Did you know that Instagram can help to get more link juice? Yes, the platform isn’t link-friendly, but it has huge potential!
As one of the fastest-growing social media platforms with the highest engagement rate, it’s no wonder that brands do their best to convert their Instagram followers into website visitors and therefore get more website traffic.
Simply put, the days when Instagram was a simple visual-sharing platform are long gone. Today, Instagram has become one of the most effective marketing tools for business promotion and it helps to get more traffic when done right.
Why Should You Drive Traffic with Instagram?
The world-known brands like Starbucks, BWM, and Nike have proven that having an Instagram presence builds brand awareness, increases brand loyalty, and drives sales. As a result, Instagram marketing is growing in popularity.
However, just a few brands use this platform for driving traffic. If you’re still doubting whether you should drive traffic with Instagram, here are three main reasons to get more link juice with this platform:
#1. The platform has a great number of active users
Most people are visual learners, so it’s no wonder a photo-sharing platform Instagram is gaining in popularity so fast.
Just within 5 years, its community has grown 10x. As of June 2018, the platform reached 1 billion monthly active users. To calculate the estimated number of potential visitors, ask for math help and see the potential.
Moreover, 64% of the community are people under 34 years, the largest paying audience. This means great potential for businesses (both small and big ones), it’s just a perfect place to turn active Instagrammers into website visitors and therefore drive more traffic.
#2. Instagrammers want to interact with brands in-app
Instagrammers spend a considerable amount of time on the platform, so it’s no surprise that they choose it as the most preferred channel for brand communication.
In fact, 90% of Instagram users follow at least one business on the platform as they are interested in interacting with brands they love and support. Plus, a great number of people use this platform for product discovery and shopping, as specified in the report below:
In other words, users are ready to receive brand information in-app and they are more likely to learn more about your product or service on Instagram and chances are that your followers are more likely to become your website visitors than other people on the web.
#3. Instagram has features to redirect hooked followers to your website
Yes, Instagram isn’t the most obvious website traffic source as all users are limited in adding clickable links on their profiles. But with the growing popularity of Instagram for business promotion, the number of business-specific features has also increased.
Now, you can add a link in the bio, a clickable Story link, or even links in IGTV descriptions. Thus, this platform offers many unique ways to engage users and get more traffic.
If you’re ready to create a deep link to Instagram and turn interested users into your website visitors, it’s just a perfect place to drive more website traffic.
To learn more about seven ways to drive more traffic with Instagram, keep on reading this blog post.
7 Ways to Drive More Website Traffic with Instagram
1. Make the Most Out of Your Bio Link
No matter how many followers you have and what Instagram profile type you’ve chosen for business promotion, every user has an opportunity to add one link–a link in the bio.
An Instagram bio is the first thing Instagrammers see when visiting your profile. It’s a section that appears under your username and allows you to describe yourself or your business in 150 characters. Not only can you add your information and contact information, but you can also include one website link.
For example, you can add a link to your homepage so that users can find out more about your company or its products or service. Also, you can tell your visitors that you have a live chat on your website and encourage them to visit it for solving customer inquiries.
At first glance, it’s a great way to drive more traffic to your website. But if you want to promote several landing pages, use an InstaURL and include as many links as you need. Check out how Shane Zuspan makes the most out of his bio link:
2. Add Clickable Links in Instagram Stories
Back in 2016, when Instagram created its ephemeral content feature known as Instagram Stories, no one could have predicted that disappearing content with a lifespan of 24 hours would have taken the world by storm.
The introduction of Instagram Stories has impacted user behavior and people have started spending much time in-app as they are afraid of missing out on something important. With 500 million daily users, it’s no wonder that Instagram rolls out Instagram Stories features that help businesses interact with hooked audiences in-app.
If you want to drive more website traffic and you have 10k+ followers on your profile, there’s a handy feature for you–clickable Story links. Now brands can redirect users to their website with clickable Story links, just like Asos did it in the example below:
Since there’s no need for users to leave the app when finding out more about your brand or products, they are more likely to tap on the clickable links to get more information. In other words, this feature is handy for both brands and customers.
