In the ever-evolving world of digital marketing, leveraging a robust contact list can be the game-changer for your business. Manychat offers a unique platform where Contacts from various channels converge, creating a powerful tool for personalized and efficient communication that will supercharge your sales.

This guide will navigate you through the nuances of managing Contacts in Manychat, providing pro tips on acquiring, managing, and optimizing these contacts for your business’s success.

What are Contacts in Manychat?

This is the name given to the list of users who have contacted your business and are stored in your account for livechat use, broadcasting, and marketing campaigns.

Keep in mind these are not the same as your social media followers, your Contacts are the people you’ve had a conversation with on your DMs after you have connected Manychat to one of these channels.

Contacts are not limited to just one platform; they encompass a diverse range from Facebook Messenger, Instagram DMs, to WhatsApp. But it doesn’t stop there; email and SMS Contacts can either stand alone or be integrated as additional contact points alongside your social media Contacts.

This multi-channel approach ensures a comprehensive marketing strategy, reaching your audience where they are most active and allowing your business to craft highly personalized campaigns.

Acquiring Contacts like a Pro

The art of acquiring and converting Contacts involves a blend of strategies! Our most successful Manychatters use a mix of the following methods to guarantee a higher rate of contacts on their account, with the advantage that by using Manychat, scaling your lead acquisition has never been easier:

• Organic Strategies: using the free entry points to your chats can help you grow your list to never before seen heights without breaking the bank! Here are some of our favorite:
  • Leverage comments automation to engage with users and add them to your Contact list, this will help anyone who comments on your posts or reels to start a conversation with you
  • Turn on your story mention replies on IG, and message anyone who has mentioned your business on their stories
  • Use the power of Instagram Live automations, so whoever comments on your live video can get an automated sequence of messages about the topic you are discussing
• Meta Ads: Utilize Manychat’s collaboration with Meta to run targeted ads. Our free webinar on using the Meta Ads Manager like a pro is an invaluable resource that can turn you into an expert without breaking the bank! Our favorite type of ad is called CTX, or Click to X! What does the X stand for? Well, any channel you want it to, of course:
  • Click to Messenger or CTM: these types of ads make it so that anyone who click the button on your ad will be taken to a conversation with your business via Facebook Messenger. Our native integration to CTMessenger means you can trigger an automated chat about your promo from the get go!
  • Click to Instagram Direct or CTDM: Just like on FB Messenger, these ads open up a conversation with your Instagram Profile, with the added value that thanks to our automations you can also check who follows you and who doesnt before triggering a message, allowing you to give extra incentives to those new Contacts that dont follow your page yet.
  • Click to Whatsapp or CTWa: this type of ad is special and unique in the fact that you can have it on BOTH Instagram and Facebook, but the difference is that when the lead clicks on the ad button, a Whatsapp conversation will open on their app with your business. If your Contacts chat heavily on whatsapp, this is the type we recommend the most.

• Website Widgets & External Links: Embed Manychat widgets on your site to convert visitors into Contacts seamlessly with easy to embed HTML buttons. You can also have links via our Ref URL trigger all over the place to ensure your contacts can find simple ways to contact you, or even embed a chat bubble on your site that immediately shows a Facebook Messenger modal!

Managing & Filtering

After acquiring contacts in your ManyChat account, effective management, filtering, and segmentation becomes essential. This can be achieved through the use of tags and custom user fields, which are powerful tools for organizing your contacts and tailoring your communication strategies.

• Tags: Tags in ManyChat are labels you can assign to your contacts based on their behaviors, preferences, or any other criteria relevant to your business. For example, you can tag a contact as “Interested in Product X” or “Attended Webinar.” These tags help in segmenting your audience for targeted campaigns. Learn more about using tags effectively on ManyChat’s Blog.
• Custom User Fields: Custom User Fields are akin to personal data slots where you can store specific information about a contact. This can range from basic information like age and location to more complex data like purchase history or customer preferences. Custom User Fields enable you to personalize communication and segment your contacts based on detailed criteria. Discover how to best utilize Custom User Fields in your strategy here.

Retargeting: Mastering DM Lists

All three channels (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp) offer DM or marketing lists that Contacts can opt into. Effective contact management involves setting up rules or automations to encourage new contacts to join these lists. Whether it’s for exclusive discounts or event updates, these lists are vital for future engagement. Facebook Messenger now offers this feature for free, Instagram is in open beta, and WhatsApp operates on a pay-to-play model.

Deleting Contacts: Keeping Your List Valuable

Maintaining a clean and effective Contact list is crucial. We recommend removing Contacts who haven’t opted into any retargeting options after a certain period, a good rule of thumb is 3 months. You can read this article here for more information on how to delete Contacts that have no value to your business.

Another way of effectively reducing the number of contacts is by manually merging them once you have identified two Contacts are the same person! Read this article if you would like to learn more about this feature.

By mastering these aspects of Manychat, you can transform your Contact list into a dynamic and powerful tool for your business, driving engagement, and fostering lasting customer relationships.

Looking for inspiration? Check out these other creator success stories using Manychat:

• How Conquista Tu Mundo with Johnny Abraham leveraged Manychat to drive $15,000 in launch sales in 20 days
• Jenna Kutcher’s 3 Easy Instagram Sales Strategies That Generated $900k – Organically
• Amy Porterfield’s 3 Powerful Instagram Strategies

The contents of this blog were independently prepared and are for informational purposes only. The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ManyChat or any other party. Individual results may vary*

The post Contact Management Guide: Pro – Maximizing Your Manychat Contact List appeared first on Manychat Blog.

Manychat has a native Hotmart integration that you can connect in a few easy steps.

Here, we’ll show you the steps to connect your Hotmart to your Manychat account, so you can start selling and promoting your Hotmart products on Instagram and Facebook right away.

What is Hotmart?

