We’ve talked about how to use Instagram for marketing, but sometimes it’s best to illustrate with examples. In this blog post, we’ll highlight 4 companies that are doing it right. These 4 companies are posting photos relevant to their audiences, sharing behind the scenes photos and growing their Instagram followers to take advantage of the accelerating mobile photo sharing trend. Hey, even President Obama has started sharing behind the scenes photos from his 2012 election campaign!
#1 – Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co. uses its Instagram account to share behind the scenes photos of its jewelry in the making. There is quite obviously a high-level of craft, attention to detail and beautiful material that goes into its highly coveted jewelry pieces – it only makes sense to lift the curtain and show that all off!
Lesson Learned: Share the craft that goes into creating your products with your Instagram followers. Consumers don’t just care about the final product, they want to see the who and how behind the product.
#2 – Sharpie
Sharpie is one of my favorite companies using Instagram because the pictures they share represent their company so uniquely. Rather than only sharing photos of Sharpie products, the company mostly shares photos of what its product can create: striking pictures drawn with Sharpie markers. These photos help consumers associate Sharpies with creativity, artistic impression and inspiration, rather than just plain old permanent markers.
Lesson Learned: Don’t just share photos of you and your products, share pictures that capture the spirit and brand of your company.
#3 – Levi’s
Levi’s, the legendary American denim brand, is holding an open casting call on Instagram for a model for its next ad campaign, which goes live in September. Users take pictures of themselves or others wearing Levi’s gear, upload it to Instagram and tag it #IamLevis.
Lesson Learned: How can you get users involved and excited to be part of your brand? Can you sponsor a contest on Instagram?
#4 – Boston Bruins
OK, we picked a local team, but everyone has something to learn from the way the Boston Bruins use Instagram. The Bruins often outsource Instagram control to none other than various Bruins players, who document NHL life on and off the ice. The Bruins understand that fans don’t just want to engage with the team during games, so they give them true behind-the-scenes access to the team.
Lesson Learned: Have you considered giving Instagram control to one of your employees for a day? What new, intimate perspective could they bring to your feed?
How is your small business using Instagram? Share in the comments below and we may feature your company in an upcoming blog post on how small businesses are using Instagram.
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About Mary Chevalier
Mary is Co-Founder of SalesBlend and works closely with clients to help them use digital marketing to achieve measurable business results. Follow Mary on Twitter @MaryVChevalier.