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Back in 2010, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger launched a humble little mobile app called Instagram into an already saturated market. The logo resembled a vintage Polaroid camera and the concept seemed simple enough—giving novices the ability to create professional-level images, capture the beauty of their day-to-day lives and share with followers. Similar to X (formerly Twitter), posts could be discovered by new audiences using hashtags, leading to more engagement, followers, and a new world of Instagram for business with social media influencers and brands.
Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg thought enough of it to purchase it for a cool billion dollars. He took Instagram to the next level and incorporated video, introduced “stories,” began monetizing through sponsored/promoted content, and launched Instagram TV. Never before have brands had more opportunity to engage with their consumers with Instagram for business.
No matter the industry, people turn to Instagram for inspiration and for travel and tourism brands, and it has become a key element of the planning/discovery process for travel and tourism brands. Here are a few business Instagram tips from BlackDog Advertising for getting started and making your pics as “Insta-worthy” as possible!
These 5 business Instagram tips will elevate your brand's presence on social media
1. Find a point of interest
One of the most important business instagram tips for travel and tourism brands is to bring some perspective into your photograph or content by showing how you are interacting with the shot, like showing the far edge of your dinner table, showing the POV through the window of your trolley en route, etc.
2. Find an alternative point-of-view
There are so many recognizable destinations where thousands of tourists take the same pictures and video in the same spot. So, what if on your Instagram for business, you portrayed an alternative situation, perspective, or activity at that same location? As a leading authority in the travel industry, your job is to portray exclusive insights on things to do at that destination from your Instagram for business account. Use these business Instagram tips from BlackDog Advertising to guide your analysis:
- We know what the sunset at Mallory Square in Key West looks like: water and the sun. You have to remember you are experiencing more than just what’s in front of you.
- Look down. Are you enjoying a fresh coconut drink? Why not angle it up and add it to the shot of the sunset? Now we know you’re not only enjoying the sunset, but you are sipping on a cool drink enjoying the view. You add value to that experience just by altering your perspective! And you add value to your Instagram for business account by providing those alternative experiences.
- So many people focus on going to photogenic locations, so it’s up to you to portray that and show that there’s more you can offer, and only YOU can offer it.
- Show history, culture, and experience that generally can’t be captured in a photo but that has a lot of personal value.
3. Switch up content type
- Still images are so 2015. You can now add different content types to your mix to amp up your content game.
- You can add to an experience depending on the content you take from it. For example, instead of just taking a picture of your delicious meal, why not a quick boomerang of your surroundings with the meal last in the shot?
4. Content types include:
- Boomerangs
- Timelapses
- Slow-motion
- Memes (This one can get a bit tricky. While there is no doubt that memes see a lot of action on Insta pages, there is a chance that you can wind up offending someone if they don’t share your sense of humor. BlackDog Advertising advises to tread lightly.)
- Cinemagraphs
- Gifs
- Videos
5. Focus on your composition
At BlackDog Advertising, we know a thing or two about design. These business Instagram tips for fundamental layout rules should not be forgotten.
- Instagram encourages you to upload square pictures (although, thankfully, that’s recently changed). If you’re taking pictures, compose them with the most interesting parts in the center so that when Instagram crops it, you still have a perfect image.
- Just like when taking pictures of ourselves, you always have to find the best angle for the shot.
- You must respect the Rule-of-Thirds.
- Make sure to use the grid option to maximize your layout. It’s an easy way to find a different point of view and to organize your Instagram feed.