If you’re new to Hotmart, it’s an all-in-one platform for digital creators and entrepreneurs to build and sell digital products, including online courses, memberships, subscriptions, events and eBooks.

As a global tech and education company, Hotmart is a leader in the digital product market offering a complete ecosystem for creators, affiliates, and online course buyers. They have more than 370,000 registered products, 26 million users, sell products in more than 185 countries.

How does Hotmart work?

Here’s how Hotmart works:

• Creators who have expertise in a certain area creates a product (like an online course or an eBook) and sells it on Hotmart.
• Affiliates who have a large online presence help promote and sell this product to their audience in exchange for a commission.
• Buyers purchase the product on Hotmart, via the search page or clicking on a creator or affiliate link.

How does Hotmart help creators?

Hotmart helps creators build their first product, monetize it, and distribute it. There are also detailed analytics, so they can track their progress and make informed decisions about how to promote their products.

What products can you sell on Hotmart?

Hotmart sells various types of digital content, including:

• eBooks in PDF or EPUB formats
• Documents, audiobooks, and music
• Video classes
• Talks and screencasts
• Software
• Images
• Podcasts
• Scripts and any other file formats that can be downloaded.

It is also possible to create subscriptions for membership programs, or any type of product where buyers pay a recurring fee.

How can I benefit from Manychat x Hotmart integration?

Use Manychat x Hotmart integration to follow up on abandoned carts or send updates regarding purchase statuses (either a successful purchase or purchase delivery information). Get most of this integration by freely browsing through your contact list to make sure you have the full information on user data.

How can I integrate Hotmart with Manychat?

Connecting Manychat and Hotmart takes a few easy steps.

First, you’ll need to generate your Hotmart credentials. Here’s a walkthrough video to help you step-by-step in Hotmart:

Next head over to your Manychat account, and follow these steps:

1. Log in to your Manychat account.
2. Navigate to the “Settings” section.
3. Click on “Integrations.”
4. Provide your Hotmart account credentials.
5. Click “Next”

That’s it!

You’re all set to use Manychat with your Hotmart account to start selling and promoting your products!

Ready to integrate Manychat with Hotmart?

Looking for inspiration? Check out these other creator success stories using Manychat:

• How Conquista Tu Mundo with Johnny Abraham leveraged Manychat to drive $15,000 in launch sales in 20 days
• Jenna Kutcher’s 3 Easy Instagram Sales Strategies That Generated $900k – Organically
• Amy Porterfield’s 3 Powerful Instagram Strategies

The contents of this blog were independently prepared and are for informational purposes only. The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ManyChat or any other party. Individual results may vary*

The post How to Integrate Manychat and Hotmart (5 Simple Steps) appeared first on Manychat Blog.

Are you ready to revolutionize your Holidays sales with WhatsApp Automation? Watch the webinar above and click the button below to install the exclusive Manychat templates!

You’ll receive 4 Automations in these Holiday WhatsApp Templates:

1 –    Increase Holiday Sales with WhatsApp Automation

2 – Increase Conversion with Automated Follow Ups!

3 –   Set Automatic Replies During Your Vacation

4 – Export Contact Info into Google Sheet

Time to get started! Install these templates and launch the Holiday automations before it’s too late!

You can install additional Holiday templates for Instagram and Messenger here.

The post Manychat Tutorial: Grow Holiday Sales with WhatsApp Automation!🎄 appeared first on Manychat Blog.

Are you ready to revolutionize your Holidays sales with Instagram Automation? Watch the webinar above and click the button below to install the exclusive Manychat templates!

You’ll receive 4 Automations in these Black Friday Instagram Templates:

1 –   Increase Holiday Sales with DM Automation

2 – Increase Conversion with Automated Follow Ups!

3 –   Set Automatic Replies During Your Vacation

4 – Export Contact Info into Google Sheet

Time to get started! Install these templates and launch the Holiday automations before it’s too late!

You can install additional Black Friday templates for Messenger and WhatsApp here.

The post Manychat Tutorial: Grow Holiday Sales with Instagram Automation!🎄 appeared first on Manychat Blog.

Are you ready to revolutionize your Black Friday sales with Messenger Automation? Watch the webinar above and click the button below to install the exclusive Manychat templates!

You’ll receive 4 Automations in these Black Friday Instagram Templates:

1 – Increase Black Friday Sales with DM Automation

2 – Increase Conversion with Automated Follow Ups!

3 – Build Your List for Holiday Sales!

4 – Use this Template for Click to DM Ads

Time to get started! Install these templates and launch the Black Friday automations before it’s too late!

You can install additional Black Friday templates for Messenger and WhatsApp here.

The post Instagram Automation Webinar: Boost your Black Friday communications with Manychat appeared first on Manychat Blog.

One answer: Instagram Stories. The vlog-style content isn’t visible from the feed, making it an ideal way for brands to build relationships with followers—especially considering 90% of Instagram users follow at least one business account. 

This guide will walk you through the different types of Instagram Story stickers that you can add to your own stories, along with a few examples from brands that are using them to drive user engagement for their business.

What are Instagram Story stickers?

An Instagram Story is a limited-time piece of content. Stories are visible on your Instagram account and from the homepage (if a user follows you), but disappear after 24 hours. They can feature both photo content and videos, and users have the option to add stickers to enhance the interactive elements within the post.

Stickers can encourage your followers to do something, like donate to charity, visit your website, or answer a question. They can also add extra flourishes to static content with the music, hashtag, and location sticker options. 

There’s no limit on how many stickers you can use in a single Story, but it’s important to remember what you want to achieve. Don’t confuse your audience with too many options. Instead, keep to one or two stickers that elevate the quality of your Story.

“Stickers massively improve engagement,” says social media consultant Pippa Akram. “On the surface, they tap into the way we naturally interact with our phones. Actively engaging makes us feel more connected to the brand. Each tap helps to send the Instagram algorithm those all-important signals which show that a user has a ‘relationship’ with your business.”

