conducted an Instagram campaign spanning amonth with the support of Ogilvy. Dubbed Liptagram, the global initiative wasadapted and launched simultaneously in eleven countries, designed toshowcase the excitement, spontaneity and brightness that can be captured inimages a spokesperson for Lipton said.

    #liptonbrightness, #liptonspontaneity, #liptonexcitement... A new theme and

    hashtag were unveiled each week, giving the opportunity for 3 finalists to enterthe main contest to win a trip to Kenya in addition to tea boxes offered with eachweekly theme.

    Submit ted photos wereentered into the contestsapproval queue. Liptonallowed itself a 48-hourw i n d o w t o a p p r o v esubmissions that compliedwith the terms and guidelinesof the contest. This approvalprocess allowed them toregularly post new imagesinto the contests onlinefeeds while preventing anyunwanted content to beassociated with the officialcampaign site online, thusprotecting the brand from anyform of negative press.

    The risks of non-moderatedi m a g e f e e d s b e c a m eapparent to popular brand

    Ben & Jerrys during their #CaptureEuphoria contest in which a few entrantschose to share inappropriate photos. The hijacking was commented on bymainstream press outlets such as Business Insider, a mishap that could havebeen avoided with Liptons pre-moderation strategy.

    Campaign Overview:

    Duration:

    1 month

    Method for choosingwinners:

    Editorial pick

    Dedicated mini site:

    Yes (Facebook app)

    Moderation before display:

    Yes (48 hours post upload)

    Geographic scope:

    International (11 countries)

    Additional features:Built using Instagrams API

    Dedicated Facebook app

    locally adapted by country

    #liptonbrightness submissions displaying the international reach of the campaign (Google, Nitrogram)

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 17

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/http://www.businessinsider.com/sabotage-of-ben-and-jerrys-captureeuphoria-instagram-contest-2012-11?op=1http://www.businessinsider.com/sabotage-of-ben-and-jerrys-captureeuphoria-instagram-contest-2012-11?op=1
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    18/19

    Credits: @gflandre

    Embracing visual marketing with InstagramSince Facebook's acquisition of Instagram, the number of brand accounts usingthe service has been increasing continually. Despite promising adoption by

    brands, Instagram as a network is still in its early years. Its multiple uses formarketing, content generation and community building are still being explored.This is an iterative process boosted by a nascent ecosystem of third partyplatforms.

    Because of the open nature of Instagram, brands are beingtalked about and photographed whether they have alreadyjoined Instagram officially or not. Marketing managers mustrecognize the challenges and opportunities that lie in thisstream of images taken by anonymous (or not-so-anonymous)Instagram users around the world.The challenges for brands on Instagram are those inherent toprofessionals on a platform originally used as a consumer-to-consumer network. The opportunities for them are just as important:by building a community of followers and contributors on a mobile-first network designed to create and share beautiful images andstories, brands dramatically increase their visibility and reach withingroups of like-minded consumers.

    The key goals for brands should include the growth of theiraudience and the progress of their discoverability through thephotos of their customers and fans at large.

    #sunset by @liisawlf

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Brought to you by Nitrogram - http://nitrogr.am - 18

    Like this Guide?

    Why not share it?

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://twitter.com/share?text=I%27m%20reading%20the%20Unfiltered%20Guide%20to%20Instagram%20for%20Brands%20by%20@nitrogram:&url=http://ntg.am/guide2instagram4brandshttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/
  • 8/22/2019 The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    19/19

    Nitrogram in a few wordsNitrogram is an advanced analytics and engagement platform for brandsand digital professionals on Instagram. Used by brands across sectors(luxury, entertainment, sportswear, food, tourism , apparel...) Nitrogram providesactionable insights into brands communities (their followers and the usersposting content on hashtags or in locations relevant to them) and the means toreport on their Instagram campaigns and activations.

    Detailed audience monitoringand benchmarking

    Visualize the number of followersgained/lost by geography and over anyparticular time period. Benchmark yourperformance against competitors alsopresent on Instagram.

    Engagement tracking andpublishing optimization

    Optimize posting habits by measuringthe impact of filters and hashtags onphotos and tracking minute-by-minuteengagement on them. Find the besttime of day to post based on yourengagement history.

    Influencer identification bygeography and topic

    Surface important Instagram users bylocation and topic and identify thefollowers that need special attention.

    Complete Campaign reporting

    Measure the adoption of a campaign#has htag and i ts reach acrossgeographies. Report number of photos,

    unique contributors as well as Likes /Comments generated. Export all datainto Excel or using Nitrograms APIs.

    Efficient social engagement

    Engage with your Instagram communityfrom Nitrogram, which can post Likes,and add/remove Comments on photosrelevant to your brand. Navigatebetween conversations using keyboardshortcuts for increased efficiency and

    switch between Instagram accounts inone click using multi-account access.

    You can visit http://nitrogr.am to start a free demo today.

    The Unfiltered Guide to Instagram for Brands

    Map of followers (Nitrogram)

    Engagement Velocity and

    Engagement matrix (Nitrogram)

    Nitrogram: advanced

    analytics and engagement

    platform for brands on

    Instagram.

    Start a freedemo today!

    Manage conversations from a

    unified web interface (Nitrogram)

    Top followers gained (Nitrogram)

    TWITTER

    http://nitrogr.am/http://twitter.com/share?text=Nitrogram:%20advanced%20analytics%20and%20engagement%20platform%20for%20brands%20on%20Instagram.%20Start%20a%20free%20demo%20today:&url=http://nitrogr.amhttp://twitter.com/share?text=Nitrogram:%20advanced%20analytics%20and%20engagement%20platform%20for%20brands%20on%20Instagram.%20Start%20a%20free%20demo%20today:&url=http://nitrogr.amhttp://nitrogr.am/http://nitrogr.am/