Jonathan Chan — May 2, 2017 There are two things I think about often: how to get a great shave and how to get more followers on Instagram.
Okay, maybe I think about some other things too, but these two topics are pretty important to me as I like a close shave and I work in digital marketing.
It’s probably no surprise then that I follow some men’s grooming brands on Instagram. I love learning about new shaving products and getting tips and tricks. One of my favorite accounts to follow is Harry’s. They do some amazing Instagram marketing so today I thought we could analyze their profile and see what takeaways we can learn to improve our own Instagram accounts.
5 Ways Harry’s is Crushing Instagram Marketing
Let’s dive right into the tactics Harry’s is using to maximize their Instagram marketing efforts.
1. Use a custom link in bio.
A lot of companies set up their Instagram profiles using their homepage URL as the link shown in the bio of their Instagram profile. That’s not a bad idea, but an even better idea is to link to specific content.
If you’re launching a new product, link to that product page. If you’ve released a new e-book, link to that landing page. If you’ve got an awesome free trial like Harry’s does link to it!
By using the link in their bio to promote the trial, Harry’s is able to use Instagram as not just a community engagement platform but also a customer acquisition channel.
Be like Harry’s and use the link in your bio wisely — and remember it’s changeable. Today you might put a link to a specific product page, tomorrow you might link to a free trial and the next day you might link to a funny commercial your creative team came up with!
2. Gather user-generated content with an owned hashtag.
User-generated content is the lifeblood of successful brands that rely on digital for growth.
Why?
According to a study by Neilsen, “Eighty-three percent of online respondents in 60 countries say they trust the recommendations of friends and family.” Additionally, 83% of respondents said “they take action on these opinions at least some of the time.”
A similar study conducted by Harris Interactive found that 58% of people between 18 and 34 years old said they were at least somewhat likely to make a purchase after seeing a friend’s post on social media.
Since customer reviews, a form of user-generated content, is such a powerful selling tool it make sense for brands to curate as much of it as possible.
Harry’s includes the hashtag #ownyourAM in their Instagram bio and they also include it in some of their Instagram posts. This is a great way to tell your followers to use the hashtag in their own updates to share content related to your brand.
When you scroll through the #ownyourAM hashtag feed you’ll see lots of customer reviews!
What hashtag will you promote for your customers to use? If you can’t think of something creative like #ownyourAM you can always go for a branded hashtag like #GoPro which is what the GoPro camera brand uses.
Don’t stress too much over what the hashtag is. As long as it’s not offensive in any way happy customers will be glad to use it!
3. Stick with a color theme that’s branded and memorable.
Your Instagram feed is an extension of your brand, therefore you want it to represent your company well. One way to do that is to stick with a theme or color palette. After all, when you put together a print ad you wouldn’t stray too far from your branding guidelines, so why should your Instagram account be any different?
Okay, well social media is a good place to experiment with new ideas, but you still want some brand cohesion.
Michelle Phan, entrepreneur, digital consultant and Instagram influencer recommends that brands stick with a theme. But how?
Phan says, “the first step in creating an Insta theme is to decide on a color, or a few colors, that represent your style.”
You can see Harry’s picks up on their deep blue logo color and extends that throughout most of their Instagram photos and videos.
Picking up on your logo color is a great way to get started with your Instagram theme if you’re not sure where to start.
4. Take advantage of current events.
Building up your Instagram following and increasing awareness for your brand is key to making the channel ROI positive. If you don’t have a large budget for Instagram ads, one way to spread the word is by using popular hashtags surrounding current events.
You can see on National Stripes Day, the Harry’s team coordinated their outfits by wearing all stripes and then used the hashtag in their post.
Pull up a calendar of national days and find a few that are popular and that can tie in well with your brand. Then plan ahead for a little Instagram photoshoot so that you can participate in celebrating the day!
5. Promote your corporate social responsibility.
Today’s consumer wants to buy from brands who demonstrate corporate social responsibility (CSR) therefore it’s something that big brands are investing in.
According to AdAge, “Walmart has pledged $ 2 billion in cash and food donations to food banks, and in 2009 it unveiled its Sustainable Project Index.”
Not surprisingly, “many companies engage in a spectrum of corporate social responsibility initiatives and invest heavily in publicizing them.”
What are some popular ways for companies to engage in CSR? Well, there are four pillars: environmental friendliness, treating employees fairly, community support and sourcing from local growers and suppliers.
Your company may not be able to put $ 2 billion into CSR and that’s okay. Take whatever steps are within your means. For example, Harry’s supported their local community by delivering $ 1,000 pairs of socks to a homeless shelter after learning socks are the most requested item at shelters.
If your company isn’t able to make a financial donation, why not organize a day for your employees to volunteer at a local nonprofit?
Getting involved in your community will not only earn you goodwill with your customers but it will make you feel good too.
Getting Started
Now that we’ve analyzed Harry’s Instagram account and pointed out what they’re doing well it’s time to review your own Insta feed.
Look for simple things you can change today like the link in your bio or the ability to jump on a current event related hashtag.
If you have any questions please leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to answer!
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