Do your followers spend a considerable amount of time watching your Stories? Learn how to create an Instagram Story camera deep link for better results.
3. Write a Strong CTA
When people follow your brand on Instagram, just a few of them visit your profile.
Most followers discover your brand content when they see new posts in their Newsfeeds. As a result, chances are your followers read posts more frequently than your bio.
To drive more traffic, not only should you add a clickable link in your bio, but you should also inform your followers about it in the post caption. Thus, writing a strong call to action is a must to encourage your following to take the desired action and visit your website.
Check out how The Great Frog did it:
If you want to turn your followers into website visitors, you need to offer them something valuable and useful. Here are some ideas of lead magnets that can encourage followers to tap on your link:
- Brand freebies
- Free downloads
- Exclusive startup resources
- Premium content
- Webinars, online courses, reports
4. Organize an Instagram Giveaway
Giveaways are one of the most engaging content types on Instagram. According to one report, an Instagram giveaway can help your account grow 70% faster as this type of content gets 64x more comments and 3.5x more likes.
The secret is that people love free stuff, so they are more likely to take the desired action for a chance to win something valuable. Thus, brands let their creativity run wild and seek out new ways to drive more traffic with giveaways.
In short, there are two main ways to drive website traffic with your giveaway:
- Put giveaway terms and conditions on your website
- Ask participants to enter your giveaway on a landing page
But if you want to drive website traffic and make your giveaway go viral, it’s a good idea to create an ecommerce quiz and put ‘take a quiz’ as the participation requirements. As a form of interactive content, this giveaway has higher chances of going viral among your target audience which means more participants and therefore more website traffic.
5. Collaborate with Instagram Influencers
Growing your following is hard. But if you want to reach your target audience without spending much time or effort, it’s a good idea to collaborate with niche Instagram influencers who can give you access to their well-established followings.
Moreover, influencers come in all sizes and shapes so you can also get access to Instagram features like clickable Story links.
If you work with an influencer who uses an Instagram creator account, you can even ask your partner to add product tags in their posts and therefore drive more traffic to your website with shoppable posts. Here’s an example of this strategy from Katie Sturino:
Here are several ideas on how to drive website traffic with Instagram influencers:
- Become a member of your campaign and post material on your website
- Promote your product on their profiles and invite followers to visit your website
- Spread the word about your product or brand in Stories and add a clickable link to your website
6. Include Links in IGTV Descriptions
Video content is gaining popularity. A recent report says that 72% of customers watch a video to learn about a product or brand and 75% of customers take action after watching brand videos.
In other words, video content keeps your audience engaged. And if you want to convert these hooked audiences into website visitors, make the most out of the IGTV description feature and add clickable links to the description box. Here’s how it looks like:
7. Run Instagram Ad Campaigns
Paid ads are extremely effective if you want to achieve your business goals fast. Not only can you target the right audience with ease, but you can also use business-specific features like clickable links that help to redirect interested viewers to your website and get better results.
Let’s take a look at Chameleon, for example. When the company created a series of video ads to raise brand awareness, Chameleon included a Story link and call to action that resulted in 3.3x higher brand awareness.
Brand content bombards users from all sides, so your ad campaign should stand out from the crowd to grab the attention of your target audience and convert viewers into website visitors. Thus, it’s a good idea to use a graphic design tool like InstaSize to create eye-catching ads with ease.
Conclusion
As one of the most popular social media networks with a variety of business-friendly features, Instagram has great marketing potential for brands that want to drive more website traffic.
From adding a bio link to using secret features like clickable links in IGTV descriptions, there are many ways to convert your engaged followers into website visitors and therefore get more link juice. If you want to drive website traffic, using Instagram isn’t an option these days, so give it a try now!
By Hugh Beaulac
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Hugh Beaulac is a content strategist behind MC2 Bid4Papers who has over 7 years of digital marketing experience. He’s a fan of social media marketing, so Hugh often writes for marketing blogs to share his tips and tricks. To read his latest guest posts, follow him on Twitter.
