Perodigm's Forward Friday Workshop Series:
How do you spell Millennial?
I-N-S-T-A-G-R-A-M
If your business isn’t communicating on Instagram, you are missing 64% of the 18-29 and 40% of the 30-49 year-olds. Right now, 31.8% of the US population is using Instagram. That’s about 104.7 million missed opportunities.
Brief history of Instagram: In 2012, Facebook purchased a photo sharing app called Instagram for $1 billion. In fact, Facebook reportedly tried to buy Snapchat in 2013 for $3 billion to boost its appeal with younger users. Rebuffed, Mark Zuckerberg turned Instagram into a potential Snapchat killer. Now Snapchat's valuation is falling. Boom.
Action Plan for Instagram
Need to create an Instagram Business Page? Check out Instagram for Business https://business.instagram.com/getting-started/
Create a cohesive design. IG is about visual clarity, not constant noise. It is a visual communication tool that most of the Millennials are using. Think art gallery or shop window. It is your curated shop window (5% of your photos should make it on to your grid). Your Story is your daily call to action. File Stories into “Highlights” at a later date to highlight each of your goods and services.
Work that fancy phone. Instagram works best from your phone. Write out what your want to say beforehand in “notes” then cut and paste into your caption.
Use easy tools. For free. For graphics: Canva https://www.canva.com/ For reposting other people’s awesome and relevant posts while giving them proper credit: Repost (this is a free app) For high quality and free photos: Unsplash (don’t forget to give credit to photographers. They gotta pay rent, too.) More info about Instagram trends: Later
Use 6-24 hashtags(#) Hashtags help people who want your goods/services find you. Aim for hashtags with more than 1,000 and less than 1m posts to get exposure, without getting spam or bots. Example #wine has 45.3m posts #roseallday has 418k posts #pinotparty has 1,304 posts Visual note: separate the hashtags at the bottom of the caption with dots, this keeps it clutter free. Looks better.
Get followers by following Remember, you are finding people looking and liking your goods and services. Some local favorites of Marie’s: @artroomglitterfairy, @vineyardsatcambridge, @kindfolkcoffeeco
Engage with your audience Challenge yourself to reply with genuine comments, not just “Thanks!” or heart/like symbol.
Your IG Business strategy Using Marie's 4 post rotation
Rotate this schedule weekly for maximum Insta- growth. Post Bi-weekly for all you busy folks who have to build a business, not just post stuff. Company News featuring an employee or product/service Shout out Repost, highlight a collaboration, partner, consumer lifestyle Fun A great quote, a favorite new song, beer cart Friday Free Host a contest, a giveaway when if people share and comment.
Get Help Ever wish you could sit down with social media maven and "pick their brain" to develop a strategy, get some advice, and rework your social networking. Now you can. Marie’s social media consulting allows her to temporarily join your team (no matter how big or small) and share her knowledge with you. Contact Marie at marie@perodigm.com to learn more.
Who is using Instagram? Mostly Millennials (and some Gen X-ers)
The Millennial, According to Forbes
“Despite a rather slow and winding path to adulthood (911, Great Recession, Student Debt, War on Terror…), research has found that millennials are solidly coming into their own. Their purchase behaviors have been shaped by their journey, wrought by social and economic trials, and clear preferences are emerging that can advise brands on the communications and connections that will have the most impact. By following these insights, you can craft your marketing strategies to improve your reach to your millennial audience.”
Millennials want their purchases to make them feel good. * Gravitate toward purchases that are an expression of their personality * Value their dollar more and value products that meet both a logistical and emotional need. * Give back in clear ways that consumers understand, such as “buy one, give one” scenarios by companies like Bombas and TOMS.
Millennials place value on experiences. * Prefer to spend their money on experiences over material things, and will pay extra for it. * Crave opportunities for interaction, both with the brand and with other consumers, often through special events such as meetups, collaborations
Millennials like sharing with their friends. * 13% more likely than Gen Xers to share their purchases on social media * You need to actively engage with them on social media, really listen to what customers are saying and be ready to immediately address any pain points
Millennials have no brand loyalty. * They are continuously trying new, innovative brands rather than turning to a brand seen as old and reliable * You need to move away from the idea of “winning” a customer and think about how to continually “woo” them. (Is this why the Super Bowl ads are now lackluster?)
Millennials trust peer-generated endorsements. * Millennials prefer to wait until someone they trust has tried something * they actively avoid paying attention to company-generated advertisements and place more weight on word of mouth and product reviews
Millennials seek relevancy. * Personalization and relevancy are key for this group, and all brands should keep this in mind. As part of strategy planning, brands need to incorporate research to delve deeper into understanding how their brand resonates and connects with its audience.
Consumers are looking for brands that tap into their lifestyles and core beliefs around wellness and sustainability, as well as products that fit easily into their lifestyles and are delivered straight to their door. As more direct to consumer brands enter into the market, balancing these key consumer priorities will become more important to stand out from the crowd.
What You can do: Action steps* * Make choices fewer, easier for time-poor consumers to make decisions quickly. Don’t give them too many options: (Unless you are Amazon) carefully curate your products to stave off dreaded choice paralysis and give your brand a “premium” feel * Be approachable * Be accessible to everyone (even if it is not priced for everyone) * Strong lifestyle self-care focus: evoking moods and moments, such as meditation, morning rituals, slowing down, connection to self-expression and creativity * Environmentally safe, low-tox * Ergonomic, good design reduces stress, choices, mess and waste (zero waist) * Delivered direct to home * Provide an “Essentials Kit” to include basic tools/services to get consumers started quickly and confidently * Encourage people to “grab a friend” and “create a playlist”, positioning projects as a communal, sociable activity. (as well as it being a decidedly more Instagrammable experience) * Put practicality front and center to make a project feel less daunting
*gleaned from WGSN: Meet Backdrop, the Millennial-Friendly paint brand
Here are some brands that get it: Glossier Cosmetics: https://www.glossier.com/ Wayward Clothing: https://waywardcollective.com/ Toms Shoes: https://www.toms.com/ Bombas Socks: https://bombas.com/ Wag Dog Walking: https://wagwalking.com/
At the end of the day, social media is where you connect with like minded people. Instagram communicates visually, more so that Facebook and other social media platforms. The “Likes”, Follows and Shares matter only to Instagram computers. It should not determine how worthy you are or if your business is viable. Do your best to communicate in a clear, visual manner. 10 "likes" from people that are genuine fans and end up supporting your business are better than 1000 "likes" from people that you never hear from again.
About Perodigm We are an award winning independent digital collective that strives to make your values and purpose shine by way of vibrant visual communication. Our passion is to illuminate your amazing people, products, and services using our mastery of a variety of digital media tools.
About the Speaker Marie Brown translates ideas into visual experiences people love and share on the internet. She walked away from successful yet unsustainable careers in fashion, interior design and non-profit marketing to raise a family and partner with Perodigm. Marie holds an BFA focused in Industrial Design from Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) as well as a Fashion Design Degree from Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM). Contact her at marie@perodigm.com
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