Instagram marketing trends in 2019
- IGTV presses play in 2019
Launched in June this year, IGTV is the brand-new video platform designed for mobile users.
Instagram created IGTV to be a source of long form streaming videos. The platform isn’t here to replace YouTube. Instead, IGTV gives marketers a way to connect with their mobile audience through vertical video playback and authentic “in the moment” content.
Brands are already discovering the power of IGTV for themselves. Chipotle used the IGTV format to engage their audience with a video of their delicious food.
Around 59% of IG users are between the ages of 18 and 29. As the rise of streaming services like Netflix shows, younger people love watching streamed content and vloggers on their phone. Instagram is now competing with YouTube to let vloggers create videos for the vertical screen format.
- Instagram Stories expand your social narrative
Instagram Stories currently make up a vital component of any IG marketing strategy. With around 300 million active users per day, it’s safe to say that people love their Stories.
The demand for stories makes sense. Many Instagram marketing trends this year seem to focus on the value of video – a format that delivers 1,200% more shares than images and text combined. The good news is that stories don’t have to be complicated to be effective. Try:
- Showing behind-the-scenes peeks into your office
- Launching polls to ask opinions on products
- Sharing a new sale or limited-time promotion
Instagram Stories have their own engagement metrics, including replies, exits and taps forward or back. Sprout Social offers Instagram Stories reporting features, so you can track each of your new Stories solutions resonate with your customers. With Instagram Stories now twice as big as Snapchat, it’s time to find your narrative.
- Engagement reigns supreme
With the rise of features like Stories polls transforming today’s Instagram marketing trends, it’s no surprise that “engagement” is the name of the game.
For years, social media marketers have been using customer personas and other details to improve their chances of engagement. The more you know about your audience, the more likely you are to connect with them. In 2019, Instagram will be delivering even more ways to build on those connections and pave the way for brand loyalty.
- Shoppable posts continue to perform
Recently, Instagram has been growing increasingly more attractive for businesses, sellers and e-commerce brands. Advertising on the platform has risen to a new level as companies discover that 70% of Instagram users use their mobile to purchase products online.
Shoppable Posts continued to expand in 2018, with support in more countries and through more formats, including Stories. Instagram is a perfect platform for showing your best-selling products in the most attractive light and allowing your customers to easily purchase directly through a familiar platform.
It’s the ultimate way to streamline your audiences’ path to purchase.
- Instagram becomes more “pay to play”
At first glance, Instagram looks like a marketer’s dream come true. As the platform grows increasingly popular, the 1 billion user count is sure to capture your interest, particularly since 42% of Instagrammers earn over $75k per year.
Of course, the more people there are on Instagram, the more competition you’ll have to face and the more clutter you’ll need to get through to reach your audience. Combine that with the fact that the Instagram algorithm evolved to concentrate on more “timely” posts in March 2018 and today’s marketers need to work even harder to stay ahead of the game.
If you want to connect with people on Instagram in 2019, then you need to embrace the concept of paid posting.