“Why would I want to use Instagram?” I hear some of you ask. Sales, basically and being present to your fans. As with other social media platforms, Facebook and Twitter for example, there are potential sales to be made when you connect with clients and show your best work and passion. Instagram is mostly about the photos, so a visually-based company like a jewellery designer shouldn’t pass up the opportunity to reach millions free of charge with their work.
For me, Instagram is about a host of artistic inspiration and support, networking and showing off my favourite pictures.
The first rule of how to make a success of your Instagram feed is understanding your clients. If you have a clear understanding of who you’re talking to, then engaging with them will be so much easier.
Instagram Target Market
Personally I am really lucky because I am my own target market. Most of my clients have similar interests, family setups, social circles and hobbies to me. My jewellery designs are pieces I would (and do) wear myself. I post photos of the things that interest me, whether it is that afternoon’s #WIP (work in progress), my latest product image, my mum helping me do my packaging or cute photos of my kids occupying themselves while I work.
So if your typical client is a woman in her 40’s who likes flowers then find and follow people like this who have public accounts, this way you can find what they hashtag and learn more about each of those. Don’t spam them with likes but if you see something that inspires you then by all means like or comment if it’s a genuine reaction. You can get clients to notice you this way without sounding creepy. My pension-age mother-in-law is on Instagram now (and follows a few jewellers ) and I love her for it!
Hashtags
Almost 50% of our sales are European charms and they go by hundreds of names. I research all the potential hashtags and come up with hundreds of combinations like #charmbeadlove and #purplecharmbracelet and when I post a photo of a charm I’ll add 25 relevant hashtags in a comment after posting the photo. Some of them are general terms like #jewellery some are medium like #firstcurl and some of them are very specific like #cremationashweddingcufflinks, that way I’m appealing to more people. This helps people see my photos on their phones and I even bought a GoogleSheets template to help me organise them all.
Great Content & Flowing Feed
I’m guilty of being a bit lax with my content recently but that’s because I take a really informal approach with my Instagram. Even still, I read a lot of blogs about styling it and always vow to do better. Everyone has a different style and some time ago I started making every other photo black and white and trying to vignette every photo. It gives a nice flow to my page and syncs it all together without looking overly styled (like having every photo white on white). I adjust each photo on my phone before posting then do the hashtag comments later on the laptop. Have a look on Pinterest for Instagram inspiration or find some blogs with links to some cool feeds. When your feed is neat, organised and beautiful then people are inspired to follow you and that’s when the sales start coming.
So to sum it all up: find who you want to attract then post photos aimed at them, hash tagging the things they’re interested in that are relevant; keep your feed clean and looking nice and don’t spam anyone. You can easily buy 1000 likes on Fiverr but Instagram isn’t a popularity contest and having organic followers means you’re running your business ethically. Try to enjoy and let me know if you have any Instagram tips!
Author: Nic Kamminga
Tree of Opals
Instagram
