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How to Sell on Instagram: 10 Rulesto Do It RightPosted on March 3, 2015 by Lisa Kalner Williams

Yes, Instagram is the reigning “King of Engagement” these days. But don’t letthat keep you from figuring out how to sell on Instagram. Here are some tipsto get you started.

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DOs

1. Feel empowered to sell on Instagram. We’re always told to “show ourhuman side” on social media channels. But you know what a recent SimplyMeasured Instagram study revealed? That users follow brands to look atproducts, whether they be tractors, cameras, or computers. So add productshots to your Instagram content calendar to give users what they want and tokindly remind them that you are a business who has stuff for sale.

2. Make a sale overt in your photo. People are on Instagram to look atphotos. If you wait until the caption to let your followers know about yourpromotion, you’re running the risk that they’ll scroll right by it.

Drinking lid adaptor, Cuppow overlayed the details of its 25% off sale on aneyecatching array of their products.

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The company also made the sale easy for Instagram users by usingits homepage as the destination URL. As we’ll discuss in detail soon, thereare no tappable URLs in an Instagram news feed. A brief and memorable one(like cuppow.com) works best to prompt people to check out your sale on anexternal site.

Note: this Cuppow sale doesn’t require a pesky discount code which furtherincreases the ease of making a purchase.

3. Install an Instagram Sales App. Some smart apps have synced withInstagram to make selling easier for brands of all sizes. Fashion bloggerTanesha Awasthi at Girl with Curves uses LIKEtoKNOW.it to sell the itemsshe models on her Instagram feed.

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When her followers who sign up for LIKEtoKNOW.it double tap one of herphotos with a LIKEtoKNOW link in the caption, they’ll receive an email withassociated product links so that they can shop the look of their favorite Girlwith Curves posts.

Like2Buy and Soldsie are two similar platforms that allow businesses onInstagram to sell their wares through their bios and posts.

4. Use social proof whenever possible. Instagram is an amazing source of(often unprompted) user generated content. You most likely know the value ofthe social proof that UGC provides. So if your Instagram monitoring hasunearthed a fabulous photo of your product in the wild, why not askpermission of the Instagram user who posted it to use it in your upcoming

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promotion?

5. Advertise. Instagram by its own admission has been slow to openadvertising to all businesses. Until the advertising flood gates open, make aquick study of the sponsored posts that currently appear in your newsfeed?

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Which ones get a decent amount of likes and positive comments? Whatcommon traits do you see among those posts?

DON’TS

1. Think selling on Instagram is like selling on other socialchannels. Because Instagram is a real-time, visual network, it sets it apartfrom its social media brothers and sisters. And it also means that you needto lead your sale with an eye-catching image. Take the time you need to getthe photo right. That means selecting a photo that is square in shape, easy toidentify, and void of distracting lighting issues.

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2. Forget Instagram’s hyperlink “problem.” Instagram wants you on theirplatform to look at images, and not tap away to another site. That’s why theydon’t allow any tappable links in photo captions.

Don’t be under the false assumption that people will somehow highlight a URLin your caption and paste it in a mobile Internet browser. If you really wantfolks to go to your ecommerce page (and you don’t use something likeLIKEtoKNOW.it), please refer them to the ONLY place that Instagram letsyou insert a tappable, external link — the URL slot in your Instagram bio.

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The arrow above points to the ony place that Lenny Kravitz’ fans can tap through tobuy his new music.

3. Diss the details of any limited-time sale. I know I’ve said that peopledon’t read on Instagram. When they’re “window shopping” it’s certainly true.But once you’ve caught their attention with a sale, nip potential customerservice questions in the bud by providing details. Give start and end dates.Explain if the sale is online, in stores, or in both locations. If it is online, tellthem what promotion code to use or let ‘em know that no code is needed (a lathe above Cuppow example).

4. Keep Instagram on an island. You don’t want your Instagram sale to be a

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secret, do you? Crosspromote your Instagram sale whenever possible. Ifyou’re on Facebook, Twitter, or Tumblr, let your followers know. Give a headsup to your email list, especially a segment most apt to use Instagram. Not onlywill you increase your chances of getting people to participate in yourpromotion, but you might also get more Instagram followers as a result!

5. Neglect the rest of your sales funnel. While these ideas may havewhetted your appetite for selling your product on Instagram, don’t let it detractfrom Instagram’s strengths — spreading brand awarness, buildingrelationships, gathering user generated content, and conducting marketresearch.

How have you used Instagram to sell products and services from yourbusiness?

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Tags: cross-sell, instagram, sales, selling

Lisa Kalner WilliamsLisa Kalner Williams is the founder of Sierra Tierra Marketing. Since2009, she’s collaborated with businesses on social media marketinganalysis, strategy and instruction. To date, her consulting work for clientshas impacted over 1 million Facebook relationships.

She is the lead instructor of "How to Market Better with Instagram" atLearn Social with Lisa, an online social media school for busy people.More posts - Twitter - LinkedIn

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