How to add a sticker to your Story

Ready to start engaging your audience through Instagram Stories? To add a sticker to your Story:

1. Press the plus icon on the top right of your homepage.
2. Select Story.
3. Take a new picture or video, or add content using the square gallery view icon in the bottom left of your screen.
4. Tap on the sticker icon (the smiley face in the top toolbar). You’ll see all of the sticker options that you can use in the pop-up.
5. When you’re ready to post your Story, tap Your Story at the bottom of the screen.

If you create Story templates ahead of time in a tool like Canva or Photoshop, leave a placeholder for where your sticker will go on the final post. The stickers won’t become active until you add them from within the Instagram app. This is the case for both Apple and Android devices. 

Manually uploading these specific slides to your Story is the best way to ensure that your stickers are live, rather than scheduling them ahead of time.

11 types of Instagram Story stickers

Understanding what each sticker can do will allow you to make the best choices when it comes to planning your Instagram marketing strategy. Here’s a walkthrough of the different kinds of Story stickers that you can use.

1. Link 
2. Location 
3. Weather and time
4. Account mention
5. Hashtag
6. GIFs
7. Music
8. Poll
9. Sliding scale emoji
10. Question box
11. Countdown

1. Link sticker

The link sticker is a new sticker available for your Instagram Story. Until this sticker was released, only users with over 10,000 followers were able to create offsite links using the “Swipe Up” option. Now any user can link to content outside of the Instagram app. 

The link sticker encourages users to check out your website or work elsewhere—making it ideal for service-based small businesses. For example, creative coach and writer Elin Lööw frequently links to her YouTube channel from Instagram Stories, using the video sharing network to dive deeper into her process than she would ordinarily do through shorter social media videos.

This sticker is also effective for sharing:

• Blog posts
• eBooks
• Promotions or sales
• Newsletter signups

Pro tip: Improve engagement and build relationships with Instagram followers by replacing the link sticker with Instagram Automation. ManyChat’s Keyword Trigger, for example, sends followers an automated message when they DM your business’s account with a specific keyword.

Let’s put that into practice. Say you’re diverting people towards a webinar sign-up page—instead of using the link sticker, collect information directly through Instagram DM when followers send a message containing the keyword “WEBINAR.” It’s a frictionless experience for users because they can register for the webinar and simultaneously opt into your email marketing campaigns—all without leaving the Instagram app.

2. Location sticker

If you have a brick-and-mortar business or your products are in a store, the location sticker is the one for you. It will put your business on the map and make it searchable from anywhere within the Instagram app. 

Users can click on the location sticker in your Story and go to a dedicated page that features a map and other public Instagram posts that have also tagged that destination. Beauty brand Glossier has been rolling this out on its Instagram Stories as it opens new stores around the world. 

This sticker has greatly helped users to find the stores themselves. Furthermore, it has also built excitement for soon-to-be-visiting customers, thanks to the thousands of other posts from Instagram users who have already checked out the new location.

3. Weather and time sticker

While the weather and time stickers aren’t as engaging as some of the other options, don’t be quick to discount them when evaluating which Instagram Story stickers to use. 

Major sporting events like Wimbledon or the Olympics will often add these stickers to Instagram Stories in live posts throughout the day. Weather is a critical factor in whether these events can continue as planned—Story stickers keep visitors or online viewers updated on what they can expect that day.

4. Account mention sticker

Mention stickers are similar to location ones, but instead of a place, you’re tagging a person. This is the best way to create a mutually beneficial post if you’re collaborating with influencers on the platform. 

The promotional and opening Stories of any Instagram takeover, for example, should always include a mention sticker linking to the account of the person working with you. Take a look at this Story from influencer Louise Pentland:

You can even use the mention sticker to thank your biggest fans. User-generated content (UGC) is a marketing opportunity that brands should utilize to amplify their marketing efforts. A study by Stackla found that 79% of people were influenced by UGC when it came to purchasing decisions. Taking the time to share your customers’ content and thank them can make a big difference in your business.

5. Hashtag sticker

When clicked, the hashtag sticker diverts Instagram users towards the results page for the hashtag. As you work on your marketing strategy, research which hashtags your business should be using. Make use of highly popular hashtags that already exist to gain new followers (the “add yours” sticker is another option for this approach). 

Another option is to create a branded hashtag of your own to launch a new product or service, like this example from food tech company JUST Egg.

6. GIF stickers

Most of us have probably used Giphy to send funny GIFs to our friends. But did you know that you can also add GIFs to your Instagram Stories?

Using the in-app search bar, you’ll find a selection of clips that you can add to your Story. Just keep in mind that the choices are more limited than what you’ll find in Giphy. This sticker feature is best for generic GIFs (think flashing arrows or highlighted circles) you can use to point to a specific element on your Story post, like these boho-style GIFs:

If you have access to a graphic designer, Instagram does give you the option to add your own branded GIFs that you and other users can add to Stories. Innocent Drinks, for example, rolled these out to promote its line of beverages on the platform:

7. Music stickers

If you’re looking for a fun way to add some audio to your stories, the music sticker is the one for you. Choose from thousands of songs in the Instagram library to set a particular mood or tone in your posts. Influencers like Zoë Sugg add music to stories to create vlog-style content.

A quick warning on this one: It’s best to use the in-app choices rather than uploading a post with your music already included. Not using in-app choices will lead you into copyright issues, and your Stories won’t actually appear.

8. Poll stickers

When you’re looking for a quick way to add engagement opportunities to your Instagram, poll stickers should be your go-to. Research from Instagram itself found that 57% of people preferred polls and questions from brands on Instagram over other social media platforms.

“The most versatile sticker is the poll sticker. I sold around 90% of my Instagram Story workshop in 2019 by following up directly with those who voted in the poll sticker I used.”

