Instagram is the king of all social networking platforms. It has over 400 billion active users who log in every day and followed brands and other individuals daily.

It gives e-commerce website owners a glorious opportunity to market their products to a whole new market, especially since about 80 percent of all Instagrammers engage with different brands on a regular basis. A majority of them engage actively simply because they like the brand online.

According to TrackMaven, the engagement ratio on Instagram is eight times higher than Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest, at an average. However, you must also remember what Instagram co-founder and CEO, Kevin Systrom recently said, “Instagrammers miss about 70 percent of the posts on their feed”. All users face this common problem each day unless they are following someone rigorously.

Here are a few things you can do as the owner of a business who wants to make it big on Instagram

Create content your real Instagram followers want. Initially, you may find it hard to read your audience. Try using social listening tools. It will help you find out what your potential customers are saying about you and how you can deliver exactly what they need. Use HD images that are roughly 1080 x 1080 pixels. Keep your captions as short as possible and include your Insta-handle too.

Schedule content. This bit is significant for all marketers on Instagram. You cannot sit and write content for your Instagram account every day. You need to schedule at least 14 days’ worth content. We call it pre-loading. You can use a reliable tool to schedule posting content on certain days when you are expecting higher traffic and more visibility. Keeping your presence regular on Instagram is as important as creating new content. To maintain the regularity, you need to schedule content for your profile.

Engage directly. You need to interact with your real Instagram followers. If you are organizing a contest, declare the winner personally or reward them publicly. Keep the conversations effortless. It will add a human face to your business, and it will help your customers relate to your brand image. It is always better to directly answer the queries of your potential buyers and existing customers. Always remember to never engage in direct conflict. If someone says something negative about you, you can always reason with them. Do not be rude to your potential buyers.

A few added points

Digital marketing experts recommend using the Instagram Live tool. It increases engagement significantly. All posts with a geotag command 79 percent more engagement. User generated content get high views. About 70 percent of all Instagrammers actually take part in photo contests, and about 41 percent of all users simply follow a brand for free goodies.

These stats will help you build your e-commerce profile on Instagram with more accuracy. Get a photo to represent your business. Type in an interesting bio with a live website link and get started with high definition pictures of your products, today!

Walter Moore is a digital marketing consultant. He is an expert in getting Instagram followers for businesses. He also has a blog and writes about how to get followers for Instagram.