Amazon sellers can sometimes find themselves in a bit of a trap. A great number of sales occur directly through Amazon's website - searches that originate on the Amazon page itself. This can definitely limit the number of potential customers you can reach.
There are many social media platforms out there, and advertising on any of them can be a huge boon. A well-rounded social media presence can allow you to capitalize on trends and develop a devoted following. For this article, we’re choosing to focus on how using Instagram can help increase your sales.
Why Instagram for Amazon Sellers?
Other social media platforms have larger numbers (we’re looking at you, Facebook).
Some social media networks have a more niche user base (like LinkedIn).
The biggest advantage of Instagram is that it has one of the highest user engagement rates among social media platforms.
Instagram is a highly visual platform that makes it an excellent avenue for showcasing your wares. What’s more, 90% of Instagram accounts follow a business. That’s an indication that the platform’s users don’t just tolerate businesses - they actively welcome them.
Back in the day, people were shown advertisements that they may or may not have enjoyed. Today, people actively seek out advertisements (in a sense), because they’re invested in you and your products. That’s a good place to be.
The platform also offers many useful tools to businesses, from its analytics to the ability to book appointments through Instagram.
Setting Up Shop
To get the most out of Instagram, you need to make sure you have the right tools for your business. You’ll start by setting up an Instagram business account - a simple process that gives you access to several analytics tools. You’ll also want to put the URL of your Amazon page in your bio.
This can be coupled with a simple call-to-action - something to highlight the link and brief text description is a popular way to go. Using Bitly or another URL shortener is an excellent way to keep things concise.
You’ll, of course, want to make sure your Amazon page itself is properly set up.
Using taxomate to coordinate accounting software with your Amazon page is an excellent way to ensure that you’re accurately tracking all of the incoming Instagram sales.
Equally, you’d be well-advised to have methods in place to track which URLs are generating sales and leads; Google Analytics can help with this.
Using the Platform
Now that you have everything set up, it’s time to get a following and start generating sales.
There are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind to maximize your reach on the platform:
- Don’t post too frequently. People don’t like to have their feeds clogged with the same types of content.
- Track how your posts are performing. Log what times you’re posting, the type of content that you’re posting, how much engagement the post is getting, and what kind of engagement it's getting.
- Use hashtags wisely. Figure out what’s trending in your industry or your region, and capitalize on it. While you can use up to 30 hashtags that can look a bit spammy, you’ll generally do fine with about 10.
- Encourage buyers to follow you on Instagram. A simple “Thank You” insert with your products, coupled with your social media credentials, can do wonders.
- With permission, engage in a bit of tit-for-tat with your customers. If they tag you in a post of them holding your product, put that post in your story, or on your page in a more permanent capacity.
- Post diverse types of content. Videos tend to be well-received on Instagram. Pictures of finished products, sneak peeks, behind-the-scenes production shots, videos of staff - be creative. Track what types of posts seem to work best for you.
- Post consistently. While you don’t want to be spammy, find the best time of day to post, and try to post every day.
- Looking to get followers more quickly? Consider offering a promotion to people who like you on Instagram - giveaways can work quite well for this.
Influencer Marketing
While much of the best growth on Instagram happens naturally with the kinds of organic user engagement described above, you might try to get a bit more reach through influencer marketing.
The types of influencers you’ll want to contact and the rates they will charge vary significantly from industry to industry. Here’s an excellent guide to influencer marketing if you want to know more.
You might even find some micro or local influencers who are willing to cross-promote in exchange for one of your products.
Instagram Ads
There are several ways you can advertise on Instagram for Amazon Sellers, from video ads to photo ads.
Instagram ads are at a set CPC (cost per click), and they employ the same incredible targeting algorithms that Facebook ads do. This means that if you’re in a particular niche, you can find people who are interested in exactly that niche, though targeting may cost more.
Social media engagement is all about seemingly organic content. This might seem strange while you’re reading an article about using Instagram to generate Amazon sales, but it’s true nonetheless. That means that even your advertised posts should look organic.
Nothing overproduced, nothing screaming “BUY NOW” - you want it to fit so seamlessly in a feed that someone passively scrolling won’t even realize it’s an ad.
A Brief Postscript on Instagram for Amazon Sellers
As you can see, there are a number of avenues you can use to generate Amazon sales using Instagram. There’s going to be a lot of trial and error, so you might find it best to start slowly.
Get to know the platform before engaging in ad campaigns, and try to grow your presence organically. Stay confident, believe in your business, and post genuine content - the followers will come.
