Chapter 2: Always Tell a Story

Author: Issa Asad
“A picture is worth a thousand words.”
You have probably heard this saying a thousand times, but it is true. Using pictures to relate to your consumer and to prospective consumers is an easy way to connect. For example, an image of a new product you are going to sell is far more descriptive than a paragraph you would write about it.

People can see the color, the fabric, the texture, the details and so forth. Although words can convey certain details about a product, they will only go so far in doing so. For this reason, when you are deciding which images to add to your Instagram account you want to make sure you are always telling a story. This is the opposite of simply adding random pictures which have nothing to do with your business, or the information which customers would like to collect from the images that you choose to share on the social media platform.

 

Take Advantage of the Space

With Instagram you have a whole new way to tell a story – through images. So it is important to do so. You want to make your brand stands out and you want people to connect with your company on a human level.

By adding both fun (or personal) photos as well as business photos, you are going to be able to do this. But again, there must be some type of connection between the images so that the visitor is going to be able to put the story together in the end. If you are simply adding images on a random basis or throw in images that are not connected in some way, it is going to take away from your story.

 

Telling the Story

There are many ways to use the social photo sharing platform to share your story.

Some photos you may choose to include are:

– Photos of your product lines. Whether you sell clothing, linens or a particular service, let customers see it. When they get a glimpse at a new product or the product in design, they are going to feel connected to you and your business.

– Images of your employees. Even if a customer never sees the people behind the scenes (because your business is solely online), having a face behind the voice (or in this case computer screen) is always nice. The people who work for you and develop your brand are a part of the story you want to tell.

– Photos of events or charitable causes. If you can connect with your clients on a human level it is a great advantage for you as a business owner. So consider adding the images that show charitable work you do, people you help in the community or fun things you do with locals. These are all a part of your business and can be a part of the story that you tell your clients and site visitors.

The more you can connect with people and the more you can connect to those who are seeing these photos you add over time, the easier it is going to be for you to build your brand.

You want your Instagram account to tell people who are seeing the pictures something about your company. Any of these types of images are going to do just that. Not only will they allow your customers to see what you do and what products you have in development, but will also give them a glimpse of how your company relates to them in other ways, apart from the purchases that they are making from your business as well.

 

Strike a Balance

Of course depending on the type of business you run, the type of product you sell, the service you offer and the type of clients you are dealing with, the images you choose to share will vary when you are developing the story you are telling.

For example, a business in the line of finance is not going to share as many fun images or goofy pictures, as a company that sells children’s clothing might share.

Understanding how to strike a balance between the fun and the business photos that you upload is extremely important when you are adding the images to your story. Also, placement of the pictures, frequency of certain types of images and images that you choose to share (if it was sent to you by a customer), are all factors to consider when you are adding images to Instagram, and adding them in any particular order to the site.

Whether you are adding one photo each day, or twenty photos each day, the right mix of photos are going to complete your story and are going to strike a balance between the business you do, the product or service you sell and the type of clients that you engage with as a business.

 

Use Statistics

There is a like button for a reason on Instagram. Basically these two buttons are going to be your guidance as to which type of image you want to share.

If customers like an image, they can tell you this and even add a comment as to why they like it; the same goes if they do not like an image. If certain types of images you are posting receive a higher percentage of likes versus dislikes, this should indicate something to you. The same goes on the flip side; if customers are disliking the images you share or seem to be upset or otherwise insulted by certain images, you have to take immediate action to remedy the situation.

Instagram will allow you to instantly remove an image. This is one way to counter the dislikes you are receiving and it is a great way to show your customers that you care about their opinion. Not only are you removing images that are offensive or that they otherwise do not want to see, but you are acting quickly so as to avoid losing such customers and site visitors who do not like certain images you are using.

It is important to read into the likes and dislikes for images, as well as the comments which are being left behind by followers who choose to comment on the images you post. This information is not only going to help you determine what parts of your story customers and visitors enjoy, but will also allow you to modify your story in the future so that you remove the chapters which are not relevant to the customer who is visiting your account page.

Striking a balance is essential to developing your account; but, if customers are continually telling you they do not want to see a certain type of image, then you want to make the modifications as needed. Sometimes a particular type of visitor is only going to want to see business images, or the fun images.

Either way you have to use the statistics, use the comments and listen to what your visitors are saying so as to ensure you do not lose any followers on the social media platform. This will also ensure visitors are getting the most out of the images that you choose to share with them as a business owner.

 

Engagement of Images

This generally comes in the form of comments that are left behind on the images you post by people who click on a photo and like it. As a business owner (or as the person in charge of adding images to the Instagram account), you have to track this information on a regular basis.

If possible, it is a good idea to check the comments and feedback which is being left behind on a day to day basis. Doing this allows you to see which photos your visitors most appreciate, which ones are getting the most traffic and which ones are leaving the biggest impact on them, both positive and negative impact.

Because not every person is going to react to a particular image in the same manner, reading comments is just as important (if not more important) than looking at the likes for different images. Just because two people like the same picture or dislike the same image, it does not mean it is for the same reason. When you read the comments, you can learn more about what visitors have to say about the images you are posting and you can pick up more about what they feel when they see certain images.

This engagement and comment sharing also begins discussions about your product and your company. So reading the comments, the interaction between your followers and what they are most talking about in each image is a great way to learn about what they like and what they do not like about different images which are posted.

This gives you an advantage by allowing you to make changes as needed and properly modify your story on the image sharing site, and to add the images which are most interesting and which are most liked by the followers and visitors that are coming on to your page.

 

Do What People Like Best

No matter what, it is impossible to please everyone. For this reason, you have to find what works best. Whether it is striking a balance between fun and business, or simply sticking to one side of the spectrum, your Instagram photos have to tell a story and they have to engage the visitors who are going to be reading the story that you are sharing with them.

Since there is no way to please everyone, you have to find what works for the masses, and this is what you should continue to deliver to your site visitors in terms of the pictures that you choose to share with them as a business.

Find out what your followers like best, and give this to them. By doing this you are not only going to be gaining new followers, you are also going to realize your business is going to grow. As your followers are going to share your account page, new followers will eventually visit your site as well.

So remember to tell a story, but also to make modifications and changes along the way as needed. You also have to remember that you can’t please every person that visits your page and for this reason should make use of the information you do have, to learn what visitors like best and to give them this when posting new images to your account page.

 

 

Issa Asad is an entrepreneur and marketing strategist from Miami, Florida. Issa Asad  has over 15 years of experience
in the marketing, technology and telecommunications industries. Mr. Asad has been the Co-Founder, Founder, Managing
Member, President, Vice President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of multiple technology, telecom and online-based companies.