Pippa Akram, social media consultant at Social Pip

You have two options when it comes to polls: the first is a two-choice sticker that works for yes/no questions or “this or that” posts. Brands like Starbucks use this as a quiz sticker for followers to vote on reward choices.

The multiple choice box is best for more detailed customer feedback. You can use this to solicit thoughts on:

• Which product to release next
• How followers want to find out about new releases
• Whether customers would buy a product

The multi-choice poll box works just like a traditional survey or quiz, but offers a quicker and more engaging format. This example from Nike shows how easy it can be to collect customer feedback via Instagram.

9. Sliding scale emoji stickers

The emoji slider is another type of poll sticker that can be used to gauge feedback from your customers on a sliding scale. Take this example from travel inspiration brand Travel + Leisure—a brand that uses the sticker to reinforce how beautiful the views from its room are:

This Instagram Story sticker allows you to add up to two emojis. Users slide along the bar to rate how close they are to each option (think of this like a positive/negative scale). It takes no time at all for users to interact with this sticker and it is a good way to quickly boost your post engagement.

10. Question box stickers

The questions box is one of the most interactive stickers that you can use on Instagram. It allows users to type in their own answers to a question that you set. Responses are only visible to the account that posted the Story, but you can share these on a later post for others to see.

As the answers are entirely up to the user, there are endless opportunities for how brands can make use of the question box. Ask Me Anything (AMA) posts, like this example from mindset coach and writer Lauren Osselton, and behind-the-scenes looks into your business are some of the most popular.

11. Countdown sticker

Adding a countdown to an Instagram Story builds anticipation for your audience. Use it to create a sense of urgency if you have something on offer, or a limited-time sign-up for a new service.

Users can click on the timer to receive a notification once the time is up. This makes it a helpful reminder for something coming up, like tickets going on sale for an event or an upcoming product launch. 

Need some inspiration? Networking group The Co-Working Club uses countdown timers on Instagram Stories to notify followers of upcoming dates or special events.

Boost your social engagement with Instagram stickers

When you’re looking for new ways to grow your Instagram account, using Story stickers can give you the boost you need. Test out several different options on your next few posts to see what your followers are drawn to and engage with most. 

Impress your audience and grow your Instagram account with ManyChat’s suite of Automation tools

The post 11 Instagram Story Stickers: How to Create Interactive Content That Improves Engagement  appeared first on Manychat Blog.

With over 500 million daily active users, Instagram offers substantial potential that’s worth unlocking. But first, you have to get to know all its capabilities so you can leverage the platform to your advantage. To help, this article will cover some of the most important Instagram features marketers can use to grow their audience. 

Important Instagram features for marketers

Social media platforms are notorious for constantly changing their algorithms and adding new features. However, we’ll dive into the latest fundamental capabilities that deliver the best results. 

Reels

Instagram Reels are 30-second videos you can create for your audience to scroll through. Influencers and brands use Reels to show off their products, disply behind-the-scenes content, or repurpose live videos. 

The Reels user experience is similar to TikTok’s in that users can watch a never-ending feed of short-form video content created by individuals to increase engagement, grow their Instagram profiles, and generate brand awareness. Reels can appear on the Explore page, but they also have their own tab on each Instagram account. 

To post Instagram Reels: 

1. Tap the Reels icon at the bottom of your screen
2. Post your 30-second video (you can also add music)

Best uses for Instagram Reels

Instagram’s algorithm has been deprioritizing static posts to make room for more engaging video content to ensure users stay on the platform longer. This should shape your Instagram marketing content; every brand on Instagram should make an effort to post more Reels to increase their chances of engagement. 

Stories

Instagram Stories are 15-second videos that disappear after 24 hours. Stories aren’t like your regular Instagram posts: Instead of displaying in feeds once you upload them, they show up at the top of users’ dashboards with your profile picture as the cover.

To use the Stories feature: 

1. Click on your profile image with the “+” icon at the top of your Instagram feed. 
2. Either select a recent image or video, or click the camera icon to create a new Story.
3. Once finished, tap Send to and make sure Your Story is selected.
4. Tap on Share to post your Story.

Best uses for Stories

Stories are a great way to share day-to-day content with your audience. While they aren’t the best option for storing content that requires a longer lifespan, Stories are a great way to build engagement and keep your business top of mind. 

Brand Stories tend to have an 86% completion rate. So if you want to catch your audience’s attention, make sure you post to your Stories often. 

Pro tip: Creating content on other platforms? Repurpose your content and add it to your Instagram Stories to increase your views for free. If your content happens to be too long for a Story, post a snippet of your content as a teaser to direct your audience to the full version. 

Messenger

You can send photos, text, videos, and voice messages through Instagram’s Messenger feature. You can even send Instagram posts or video chat with other users. 

To use Messenger: 

1. On your Instagram feed, click on the speech bubble icon in the top right corner of your screen.
2. Choose your message recipient.
3. Start interacting and sending your messages. 

Best uses for Messenger

For a business, the Messenger feature can be prime real estate for interacting directly with customers, offering customer support, answering product questions, or redirecting them to your links. It’s a great way for brands to build trust with their audiences and stay connected with their biggest fans. 

Pro tip: Don’t overwhelm yourself trying to manage all the incoming DMs in Messenger. Leverage automation, like ManyChat’s Flow Builder tool, to respond to every message just like a real human would. 

Video

As short-form video content becomes a more popular way to reach new audiences, Instagram has incorporated the ability to create and post an ecosystem of videos into its platform (while deprioritizing static posts). Video content on Instagram can include Reels, Lives, or Stories. Recently, Instagram combined IGTV with feed video posts to create one video format. 

