As the toolbox for social media marketers and brand teams continues to grow, knowing how to schedule Instagram posts is crucial to developing a streamlined approach to your content strategy. With the widespread use of user-generated content (UGC) and posts from influencers and content creators, brands can build a better workflow with one platform to manage both scheduling and content curation.
Best practices for businesses on Instagram
The brands that are getting the most out of Instagram marketing are the ones who are smart about how they go about it. What does this mean? Most innovative brands on Instagram have these three things in common:
1. They post content regularly
Active brands create the strongest community of users on Instagram. Fresh content is a necessity for brands looking to engage with potential customers—brands should post at least once a day. There is a distinct correlation between how often a business posts and the rate of return visitors. More often than not, it takes multiple visits to your brand’s Instagram account to get a customer to buy. To remind yourself to stay active, build a social media calendar and take advantage of tools that let you schedule Instagram posts (more on this later).
2. They repost customers
Repost photos that your customers have tagged you in through a hashtag or @mention. Your customer’s voice is the most powerful asset to selling your brand. Featuring real customer photos on your Instagram feed (with your customer’s permission, of course) is a great way to celebrate your fan base and show new customers how your products are being used post-purchase. When customers see your brand engage with real people, it helps to validate your social presence and humanize your brand. Consider using a platform like Pixlee TurnTo [now Emplifi] to manage and repost Social UGC that your customers are posting about your brand.
3. They use Instagram influencers
Influencer marketing is skyrocketing. At this point, most brands are leveraging Instagram influencers to spread brand message and to increase social proof of their products. But it’s not just big brands getting high-profile blogger and celebrity endorsements — brands of all sizes are building influencer partnerships. Ann Handley, founder of ClickZ, said it best, “Don’t confuse size with influence. The key to a successful influencer program is to uncover and align with those people who have the trust and respect of their audiences — not just those with the most followers.”
What is Instagram scheduling?
Instagram scheduling is a tactic used by brands and creators to build a content calendar and set posts to go live on the app at designated times, automatically.
Instagram currently has no native scheduling capability, so choosing the right software provider for your brand is your best bet. Pixlee TurnTo's Instagram scheduling feature is built into the platform's overall product suite, and is the best way to publish content to your brand’s Instagram. The biggest benefit to scheduling through Pixlee is the ability to assign products before the content is published. This way when the post is made to your brand's Instagram, the content and products will be available in-platform for use in on-site Shoppable Instagram displays.
User-generated and influencer content can be automatically collected through Pixlee TurnTo to schedule and reshare on your brand's own Instagram account, with a simply permissioning system built in to avoid ownership issues. UGC is 35% more memorable than other media, and 50% more trusted.
Additionally, featuring customer content on your social channels removes the expenses and effort needed to consistently produce professional, branded content. It's a win-win solution for your brand.
For individual Instagram users and content creators looking to schedule Instagram posts, it may be more effective to select a smaller-scale Instagram scheduling app that better suits your needs.
Researching the best time to post on Instagram is just as important as identifying your ideal scheduling solution. Pixlee TurnTo's platform allows users to view and compare analytics for Instagram posts both from your brand's handle and from influencers and other members of your community.
Not only does this help you identify when your online audience is most active, but you can also determine which members of your online community are producing high-quality content, paving the way for brand ambassadorships.
Build affinity for your brand by sharing UGC on social media like Levain Bakery does; the more delicious, gooey cookie breaks the brand posts from its customers, the more engagement and submissions Levain receives for future authentic content campaigns.
Pixlee TurnTo's Instagram Scheduler also significantly reduces the resources needed to manage and drive sales through social commerce. Plus, brands can optimize for the best time to post when publishing new content.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on pixlee.com. Any statistics or statements included in this article were current at the time of original publication.
