Instagram is the number one social media platform where people share and discover new places, products, and experiences. In fact, 80% of Instagram users voluntarily connect with a brand on Instagram. People engage with brands on Instagram 10x more than Facebook, 54x more than Pinterest, and 84x more than Twitter. On the flip side, 71% of brands have accounts on Instagram, because when people follow a brand 75% are more likely to take action. (References: Adweek, BrandWatch, Instagram).
Having a strong and consistent Instagram presence builds brand awareness and creates lasting relationships, which result in long-term organic growth. It’s essential to have a presence, but not just any presence, your brand needs to stand out.
kvell is our creative studio and influencer collective that builds brands and creates thumb-stopping content on social media. We help brands define their Instagram strategy, branding, and develop engaging content that connects with their community, all while having fun.
About a year ago, a startup approached us because they were having trouble gaining followers. They were only able to garner one thousand followers after six months of working at it and couldn’t seem to move past that. At first glance, we found that they had a well curated feed which sparked all the visual benchmarks, but what they were missing was an acquisition strategy. We further discovered that there was a huge disconnect with their target audience, and viewers didn’t feel connected enough to stick around for the long term. We tackled this head on by building and implementing a distinct brand voice that spoke directly to the brand’s key consumers. We launched influencer campaigns, engaging games, and visuals featuring their products during relevant cultural events and holidays. In twelve months time, they gained 53K engaged followers.
Below is a brief overview on how we create thriving accounts on Instagram for brands.
Step 1: Strategy
We kick off a project by working with our clients to develop their brand strategy for Instagram. The strategy is the foundation that everyone internally and externally will use to stay on brand. Having a strong strategy will allow everyone to clearly see what your brand stands for and how to present it to the world. We explore what the key takeaways should be, and look at the competitive market to see how to differentiate your brand from others. Finally, we conduct consumer research to see what inspires, motivates and excites them. Once we have a better understanding of the brand messaging, positioning, objectives, target audience, and goals, we distill the information garnered into a key insight. This will be the basis for the strategic recommendation, which will not only allow for clarification of the brand story, but will also be the foundation that will inspire the creative work. The most important question you should be able to answer is “Why would someone want to follow my company on Instagram?”
Step 2: Tone & Voice
Once the brand’s strategy is defined, we establish the tone for the account. The tone is essentially your brand's personality expressed through content and captions. Building a consistent voice will bring authenticity to your brand and loyalty from your follower base. Based on the research we conduct on the target audience, we’ll be able to determine if the tone and voice for the account will be a friendly, fun, provocation, inspirational, informative, innovative, eclectic, etc.
Step 3: Look & Feel
Once we’ve established the brand’s tone, we define the look and feel. The look and feel of the account is how we visually express the tone. We explore different visual approaches (photography, illustration, design, crafts, etc.) and/or photographic styles (lifestyle, studio, etc.) that will resonate with your audience and align with the brand’s narrative. The most essential ingredient is to establish curation rules and sticking to them. By creating a consistent visual aesthetic, your brand will strike an emotional chord and connection with viewers.
Step 4: Content
The next step is to develop concepts for the content by tying in the brand story and messaging. We explore truthful human insights to create content that evokes a specific feeling and makes the work sharable. In addition, we create different types of content to test out and see what people are responding to the most. We strive to create beautiful content that entertains or inspires while delivering the brand message and story. We’ve learned that people appreciate the authenticity of an artful approach versus a direct advertisement. We’ve found that this type of content is most successful.
Step 5: Consistency
Consistency is key! This is the most important part of building a successful account. By creating curation rules and being consistent, your brand’s account will become recognizable and ownable.
Step 6: Collaborations and Activations
Instagram is an active community, so it’s crucial to connect with influencers and brands that align with your ethos. At kvell, we think of creative ways to build partnerships, activations, influencer campaigns, and collaborations with other accounts so your brand can get exposure and grow organically.
Step 7: Have Fun!
We encourage our clients to use the platform to create a playful space to celebrate their brand and connect with awesome people.
