If you’re feeling stuck with growing your brand on social media, this post is for you. I just had a chat with a friend who gave 4 expert secrets on growing your following and awareness on Instagram. And she knows what she’s talking about because she revived a hundred-year-old company with social media! Here’s a deeper look into 4 Instagram lessons that will transform your marketing strategy. 

 

 

In case you missed the last post, Helen is the marketing director of Frownies, a leading brand in the beauty industry. She is a mastermind when it comes to growing a brand and using social media to build a community of raving fans and loyal customers. From adding a social media strategy to Frownies’ business plan, Helen 4x the company’s revenue within a year. And it has continued to grow like crazy every year since. That, my friends, is the power of social media. 

 

 

Instagram Marketing Lesson #1: The power of a personal brand.

Adding a face to Frownies is one of the biggest things Helen has done for the company’s success. The brand is no longer just facial patches, but it’s Helen. People see Helen on social media, connect with her, and chat with her. They’ve formed a relationship with her AND the brand. 

She also started sending voice responses to people’s DMs and answering their questions about the product. This hugely increased their sales as well. If you have a brand presence on Instagram but lack the personal touch, think about what you can do to add some personality to it! 

Bonus Instagram Strategy Tip: Frownies has a ton of user-generated content. This means it has other people/influencers on Instagram using and talking about the products. This has helped spread the word about the products exponentially. The products and brand have gotten in front of so many people so quickly because they used the strategy of user-generated content. 

 

Instagram Marketing Lesson #2: Prioritize social media.

Helen mentioned in the interview that often times people see social media as an extra thing you have to do for your business. But Helen prioritizes it. She doesn’t let other business responsibilities keep her from showing up for her community. If Helen’s work starts to be too much, she lets her team know and they rearrange tasks in order to protect her social media time.

Believe it or not, Helen personally answers every single DM she gets. For commonly asked questions, she has created content for them. This means that she will send people a quick voice memo giving them support and then she will send a link to a reel, carousel post, etc. that has the answer to their question. 

She keeps an organized list of these common responses in a content bank so she can quickly refer back to it and send it when those questions pop up in her DMs. This is genius because she’s speeding up her response process but still giving that personal touch all customers love. 

This may seem like a lot of time spent on Instagram, but if Instagram is one of your main marketing sources then this time needs to be protected. And use this time wisely and intentionally. If you are serious about using Instagram to grow, then you are on the app to connect with people, create content, and research how to reach your business goals through a killer marketing strategy. (Not scrolling!)

 

 

Instagram Marketing Lesson #3: Use your haters.

It can be really frustrating and hurtful to have people who don’t like you in the comments. No one likes it and it’s a risk all of us content creators and influencers deal with as we continue to grow bigger and bigger. But you can always flip the script here and use your haters for even more growth. 

One thing Helen has done is use the hater comments to create content. She touches on their comment and responds back to them with a super valuable (and somewhat witty) post. This strategy has increased her reach and has even raised awareness among her loyal followers who have even gone to bat for her which is a really cool thing to see. 

 

Instagram Marketing Lesson #4: Find your voice and use it. 

Finding your voice and using it is a lesson to learn, but it’s also a benefit that comes from showing up on social media. Helen shared an experience where she had to speak in front of a large audience and she would have been super nervous, but this time she wasn’t. And she knew it was because she had shown up on social media every single day for Frownies. 

I love that story because so many of us can relate to it. I’m so passionate about social media because it gives women a voice they never would have claimed before. I think about all the things that used to be super scary to me, e.g. teaching impromptu with no preparation, but now I can do them at the drop of a hat. 

What benefits have you seen come from you showing up on social media? What things used to be scary to you but now they are not? Discover these and celebrate them! I encourage you to keep moving forward, and keep doing the scary thing because when good people find their confidence their voices can be heard louder and louder in different avenues even beyond business.

 

 

4 Instagram Lessons That Will Transform Your Marketing Strategy

I know social media can be super overwhelming because it’s a lot to take in, it’s constant, and you often feel like you’re falling behind. But I promise you, it gets better and you get better. Creating content will become less stressful and more fun–especially when you start to see your numbers grow! These really are 4 Instagram lessons that will transform your marketing strategy. It can work for you just like it did for Helen. If you want to stay in touch, make sure to give Helen a follow @frownies. And you can find me @iammichellegifford where you’ll get the best tips and strategies on all things Instagram!