We discuss time and again how effective Instagram can be for e-commerce and online business owners. When done right, brands can see massive growth and skyrocket their sales.
However, we see a lot of business pages on Instagram still making these simple mistakes that can mean they miss out on business. So, Stop doing this on Instagram!
Let’s begin.
1. Refrain from leaving your profile in private mode

What is the reason you are on Instagram? Is it to increase brand awareness or conversions?
If you answered yes, then put your Instagram profile to PUBLIC so that your brand or your products can be seen. People are impatient creatures and they do not like to wait for approvals; when they want to see your profiles right away. You might be losing a hot lead because of this simple mistake.
2. Do not leave your Instagram Caption Blank

Another no-no that we often observe with the platform is people posting photos without captions. Despite how wonderful your imagery might be or how cute your little puppy is, your posts need a human connection. People love to read stories or hear what happened during the photoshoot or the bloopers behind the scenes. You need to create a human connection and your brand will be much better for it.
3. Stop using fancy usernames

Instagram is a search engine and if you want potential customers to find your brand, you need to make it easy for them. If you want to be easily found by your customers, try incorporating your niche in your name itself and stop using usernames that have nothing to do with your brand.
4. Do not oversaturate your feed by over-posting

We see this a lot of times with popular Instagram profiles. Instead of utilising the carousel feature of Instagram, they upload 3-6 versions of the same concept, theme, or image in one go. Yes, in one go.
This will inundate your audience and will decrease the chances of. Your posts being seen by your audience. We are not saying you can not post a lot of photos, we just want you to space it out in the day. Anywhere from 1 – 2 posts a day is healthy as long as it’s not posted at the same time. This will also help the algorithm show your posts enough in other people’s feeds before they show the other posts too.
PRO TIP: If you do not have the time to space them out, try having a scheduling tool that’s Instagram friendly like Later.
5. Last but not least, NEVER invest in spam bots or fake followers, EVER!

This might seem pretty obvious, but this is one of the biggest mistakes you can possibly make.
Instagram is all about building relationships and real connections. It’s much more important to have 20 followers who are engaged in your content rather than 1000 followers that are spambots. The amount of followers you have is not the most important metric you need to be looking at. This is a vanity metric, and when buying fake followers, will not convert into real sales.
Utilise the platform in a healthy manner and we promise it will love you back, fo’ real.
There are a lot of things that shouldn’t be done on Instagram and these are just some of the most pressing ones that you can immediately avoid and improve for your Instagram profile. Always remember that in any social media platform, authenticity and value should always be your primary goals to build your accounts from the ground up. An authentic following will come from there.
You can check some of our other Instagram tips here.
If you find you need further help with your Instagram Growth Strategies, follow us on social media @bidpixel where we post best practices and updates for businesses online. Or want to hear more about Digital Marketing Strategies for e-commerce? Head to our youtube channel here.
If you’re looking for experts to grow your business online for you, Book a Complimentary Strategy Call with us!