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Perusal Tech

• 06 Jun, 2021

In this article, we are going to discuss Social Media Lead Generation Techniques. Right now, we are focusing on only one social media platform i.e. "Instagram". Let's see how we can generate leads through Instagram. But, before that let's take a glance at - What lead generation is. Then we will move further.

WHAT IS LEAD GENERATION?

Lead generation involves the process of generating the interest of customers for a company's product or service with the aim of converting that interest into a potential sale. Anyone who is having an interest in the company's product or service will be considered as a "Lead".

When we talk about generating leads through digital/online marketing, the collection of visitor's contact information via a web form is called "Lead".

Lead generation is not only about gathering a prospective customer's contact info but more about retargeting them and remarketing the product/service later in the future, to convert them into a "Warm Lead", in case they do not make the purchase immediately.

Not anyone and everyone is a leader, as people have different preferences and needs. Those are called as "Cold leads", in sense of marketing terminology.

WHAT IS INSTAGRAM LEAD GENERATION?

Instagram Lead Generation is about generating consumers' interest by using the "Instagram" platform with the goal of converting them into prospective buyers.

It can be done through mainly 2 methods :

(1) ORGANIC LEAD GENERATION: meaning generating leads organically i.e. without paying for it.

(2) INORGANIC LEAD GENERATION: meaning generating leads inorganically i.e. by paying for it. 

Let's take a look at how to generate leads effectively by using both methods :

WAYS TO GENERATE ORGANIC LEADS :

(1) OPTIMISE YOUR INSTAGRAM PROFILE: Your profile must look well-optimized, as it is all about 1st impression. Your Instagram profile is probably the 1st thing that users check out. Therefore, it should be a reflection of your brand with an easily recognizable photo or business logo that followers can associate with your brand.

Other than the profile picture, make sure that your bio contains catchy items which give them a reason to follow you. Ideally, the bio should be a well-written description of your brand, containing a link to your website or a high-converting landing page.

(2) SHARE VALUABLE CONTENT CONSISTENTLY: Delivering value to your target audience is what interests them the most. When you share valuable content consistently, your brand earns more credibility and trust. Likewise, brand owners must shift their focus on value-addition instead of being promotional. This involves sharing high-quality and informative content that resonates with your target audience.

By doing so, you're bound to enhance the level of engagement, increase your follower count, and gain more leads. As a marketer, you'll realize that the more value you provide, the more fruitful your lead generation efforts will be.

(3) ENGAGE WITH YOUR AUDIENCE: It is one of the most effective ways of growing your reach on Instagram and generating more leads. Be social with your audience, engage with them on a regular basis. An easy way to increase engagement is by responding to comments and posts that feature your brand.

Always respond with a thoughtfully crafted comment. Use relevant hashtags, emojis, GIFs, and related images to make your comments more human and engaging. You can keep the conversation flowing by asking follow-up questions. Efforts like this is definitely going to win you more followers, and eventually, more leads.

(4) INCLUDE A CALL-TO-ACTION IN YOUR POSTS: CTA is yet another advantageous feature Instagram allows its users to execute. Instagram is known for its high visualization. A clever way of embedding your call-to-action buttons into your Instagram posts is making the CTA part of the image itself.

The aim is to grab the attention of users as they scroll through their Instagram feed, so get creative with the CTA button. Depending on your marketing goal, you can prompt viewers to sign-up, contact you, click to learn more, or even get directions. For instance, you can use "Install Now" with the images, which in turn will make it easy for the users to download the app without following several stages like visiting the profile, or link in the bio, etc.

(5) COLLABORATE WITH INFLUENCERS: Collaborating with influencers is a much effective method of generating leads on social media platforms. The brand can partner with leading Influencers, by sending free products or by providing free services to them and then ask them to use the products and services and rate it accordingly. This helps in increasing brand awareness, generating leads, and boosting conversions on Instagram.

To do this, identify the number of Influencers according to your products and services criteria. Reach out to them with your objectives and figure out how the partnership can help you bring more prospects. If the influencer has earned the credibility and trust of their followers, they'll be in a great position to encourage other people to take action.

WAYS TO GENERATE INORGANIC LEADS :

(1) INSTAGRAM PAID ADS: Almost all the business ventures try to go with the organic campaigns before opting for inorganic/paid ones. Business through Instagram is yet another advantage Instagram provides brands with. Paid Ads refer to those ads for which the brand pays to Instagram for its branding at different levels. In total, Instagram offers 6 ad formats to choose from. They're :

(a) IMAGE FEED ADS: This is the most standard form of ad format. Users are likely to see these frequently while scrolling through their own feed. Image feed ads are single images that appear as a native experience when the target lead is scrolling through their feed. The best part about this kind of ads is, they don't feel like ads when done very well.

- TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS :

• File type: jpg or png

• Maximum file size: 30MB

• Minimum Image Width: 600 pixels

• Image Ratio: 4:5 minimum, 16:9 maximum

• Text length: 2,200 maximum (*although Instagram recommends staying below 90 for optimal delivery)

• Hashtag Number: 30 maximum (*you can add additional in the comments)

- SUPPORTED OBJECTIVES :

• Reach

• Traffic

• Conversions

• App Installs

• Lead Generation

• Brand Awareness

• Post Engagement

• Product Catalog Sales

• Store Visits

- SUPPORTED CALL-TO-ACTION BUTTONS :

• Apply Now

• Book Now

• Call Now

• Contact Us

• Get Directions

• Learn More

• Get Showtimes

• Download

(b) IMAGE STORY ADS: Same concept as above, but these are for Instagram stories.

- TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS :

• Image Ratio: 9:16 recommended

• Minimum Image Width: 600 pixels

- SUPPORTED OBJECTIVES :

• Reach

• Traffic

• Conversions

• App Installs

• Lead Generation

SUPPORTED CALL-TO-ACTION BUTTONS :

• Apply Now

• Book Now

• Contact Us

• Download

(c) VIDEO FEED ADS: This is one of the most effective way of promoting your brand. Promote a high-quality video for a much better understanding of your brand through your Instagram feed.

While most video files are supported by Instagram, they recommend using H.264 compression, square pixels, fixed frame rate, progressive scan, and stereo AAC audio compression at 128kbps+.

PRO TIP: If your video is not meeting this requirement you can always run it through the video transcoder, Handbrake, to make these adjustments.

- TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS :

• Video Resolution : 1080 x 1080 pixels (at least)

• Maximum file size: 4GB

• Video Ratio: 4:5 minimum,16:9 maximum

• Video Duration: 60 seconds maximum

• Video Captions: optional

• Image Ratio: 4:5 minimum, 16:9 maximum

• Text length: 125 characters maximum recommended

• Hashtag Number: 30 maximum (*you can add additional in the comments)

- SUPPORTED OBJECTIVES :

• Reach

• Traffic

• Conversions

• Lead Generation

• Brand Awareness

• Post Engagement

• Store Visits

- SUPPORTED CALL-TO-ACTION BUTTONS :

• Apply Now

• Book Now

• Call Now

• Contact Us

• Download

(d) VIDEO STORY ADS: Other than promoting videos on feeds, brands can also promote and gain a huge amount of prospective audience from stories. Most of the people don't have time to scroll through their whole feed, but, they definitely open stories. Thus, this kind of ads works effectively, without the audience feeling being pressured.

The recommended video specs for uploading are the same as listed above, here are some additional details to keep in mind :

- TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS :

• Video Resolution : 1080 x 1920 pixels (at least)

• Maximum file size: 4GB

• Video Ratio: 9:16 maximum

• Video Duration: 15 seconds maximum

• Video Captions: not available

- SUPPORTED OBJECTIVES :

• Reach

• Traffic

• Conversions

• Lead Generation

• App Installs

- SUPPORTED CALL-TO-ACTION BUTTONS :

• Apply Now

• Book Now

• Call Now

• Contact Us

• Download

(e) CAROUSEL FEED ADS: This format allows you to show a series of scrollable images rather than just one single image. This ad type is great for very visual brands, like those in the food industry, furniture sellers, clothing options, vacation destinations, car dealerships, etc.

The carousel format allows you to choose from up to 10 images within a single ad, each with its own link. A video is also an option for these ads.

- TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS :

• File type: jpg or png

• Maximum file size: 30MB

• Minimum Image Width: 600 pixels

• Image Ratio: 4:5 minimum, 16:9 maximum

• Text length: 2,200 maximum (*although Instagram recommends staying below 90 for optimal delivery)

• Video Duration: 60 seconds maximum

• Hashtag Number: 30 maximum (*you can add additional in the comments)

- SUPPORTED OBJECTIVES :

• Reach

• Traffic

• Conversions

• Brand Awareness

• Lead Generation

• Product Catalog Sales

- SUPPORTED CALL-TO-ACTION BUTTONS :

• Apply Now

• Book Now

• Contact Us

• Call Now

• Download

(f) CANVAS STORY ADS: These ads allow advertising to create a 360 VR experience within the story. They’re only supported via mobile devices, and extremely customizable for the advertiser. These ads work with images, videos, and carousels.

- TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS :

• Minimum Image Width: 400 pixels

• Minimum Image Height: 150 pixels

- SUPPORTED OBJECTIVES :

• Reach

• Brand Awareness

• Traffic

• Conversions

• Lead Generation

• Post Engagement

• Video Views

• Store Visits

- SUPPORTED CALL-TO-ACTION BUTTONS :

• Apply Now

• Book Now

• Contact Us

(2) PAID PARTNERSHIP: A paid partnership on Instagram refers to the occurrence of "Paid Partnership with [Business Partner]" under the account's username, where the location normally sits. The Business Partner title is a hyperlink that leads directly to the business’s page. This is done when some influencer or brand advocate shares a post or story on Instagram and tags's business account as their Business Partner.

The paid partnership feature increases transparency with the audience, offers access to insights, and eliminates the risk of negative consequences from sponsored posts. It also builds brand trust among the Instagram community and helps in generating more traffic and networks to the account.

CONCLUSION :

There are a huge number of ways to generate leads through Instagram as almost every 3rd person is an IG user. We have covered Organic as well as Inorganic ways in this article (not all of them, but the best of them). Utilize them and see them working wonders for the promotion of your brand. Driving traffic and generating leads is very easy over this platform, you just need the right amount

of ingredients and recipe to cook this delicious dish for your brand.