To use the Video feature:

1. Click on the “+” icon at the top of your Instagram homepage
2. Tap on Post to start publishing your videos

Best uses for videos

There’s no concrete rules concerning what types of content should and shouldn’t be made into videos. But generally speaking, if you’re creating longer,  more involved videos with higher production value, opt for the Video feature. Here’s a quick overview of the maximum video length for each format:

• Reels: Up to 30 seconds long
• Instagram Stories: Up to 15 seconds long
• Live Streams: Up to 60 minutes
• Instagram post videos: Up to 60 seconds long
• Instagram Videos: Anywhere from 15 seconds to 10 minutes long (60 minutes for select accounts) 

Shopping

Instagram introduced shoppable features in 2019 to over 40 countries. To qualify, you need to have a business account, sell digital products, and comply with Instagram’s policies and eligibility requirements.

To use the Instagram Shopping feature:

1. Create your product catalog with the Facebook Business Manager.
2. Under Settings, click on Business.
3. Navigate to Set up Instagram Shopping and follow the guidelines to submit your store for review.
4. Once approved, you can start tagging products in your profile so that more users discover your catalog when they come across your content. 

Best uses for shopping

The shopping feature is ideal for businesses that sell physical products. It’s a great way to turn your Instagram page into a storefront and increase sales. 

Filters (AR and standard)

Instagram’s AR and standard image filters enable you to inject a bit of personality to the content you upload. However, the filters differ slightly in that AR filters can alter both images and videos while standard photo filters only apply to static images.  

To use Instagram filters:

1. In your Instagram dashboard, tap on the “+” icon in the top right.
2. Select Post, Story, Reel, or Live.
3. Once you create or upload your content, use the editor at the bottom of your screen to add and adjust your preferred filter. 

Best uses for filters

Want to add some personality to your content? Are you growing your personal brand on Instagram? Take advantage of Instagram’s filters! They can be fun to use and can help you create more dynamic content. 

Search and Explore

A lot of the discovery magic happens through the Search and Explore features. Instagram’s algorithm fills your Explore page with content it thinks you might be interested in—it’s where you can discover new people or brands to follow and content to “like” and comment on. 

To use Instagram’s Search and Explore feature:

1. On the Instagram dashboard, navigate to the magnifying glass icon in the bottom left.
2. Tap on it and start exploring.
3. Use the search bar to search for additional profiles or content by username or hashtag.  

Live

Hosting an Instagram Live is a great way to interact with your audience and build a loyal following in real time. You can go Live on Instagram for up to an hour and interact with your audience through comments and emojis. Live also allows you to host joint sessions with other users once you invite them to host with you.

To use the Live Instagram feature: 

1. In your Instagram feed, navigate to the “+” icon in the top right. 
2. Choose the Live option. 
3. Use the menu on the left of your screen to add a title, a broadcast audience, a start time (if you’re scheduling it ahead of time), and even choose a non-profit your audience can donate to.
4. Once you’re ready, hit the big Live button in the bottom center of your screen to get started. 

Best uses for Lives

Lives work well for more established accounts with a content strategy and an end goal for going Live. However, much like the rest of Instagram’s features, no rules are set in stone. 

You can choose to go Live any time you want to speak with your audience in real time. You can interact, answer their questions, or find other ways to connect. 

Once you go Live, your followers will receive a notification that you’re online. They’ll also see that you’re live broadcasting at the top of their feeds in the Stories section. 

Tags

Tags (not to be confused with hashtags) help you engage other brands or users when you post content. If you tag a profile by mentioning them in a post or comment with the “@” functionality, it hyperlinks their handle and they’ll be notified of your mention. 

To use tags: 

1. Mention a profile’s handle starting with “@” to tag them in the comments of a post or a caption.
2. To tag someone in a video or image, upload your content, then tap Tag People to add your tag. 
3. Type in their username to find and add them. 

Best uses for tags

Use tags any time an individual or brand appears in your content. Adding tags is also a great way to increase the chances of your content being shared with a wider audience without any real effort on your part. 

Pro tip: Use Instagram geotags to make your content more discoverable to users in your area. 

Hashtags

Hashtags are different from tags in that they start with “#” and are used as keywords to categorize your content. The use of hashtags also makes it easier for Instagram’s algorithm to index content and make it discoverable. 

The most impactful use of hashtags has been a long-debated mystery. Research suggests including anywhere from nine to thirteen hashtags will help exposeyour content to more users. However, it takes experimenting with your content to see what works for you. 

To use hashtags:

1. Choose your preferred hashtags and add them to your Instagram posts so Instagram can index them properly.
2. You can also run searches in Instagram’s search bar using hashtags to find related content or more hashtag ideas.

Best uses for hashtags

Don’t ignore hashtags as you create your Instagram strategy They’re a key part of making your content easier to find amongst millions of posts. Always include a handful of hashtags in your posts for good measure.

Ads

Managed through the Facebook Ads Manager, Instagram ads are the paid option to reach a larger audience that might be interested in your content or products. Instagram ads run either on a cost-per-impression (CPM) or cost-per-click (CPC) model and can range anywhere from a few cents to a few dollars per click. 

To create an Instagram ad:

1. Navigate to the Facebook Ads Manager.
2. Design your ad by choosing an objective, naming your campaign, choosing a destination, your audience, and your budget.
3. Design the ad and submit it for approval so it can go live.  

Best uses for ads

Ads can work well for established brands with a budget for paid acquisition that want to supercharge their growth strategy. They’re also great for experienced marketers who know the ins and outs of ad optimization. If you don’t want to grow your Instagram audience or generate sales organically, you can opt for the paid route by creating ads. 

Automation

Even as your Instagram grows, you’ll still only have two hands and 24 hours in a day, which can limit on how much you can accomplish manually. Yet, you may get hundreds (or thousands) of comments and receive a ton of DMs every day, and you still need a way to manage it all. The last thing you want is for your audience to feel ignored when they interact with you online.

Happily, you can use automation on Instagram to grow your profile faster and nurture an engaged audience.

