You may be familiar with Instagram, but do you know how to use it to draw in clients and promote your work? Here’s our list of 10 tips that will help you achieve Instagram construction business success.
700 million people use Instagram to share photos and videos. 80% of those people follow at least one of the 8 million business accounts that are active on the platform. If you use this popular platform effectively, you can forge a prosperous relationship with these users.
Instagram allows full size images that are either square or in landscape orientation. You also have the ability to group multiple pictures in a single post. These photos are categorized by location and the hashtags are organized based on popularity with the “top posts” tabs. The number of paid advertisements is also growing on Instagram, as demonstrated by the more than one million advertisers per month who use photos, videos, and the Stories function to promote their businesses.
Instagram’s business tools are more innovative than ever. Methods to easily manage your advertisements and content have been introduced. You can now link your company’s Facebook page to your Instagram account and browse a summary of data such as age, gender, location of your followers, and what time they are most active on the platform. It shows you when you should post to increase exposure to potential customers and helps you identify what sort of posts are the most well received.
Be careful. Posting randomly without a solid marketing plan will not guarantee overnight social media success. So, here are 10 tips that will show you the best way to promote your construction company on Instagram.
1. Create Quality Content
With 300 million posts per day, high quality images are an absolute must if you want to achieve top post status on Instagram. Eye-catching posts that entice users to like and comment will help your business reach the Explore page, which promotes accounts automatically based on user activity.
Professional photography would be ideal, but it’s not always practical. Familiarize yourself with your phone’s camera and you can easily start shooting impressive images. Explore camera features such as “tap to focus” and spend a few moments setting up the photo by taking advantage of the heights and vantage points on your work sites.
Take your pictures to the next level by learning the basic rules of composition. You can use the rule of thirds by imagining that your phone screen is split into three rows, each with three boxes. Just like a Tic Tac Toe grid. What you want to photograph should be positioned in the middle row or where the corners of those imaginary boxes meet. Keep the sun behind you as a general rule.
Uniformity is key, so don’t go overboard with the different filters that you can add to your photos. Use the edit feature to easily adjust the brightness, highlights or shadows, and apply a color setting that is consistent, in order to give your images a pleasing, uniform look throughout your feed.
2. Include Captions, Your Location, and Hashtags
By sticking to a plan, you can make posting stress free and successfully achieve maximum exposure. Here is the approach we suggest.
Captions: Include a professional description of the picture you want to post. Make sure to keep it simple and friendly. Don’t write your caption as if it’s an advertisement.
Location: Instagram can access your GPS to suggest a location or you can add a specific address. This is a great way to establish an online presence, especially for new building sites. If your work site is in a high traffic area, users often browse images tagged with that location and will see your post.
Hashtags: Hashtags are labels that you add to your Instagram post. In order to best categorize your content, your hashtags should be relevant. Choosing your hashtags doesn’t have to be a stab in the dark. Spend a few moments searching through popular tags to see what is commonly used in the construction industry. Choose thirty hashtags that are a combination of broad and niche specific. Then, save them in your Notepad app, for example, for easy copying and pasting.
You can keep your caption clean by using the popular technique of posting your hashtags in a comment on your post. Above all, remember that broad hashtags (ex. #architecture, #construction) that have been used over a million posts may get your post exposure. However, it will be lost within minutes as new posts flood the hashtag. Be sure to use a variety of hashtags, including niche tags, for a better chance of keeping your posts visible and possibly being added to the “top posts”. Add location and landmark specific hashtags such as #vancouverconstruction for increased exposure.
3. Shoot Some Videos
A great way to showcase work on a construction site is through time lapse videos. Brief time lapses of moving machinery or active construction workers can be shot using the Hyperlapse app on your phone. Use a camera on a tripod for slow changes, like the raising of a wall. Be sure to keep your clips to a maximum of 60 seconds.
Be creative! You can capture a unique view of your work site using a drone, for example. Videos displaying symmetry and precision, such as the process of laying a road, often go viral.
4. Group Multiple Pictures in One Post
Nobody likes to see rows of photos that look very similar, so it’s crucial to post a variety of content on your feed. However, it would also be a good idea to post detailed portfolios of your proudest projects or a series of pictures showing the progress of a build. Instagram’s photo carousel is perfect for this. You can upload up to 10 images per post, allowing users to scroll through the progression of your work.
5. Inspire Potential Clients
Prompt users to tag their friends in your posts by posting content that is fun and eye-catching. This is a fantastic way to draw new followers to your account. Be sure to follow the 80/20 rule of social media promotion. 80% of your content should be inspiring, informative, and entertaining. The other 20% should involve a direct approach to advertising your company.
Take unique pictures of your building sites by using Boomerang to capture the interesting equipment and methods your crew uses. Drawings of plans can grab people’s attention and spark a conversation. Showcase the amazing things that your construction company can make possible. Be sure to keep track of your insights to identify what sort of posts are generating the most user activity.
There’s a whole bunch of content you can post besides flawless shots of finished projects. Most people are unaware of what exactly goes on at a construction site, so give them a peek behind-the-scenes to give your work a relatable and human element. This is a great way to showcase your skill, knowledge, and expertise.
6. Use Influencers to Broaden Your Exposure
We recommend collaborating with other businesses that have already established a significant presence on Instagram. Sharing each other’s content and getting a shout-out doesn’t have to be a paid transaction. Current business partners or industry contacts that you regularly work with are possible collaborators.
7. Start Advertising
Expand your social media presence by joining the one million active advertisers on Instagram. To place an ad, you need a Facebook account to use the ad creation tools. You can create photo or video advertisements and place them either on users’ Home Feeds or in Instagram Stories.
Ads can be targeted, and they’re displayed to users based on their location, demographics, and interests to best match your business to potential clients. Instagram also allows you to track the progress of your campaign with detailed metrics where you can browse important details like cost per result and engagement.
8. Use the Story Function
Instagram Stories are a montage of video clips and pictures that are displayed over 24 hours. 200 million people use this feature every day. You can easily access Stories by tapping on a profile photo if it is circled by a purple and orange ring. Stories is the perfect feature to use if you’d like to give potential customers a glimpse of the daily operations of your company. Be sure to include a hashtag or a location sticker. Your story may then be visible on the explore page or at the top of hashtag lists.
9. Stick to a Plan
Failure to maintain a posting schedule will stunt your account’s growth no matter how great your content is. Consider how your feed flows. Alternate posts between showing past and future projects, the vision of your business, the individuals within your company, and entertaining videos. Take time to map out industry events and identify newsworthy issues or perhaps seasonal trends to target, then use that information to time your posts. If you’re not seeing the results you want, browse your analytics and modify your posting schedule to best reach your audience when they are the most active on the app.
10. Make Sure to Optimize Your Bio
Filling out your company name and contact information is one of the easiest tasks, but also the most important. Your username should be simple, so refrain from using odd symbols. Type your official company name in the profile name area. This field is searchable, so using a very broad word like “contractors” instead of “construction contractors” can limit user visibility. The bio section is where you provide a clear description of what your company does. By using a business account instead of a personal one, you can access call to action buttons, making it easy for people to tap on your contact details.
Instagram is a fantastic platform to showcase your business to 400 million daily active users. Use these tips, and you’ll be well on your way to establishing an impressive, and profitable, presence on the app.
Getting started on Instagram for Business isn’t too difficult but if you are new to the social media giant it can be a little confusing. If you are having any trouble getting started setting up your account and connecting it to your website or other social media accounts like Facebook, do not hesitate to reach out to us here at Builders Zone.
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