How to start, grow an Instagram-based business

Instagram used to only serve as a place for connecting with others for a ton of us. Sharing pictures and videos of ourselves used to be the primary reason we signed up on the picture-sharing platform.

However, with time, Instagram has grown and expanded beyond just socializing. The platform also serves as a source of livelihood for many through content creation and e-commerce services.

For the purpose of this article, we’ll be focusing on e-commerce: primarily, how to go about kick-starting a business based on Instagram.

If you’ve been hoping to start an Instagram-based business, this might be the sign you’ve been looking for. Stick around as we try to break down the not-so-complicated steps involved in starting your own Instagram business.

• Study/Research Your Competition

I think that people with businesses on Instagram often skip this step and it could have serious repercussions.

You want to conduct thorough research on the market you’re entering in order to understand how things are done in the marketplace. And one of the important ways of doing this is by carefully studying your competition.

There’s no shame in doing this if you’re feeling this way. Even the biggest of brands keep a close watch on their major competitors (*cups mouth and whispers* just ask Apple and Samsung).

All you have to do really is go through your competitors’ pages looking out for the way they currently operate. You may want to go to their older posts and compare with what they currently have to also get a sense of their growth pattern – what works for that particular product and what doesn’t work.

• Create An Exciting Business Page

Remember that on social media platforms like Instagram, presentation matters. So from your bio to the pictures you post (we’ll talk about this next), every single piece of your page must add up to create an image of a business that is sellable.

You want to brand your business in such a way that it is attractive to consumers.

Work out your branding to create a matching visual representation of your business.

• Hunt For Numbers (Followers etc)

I don’t mean to bully people into following you or buying followers (these never work anyway).

We can all agree that on Instagram, and indeed any social media platform, numbers convert to profit. The more the numbers, the more money that comes in.

Deploy Instagram marketing strategies that’ll place your business at a point of visibility.

• Take High-Def Images

Make no mistake, Instagram is one of the social media platforms existing which requires the best of the best when it comes to image quality.

Influencers, social media users, and Instagram business owners who understand this rake in millions of naira regularly.

So consider investing in a phone with great picture quality or a high Res camera.

Although these tips are only to guide you at the beginning stage of setting up your business on IG, it’s important to emphasize that these aren’t the only tips to apply. For instance, an important tip not mentioned is researching your business (seems like a no-brainer if you ask me though).

I think that what’s most important in researching your business is for you to understand the why of your business. Why are you going into this particular business? How do you intend to fund this business? What risks are you willing to take? among other questions.

I guess that what I’m trying to say is that you will need to carry out more extensive research after reading this article on this particular subject.

So long! Have to go now.