ManyChat is an established Instagram partner that’s built to help you maximize your Instagram growth. There are a lot of great ways to use ManyChat’s Automation tools as part of your social media marketing strategy:

• Use the Flow Builder feature to create automated DM responses.
• Reply to and like IG post comments automatically
• Automatically reply to anyone who mentions you in their Story
• Capture and store user-provided information like emails and phone numbers inside ManyChat’s customer relationship management dashboard to boost your marketing efforts

ManyChat makes your Instagram growth and engagement potential virtually limitless by multiplying your interactions with the power of automation. Plus, it’s easy to integrate it with apps you’re already using, like MailChimp, Shopify, and Zapier. 

Do more with Instagram

If you’re looking to start using Instagram to grow your business, make sure you take advantage of all the features available on the platform. In this guide, we’ve outlined everything you need to start scoring Instagram followers and creating a marketing strategy. 

Put each feature to use and see how they can help you reach more customers and grow your business. Better yet, supercharge your growth with automation tools like ManyChat so you can chat with more of your audience, answer customer support questions, and build meaningful engagement in your comments 24 hours a day.

Impress your audience and grow your Instagram account with ManyChat’s suite of Automation tools

The post The Complete List of Instagram Features for Marketers appeared first on Manychat Blog.

There are several ways to acquire clients from Instagram, but they don’t all work for a hyper-local audience. Furthermore, you often need to tailor the tactics that do work so you target only the customers who can actually use your service or visit your store.

This guide will take a deep dive into how to find local customers on Instagram. We’ll share some of our top tactics for building your presence with those audiences closest to you, so you can convert those followers into customers.

11 ways to find local customers on Instagram

To save you the hard work, we’ve put together a list of the best ways to find local customers on Instagram. Here’s how to do it:

1. Optimize your Instagram bio
2. Create tailored Instagram highlights
3. Tag your location
4. Engage with people who have tagged your location
5. Work with local influencers
6. Partner with other local businesses
7. Run a collection-only giveaway
8. Use with local hashtags
9. Share content from local creators and businesses
10. Sponsor or partner with a local event
11. Host an Instagram takeover

1. Optimize your Instagram bio

Your Instagram bio is one of the best places to share who you are, what you stand for, and what you sell. Consider it your virtual store window on the platform—a place that most people will look if they’re curious about you. It should explain what you sell, who you are, and position you perfectly for your local audience.

Make your Instagram business profile more attractive to a local audience by:

• Including your location within your bio description
• Adding your address to your Instagram profile—people can then click this to open up a map
• Adding your local phone number to your Instagram bio
• Mentioning where people can pick up their order

For inspiration, take a look at Tiny Paper Co’s Instagram bio. It displays the store address, phone number, and pick-up options—catering to the 30% of people who’ve used some form of buy online, pick up in-store fulfillment option over the past two years.

Optimizing your bio isn’t only useful for social media platform users; it’s also a great Instagram SEO hack. With these location hints in your profile, it’s easier for the algorithm to figure out that you’re relevant to a local audience—and therefore, show your content to people nearby (saving you from having to invest in ads).

2. Create tailored Instagram highlights

When someone lands on your Instagram profile, there are a few things they’ll notice straight away: your bio, your feed images, and your Story Highlights—the latter of which is an often overlooked feature that takes up a prime spot in your profile.

Think of your highlights section as a lookbook for your potential local customers to browse through. They can see examples of what you offer, customer testimonials, and lifestyle imagery that relates to the place you call home.

Not sure what to create highlights about? Consider your content strategy and what your audience comes to your page to see. Then think of a handful of categories you could turn into Instagram Stories Highlights, such as:

• What’s in store this week
• Local festivals and events
• Customer testimonials and reviews
• Location guides for your local area

As you share Stories, add any that are relevant to your highlights. You’ll soon have an always-visible collection of your best content. Chicago Explore, for example, breaks down its Instagram Story Highlights into activities its followers would enjoy grouped together by areas of the city.

3. Tag your location

Your Instagram bio isn’t the only place to share your store’s location. Instagram’s geotag feature is one of the best ways to discover and engage with a local audience. It allows you to find people based on their location, and makes it easier for people to find you, too.

“For every post you put out there on Instagram, use a geotag. This is the specific physical location of your business derived from your mobile phone,” says Ravi Davda, CEO of Rockstar Marketing. “If you want to build a local audience on Instagram, geotags are the way forward.”

Here’s how to use Instagram geotags to your advantage:

• Find posts to comment on and engage with
• Discover local content creators and influencers
• Encourage people to share user-generated content by tagging your location
• Add a geotag in your audience’s location—this is great if you want to target people in key cities before they visit for a vacation

Add these tactics to your local marketing strategy to acquire more Instagram followers in your local area. Combine them with other methods—like increased engagement with followers and giveaways—to drive customer growth.

4. Engage with people who have tagged your location

Find new local customers through the ones you already have. Make it a priority to seek out people who have tagged your location and engage with their content. If you make them feel special, they’re more likely to recommend you to others.

Be intentional with your engagement and try to avoid coming across as spammy. Your goal is to appreciate the Instagram user’s content in a natural way so they feel appreciated and valued. Avoid anything that might come off weird, like following all their friends or commenting on everything they post. Instead:

• Like their post
• Interact with their Instagram Story, if they’ve posted one
• Comment on their post with something relevant and upbeat
• Introduce them to your brand ambassador program, if you have one
• Repost their Instagram Stories to your own profile with a thank you note

These simple steps only take a few minutes, but can help you build long-term relationships with local customers. Dedicate some time in your week to seeking these people out and engaging with them to grow your community naturally.

Pro Tip: Want a more efficient way to engage with Instagram followers? The Story Mentions Trigger feature inside Instagram Automation by ManyChat automatically thanks people for tagging your account in their own Story.

5. Work with local influencers

The social media influencer industry is now worth a whopping $16.4 billion. It presents a growing opportunity for businesses that want to leverage influencers’ clout. 

