Instagram is one of the biggest social media platforms to showcase your brand and if you aren’t using it to promote your business, you’re severely missing out.
However, there are a few steps you must make to transition your physical business to the digital world. One of these is setting up your Instagram business account – an important step if you want to get the most out of everything the social media platform has to offer for brands.
Why Use Instagram for Your Business?
With over 2 billion active users, Instagram really is the place for your business to be. Since Facebook took over Instagram, it’s developed and evolved into a platform that’s essential for brands that want to engage with their audience, show a more human and personal side to their business and attract new customers or clients.
Instagram Business Account vs Personal Account
The Instagram business account is more focused on what companies want to achieve with the social media platform, instead of using the digital world for a fun pastime. For example, if you want to post tips, tutorials and advice just for fun, a personal account is perfect for you. However, business accounts are better for ‘influencers, professional photographers, bloggers, e-commerce brands, consultants/coaches, service businesses, authors, and more’ – anyone that wants to raise awareness of their brand to an audience. A business profile takes posting and sharing content on the app to the next level with Instagram advertising and nifty tools to help you reach more of your target audience.
Business accounts come with a lot of great benefits, including ‘things like a contact button where you can put your email and phone number, a place for your physical address & location, and even adding links to your Instagram stories.’
However, there are more rules associated with a business account, compared to a normal profile. This comes from Facebook’s crackdown on spam posts and fake news. The more likely you are to break the social media platform’s policies and rules, the less likely people are to see your posts.
It’s beneficial because it looks more legitimate. Users are much more likely to trust a business on Instagram that’s verified with the app as a company. A business account cannot set their profile to private, so any user that stumbles across your page can see your posts, which is what you want as a brand.
Instagram also offers a Creator account as an alternative — this is designed for influencers, public figures, and content creators, and comes with slightly different tools. If your business is built around personal content rather than a company brand, a Creator account may be worth exploring.
How to Set Up an Instagram Business Account: 7 Steps
In 2012, Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion, so the social platform follows lots of the same rules as its Mark Zuckerberg-owned parent. Therefore, it’ll come as no surprise that you need to have a Facebook business account before you even start thinking about your Instagram profile.
After you’ve set up your Facebook business account, you can begin! You may already have an Instagram account set up, but here’s our guide if you’re starting from scratch (skip to step six if you’ve already got a profile for your business):
- Download the app from the store
Simply go to the App or Play Store and download Instagram. You can access the social media platform from your desktop but the features you can carry out are limited. For example, you cannot post content directly from your computer or laptop, you can only view other users’ content and Stories. Instagram are always updating features for the desktop version, but there aren’t as many useful features and tools as there are on the app.
- Create an account
Creating an account with Instagram is easy – all you need is an email address. If you’re in a big team, all of which will be using the account, make sure you use an email that everyone can access or can remember. Then make sure you email the account details to everyone involved. If just one person will be using the account, then make sure they sign up with their work or company’s email and not their personal one.
- Fill out your profile
Now you’re a fully-fledged member of Instagram, you have to fill out your profile, including address, username and bio. Pick a username that’s both available and a reflection of your brand. For example, if you’re a business based in the United Kingdom, your username could simply be your company name followed by UK.
You can also input your telephone number if you want customers to be able to contact you via phone.
- Follow people
If you’ve just started your account from fresh, your follower count is going to be at a very dull zero. You can organically grow your audience, by interacting with other accounts. Follow other profiles in your industry or Influencers you may want to pair up with in the future. Use hashtags to discover new accounts too.
- Choose a profile picture
A profile picture is an essential asset to your account, so make sure you choose a good one. Ensure it’s of high quality, clear and relevant to your brand.
- Turn into business mode
Once you’ve got your profile ready to go, go to settings and make the transition into Business Account by clicking ‘Switch to Professional Account’. Follow the steps Instagram will guide you on and then connect your Facebook Business Profile when it asks.
- Start posting
Congratulations – you officially have an Instagram business account! Now all you’ve got left to do is post. You can come up with a campaign and plan a strategy now with Instagram involved. Talk about your brand, your team, your story, and your message. Make sure all your posts are educational and interesting or at least provide your audience with some value. Ensure you don’t spam your audience, and make sure all the videos and posts you share are of high quality and relevant. Include hashtags either in the caption or in the first comment to get more people to see your content.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is an Instagram business account?
An Instagram business account (also called a Professional account) is a type of Instagram profile designed for brands, companies, and anyone promoting a business. It gives you access to contact buttons, Instagram Insights, the ability to run ads, and tools to connect with your audience more professionally.
Q: What is the difference between a business account and a personal account on Instagram?
A personal account is for everyday use and keeping your profile private if you choose. A business account is public, gives you analytics on your posts and followers, adds a contact button to your profile, and lets you run paid advertising. If you are promoting a brand, product, or service, a business account is the right choice.
Q: Do I need a Facebook account to set up an Instagram business account?
You used to need a Facebook Business Page to convert to a business account, but Instagram now allows you to set up a Professional account without one. That said, connecting your Facebook Page gives you access to more features including running ads through Meta Ads Manager, so it is still recommended.
Q: Is an Instagram business account free?
Yes, creating and running an Instagram business account is completely free. You only pay if you choose to run paid advertising through Meta Ads Manager.
Q: Can I switch back to a personal account after going business?
Yes. You can switch between account types at any time in your Instagram settings. Go to Settings > Account > Switch Account Type and choose Personal. Note that you will lose access to your Instagram Insights history when you switch back.
If you need any help with your Instagram business account or want any more information on any of the topics discussed in this article, please get in contact today.