Working with local influencers is a powerful way to reinforce your presence in the community and reach a relevant audience. Noelle Downing, for example, got a free stay at The Plaza Hotel through a paid partnership with Amazon Prime Video. Noelle shared a photo to her Instagram account and geotagged the location it was taken at to bring attention to the two brands involved: 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Noelle Downing (@noelledowning)

Not sure how to engage with local influencers? Take a look at these fun ideas for collaborative Instagram content:

• Host an influencer and press event to launch a new product, experience, service, or menu
• Shoot a lifestyle campaign together to cross-promote on your Instagram pages
• Ask the influencer to co-host an event with you, such as a masterclass at your store
• Partner on a sponsored contest in which you give away products created by local brands 
• Ask the influencer to style and showcase your product at key local landmarks
• Partner on a mini city guide

There’s a real art to doing influencer marketing right. Come up with a strategy that suits your business, then find and approach local influencers about a collaboration. Work together to come up with a concept that works for you both, then engage throughout to see the best results.

6. Partner with other local businesses

Influencers aren’t the only people you should be collaborating with when attracting local customers on Instagram. Explore partnerships with other nearby businesses to create amazing opportunities for you both to grow. 

Sweetride Bake Shop, for example, tagged three other local businesses in its recent Instagram post. There’s a good chance that these brands will repost the content to their own profiles, increasing brand awareness for each company in the group. 

Partnering with local businesses is a winning opportunity for everyone. Each party gets exposure to a slightly different audience and the opportunity to pick up some new customers. Your audiences also get to learn about another small business to spend money with. This creates a positive ripple effect through your community.

7. Run a collection-only giveaway

Giveaways are a powerful way to grow your audience on Instagram. They help you grow your following, increase engagement, and raise brand awareness with the right people. 

Tailor this Instagram hack for a local audience by making your giveaway collection-only—like Colone Saab, which hosted a contest to give a free Mother’s Day meal to one of its nearby Instagram followers.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Colonel Saab (@colonelsaab)

Want to help your giveaway reach a more specific audience? Here’s how to produce an Instagram contest that reaches the right people:

• Specify that the prize must be collected in person
• Offer a prize that’s only available locally—like tickets to a festival, concert, or show
• Ask a local influencer with a relevant audience to promote the giveaway
• Run Instagram ads promoting your giveaway to a local geographic audience
• Ask people to head to your store to earn a bonus entry

There’s no way to stop people outside your target area from entering your giveaway, but these tips should help you reach a more relevant audience. Once you’ve run one successful giveaway, you can repeat the process again in the future. Change the prize and wording to keep it fresh.

8. Engage with local hashtags

We all know that using Instagram hashtags is a great way to expand your reach and expose your content to others. However, they’re also a valuable source of content that you can engage with for a bonus way to raise awareness of your brand.

Try these tactics to engage with local content in relevant hashtags:

• Like someone’s post within the hashtag community
• Ask if you can re-share someone’s post in a hashtag round-up
• Leave a comment with a question to start a conversation
• Visit someone’s profile and like their latest post

The key with hashtag engagement is to find the right ones. Take a look at influencers and businesses around you, see which specific hashtags they use, and make a master list. This can be your go-to place to look for relevant content and accounts to build relationships with.

9. Support other local creators and businesses

Your Instagram account doesn’t exist on an island. You’re surrounded by multiple amazing creators and businesses that also have a presence on the platform. Embrace that community spirit and support the businesses around you by:

• Liking and commenting on their Instagram posts
• Re-sharing local followers’ content to your own Stories
• Tagging the business when responding to someone looking for a recommendation
• Working with local influencers and paying them a fair rate

If you’re generous about sharing other people’s content and recommending local businesses, people will soon start to return the favor. Not only will you get introduced to new audiences, you’ll be known for your warm attitude toward business and community.

10. Partner with or sponsor a local event

Most communities have annual events that attract a crowd and create a genuine feel-good atmosphere. A great way to build your presence in the local area is to get involved with one of these popular or trending events and promote it on Instagram, like this post from LCB Festival:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by London Craft Beer Festival (@lcbfestival)

Try these ideas to support local events:

• Buy a sponsorship or exhibition package
• Host a VIP, demo, or networking area at the event
• Provide your products at a discount to feature in goody bags
• Recommend your favorite suppliers and vendors
• Offer to share your knowledge or expertise—e.g., email marketing or digital marketing
• Host a giveaway for event tickets
• Run a special promotional offer to celebrate the event

Not all these ideas translate directly  to your Instagram content, but being active in your local events scene helps show that you care. 

Research shows that 58% of brands think their customers are more loyal because of the branded community they’re a part of. While building a community presence might not result in immediate sales, people who share similar values to your brand will have your products top-of-mind next time they need something. 

11. Host an Instagram takeover

We’ve talked about how partnering with businesses and influencers can help attract local customers. Take this a step further and create a real buzz of activity by hosting an Instagram takeover.

An Instagram takeover is when someone “takes over” your account for the day—either live or by providing the content in advance. They call the shots (within reason!) when it comes to content, sharing Instagram Stories and engaging with your business’s audience through comments and live video. Here’s an example from The Vinyl:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by THE VINYL (@thevinyl)

Successful Instagram takeovers benefit everyone involved. Results can include a boost in followers, engagement, and other key metrics, depending on your goals and collaboration. 

Expose your business to a local audience on Instagram

The best Instagram local marketing strategy is the one that works for your business. Explore the tactics above, experiment with a few, and use them as a guide to help you build a powerful playbook you can use on repeat.

When you’re ready to jump in with your new Instagram local marketing strategy, add ManyChat to help you get even better results. Combine your personal comments with ManyChat’s Instagram DM features to deliver engagement at scale.

The post How to Find Local Customers on Instagram: 11 Techniques to Try appeared first on Manychat Blog.

Someone has already taken it. Now what?

While you could always choose a different Instagram name that’s closely linked to your brand (but not quite the one you want), you could also shoot your shot and try to claim the desired username from your namesake rival.

If it’s the second option or nothing for you, this guide is for you. We’ll share some ways to potentially wrestle your Instagram profile handle away from someone who’s already claimed it.

How to claim an Instagram username that’s taken

First, it’s important to remember that there are one billion Instagram users—including 200 million businesses. With that many active accounts, it’s no surprise that there are people with usernames similar to (or exactly the same as) the one you want to use. 

It is possible to claim an already-taken Instagram username, but your chance of success depends on the circumstances. There are no guarantees—Instagram itself says that “usernames are generally claimed on a first-come, first-served basis.”

But if you do desperately want a particular username that’s already been claimed, there are some things you can try:

1. Ask the current owner to change their username
2. Make an offer to buy it from them
3. Report it to Instagram if the account is inactive
4. File a trademark report 

1. Ask the current owner to change their username

The first way you could try to tease the username away from the current holder is to go directly to them and ask them to change their username. Send them a direct message (DM) explaining the issue and ask them if they’d consider changing it.

Here’s a script you could use to reach out:

Hey,

I noticed you’re using the Instagram username [@USERNAME]. I’m reaching out to see if you’d consider changing the username at all?

I’m representing [YOUR BUSINESS/CLIENT], and we’d really love to use that Instagram handle to match our other social media accounts.

We’d appreciate any help you can provide.

Thanks!

This approach might work, especially if the username is being used innocently by the third party and they’re able to change to something else that’s relevant to them.

However, there are instances where Instagram users impersonate other people or even businesses online, in which case you might consider that your brand name is being used unfairly. This could be classed as a trademark infringement, so you can afford to be a little more stern here and ask the user to stop using your name and impersonating your business (more on trademarking later).

2. Make an offer to buy it from them

If asking doesn’t work, try upping the stakes by making a monetary offer for the account username. In many cases, the offer of compensation can be enough to convince the third party to relinquish the handle.

It’s up to you how much you offer. Just don’t want to jump straight in with a figure; put the onus on the holder. Ask them whether they’d be willing to sell, and if so, how much they’d want for it.

Before you do this, there’s an important distinction to include in your offer: it’s for the username only. You want to use it on your Instagram account, not take ownership of the third party’s entire account.

Though it might be tempting to hop straight into an account with thousands of followers, they’re probably not the right audience for your business…which means future engagement levels will be low. In the long run, you’ll be much better off growing your own Instagram following organically.

How much should you pay for an Instagram username?

There’s no ballpark figure or recommended price to pay for an Instagram handle. It really depends on on two things:

1. How important it is to you for to have that particular username
2. How highly the current account holder values the username themselves

Of course, if both sides are willing to negotiate, you may be able to come to a compromise that suits you both.

Proceed with caution

One quick word of warning. Although plenty of people report having successfully bought and sold Instagram usernames, the practice is technically against the terms of service. According to Instagram:

“You can’t sell, license, or purchase any account or data obtained from us or our Service. This includes attempts to buy, sell, or transfer any aspect of your account (including your username); solicit, collect, or use login credentials or badges of other users; or request or collect Instagram usernames, passwords, or misappropriate access tokens.”

3. Report it to Instagram if the account is inactive

If the account whose handle you’d like isn’t actively posting on Instagram, there’s a fairly good chance that your DMs or messages will remain unanswered. In this instance, it can be difficult to reach the owners of inactive accounts and negotiate with them.

If this is the case, go directly to Instagram and demonstrate that the account is dormant. Ask them to consider transferring the username to you instead.

The key is to be professional, considerate, and fair. Rather than simply demanding the username, try a tactful approach, focusing on the fact that it’s an inactive Instagram username. Something like this could work:

Hi,

I’d like to inquire about having an existing Instagram username transferred from another account to my own.

The handle in question is @ABCXYZ. As you can see from the attached screenshots, the account has not posted in a while, since [DATE].

This username includes my business’/client’s name, and matches other social profiles and marketing collateral. It would therefore make sense for us to be able to use it on Instagram.

I’d appreciate any help you can provide.

Thanks!

4. File a trademark report

If the above steps don’t work, you may be able to report the existing account to Instagram through a trademark infringement report (provided your business name is trademarked).

Complete this trademark report form, which asks for information about your trademarked brand name and any supporting information, such as:

• Your contact information
• A link to your (or your client’s) website or other online presence
• Details of your trademark
• Link to the account that’s using your brand name
• Any other supporting information

Once you’ve submitted the request, it’ll be reviewed by Instagram before they make a decision.

Note: If you don’t already have a trademark, you can apply for one and then take it to Instagram.

No luck? Settle for a closely related username

If none of these attempts at claiming the taken Instagram username are successful, you’ll have to settle (for now at least) for something closely related to the name you want.

Use a variation or a likeness to your brand name as your Instagram name to build your presence. Here are some things to try:

• Use punctuation such as underscores, full stops, or dashes (e.g,. @manychat_)
• Use a modifying word to define your Instagram strategy, such as @manychathelp
• Use an abbreviation of your brand name, such as @mnycht
• Use a number to replace a letter, such as @m4nychat

To avoid further disappointment, check Instagram username availability by typing your brand name (or desired username) into the search bar. It’ll pull up a list of accounts using that term as part or all of their username or display name.

Don’t get too hung up if you can’t get your desired Instagram username

Most brands want a uniform presence across all their social media platforms, so it can be frustrating if another Instagram user has beaten you to the punch in choosing a username. That said, it’s worth a go at trying to claim it if you feel it’s important.

Just try not to be too disappointed if it doesn’t work. You may have to compromise and your handle might not be your first choice, but any Instagram presence is better than none at all. If your desired username is taken, try not to get too hung up on it. Just focus on creating great content that your audience loves.

Turn your Instagram into a moneymaker with ManyChat’s suite of Automation tools

The post Instagram Username Already Taken? Here’s How to Claim It appeared first on Manychat Blog.