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Whether it’s brushing on trim paint, framing a tricky roof, or a cool paver pattern, we’re all wondering – is it Instagrammable? And how can I use it for my social media marketing? With these 10 reasons to use Instagram you should find one or two that make you want to use IG.

Instagram has grown immensely over the years, and it continues to broaden its horizons. The photo-sharing app has gone a long way from once being a favorite for vacationers sharing their holiday pictures to now appealing to all kinds of people, advertisers, and businesses.

At this point, it’s safe to say that your audience is using Instagram, and your competitors too. But keeping on top of Instagram trends (oh and did we mention algorithm changes too?) becomes a little tricky at times. Your target customers might be scrolling away on their feeds right now, the question for contractors is how and why they should be present on Instagram.

If your business isn’t already on Instagram, these Instagram marketing statistics will convince you why it should be and give you an idea of what you should be doing on the social platform.

So, let’s get started with the top 10 Instagram statistics for 2019 to shed some light on the rising importance of Instagram.

How Many People Use Instagram?

As of June 2018, Instagram has reached the 1 billion monthly active user mark (TechCrunch, 2018). That’s a big milestone for the mainly mobile photo sharing network! More than 500 million active users are using the platform daily. As of now, the Instagram app is one of the most popular social networks worldwide. A little over 5 years ago, in June 2013, Instagram had 130 million monthly active users. Since then, it’s grown 10 times.

Instagram is a social network that allows users to share and edit both photos and videos. Out of the social networks, only Facebook and You Tube have more daily active users than Instagram. Once used mainly by teens and young millennials, Instagram continues to grow as one of the most popular social media platforms, and the data tells us that it’s not going to change anytime soon.

So, if you were questioning whether your business should spend the time, money and effort to invest in Instagram, the tremendous number of monthly active users should be an indication.

Hashtag your way to success.

The Power of Instagram

With a billion monthly active users, it comes as no surprise that Instagram is the second most engaged social network (Emarketer, 2018). The first spot being secured by Facebook. This statistic shows that more than 60.6% of internet users in the US will access Facebook at least once per month this year. When it comes to Instagram, 37.4% of internet users will access the social media platform at least once per month, this year.

That percentage is staggering!

People have been wondering how they can grow their following on Instagram, and improve their engagement so as to lock into this audience. If you have been neglecting your business’s Instagram account or using it completely wrong, it’s probably the right time to be building your community and improving your engagement through the social media channel. Here are some tips on how you can improve your Instagram engagement.

Young Adults Love Instagram

71% of the billion monthly active users on the Instagram app are under the age of 35 (Statista, 2019).

This statistic provides information on the distribution of Instagram users worldwide as of January 2019. The single most popular age range is users between the ages of 25-34, followed by users between the ages of 18-24. Does your target audience include this demographic?

Think of it this way. If your customers are over 40. If they see you now, in 5 or 10 years, you will be the first one they think of later. Another good reason to use Instagram, as future proofing your marketing.

Contractors, what can you offer new homeowners?

Understanding social media demographics will help you determine which platforms make the most sense for your business to utilize. This way you’ll be sure that you’re not spending time creating content for a platform where your audience doesn’t have a presence.  

If your target market consists of young adults, you know that Instagram is the right place for you to be.

(Think lifetime value) 

If you are a 45 year old contractor, that 28 year old, you get as a customer, could be worth $10s of thousands to you over the next 20 years.  You being 65 and them being 48.  Think back to your life’s path over 20 years.

Once you know this, you can start producing the right type of Instagram content that fits your user’s needs and adding all the right Instagram captions.

Average Time Spent on Instagram

People spend almost as much time on Instagram as they do on Facebook.

The amount of time Android users dedicate to Instagram is approaching that of Facebook — In June 2018 Facebook users spent an average of 58 minutes per day on the platform compared to Instagram users 53 minutes per day (Kinsta 2019).

The time spent on Instagram matters because the more time people spend in the app, the more advertisements they see, and the more opportunities they have to notice your business. Instagram also revealed that introducing the Instagram Story feature increased the amount of time people were spending on the app every day.

Video is big business and you need to be doing more video.  I need to be doing more video.  I don’t like playing catch-up.

But not only does the time spent on Instagram matter, but also the time of day that users are most active on the platform. That way, you’ll get to know the best time to post on Instagram for your brand.

For Contractor Marketing Network, it is between 9 am and 9 pm EST.  Use your analytics to tell you, your best time to post. 

Contractor’s Guide to Instagram.

Businesses are Using Instagram

With Instagram becoming increasingly popular, an estimated 71% of US businesses claim that they use Instagram for business (Mention, 2018). The same study also reveals that 7 out of 10 hashtags on Instagram are branded. (#ContractorMarketingNetwork #RJCooperCMN)

And more than 80% of businesses consider Instagram engagement as the most important metric. Instagram engagement may be one of the most important KPIs (Key Point Indicators) for many marketers, but it’s not a straightforward task to measure it. With the Instagram platform rapidly evolving, it’s hard to keep up with the updates and what to measure.

For our clients, we measure engagement, but also how long the post is seen by the hashtag.  We have had several last months at the top posts for a hashtag.  This is great for exposure on a location-based hashtag.  Great for branding.

Businesses have a great opportunity to use Instagram for social media marketing. Not only is there a huge market, but there’s an interested audience that you can reach without spending large sums of money. If you’re looking for tips and ideas for how your business can advertise on Instagram, Contractor Marketing Network has got you covered with these Instagram business strategies.

The Impact of Instagram for Businesses.

Here is another reason to use Instagram. 83% of Instagrammers say they discover new products and services on Instagram (Facebook, 2019). This means that they are using Instagram as a channel to take inspiration from and make buying decisions. The same study also reveals that by simply being on Instagram, businesses can make a positive impression on potential customers.

Instagram Stories Usage

In August 2016, Instagram launched Instagram stories. This game-changing feature allows users to take photos or videos which disappear after 24-hours. After launching this feature, people started sharing way more on Instagram.

500 million Instagram accounts use Instagram Stories every day (Instagram, 2018). Not just that but 1/3 of the most viewed IG stories are from businesses.  Are you using stories?  If so, how?

Before Instagram stories, people were mostly sharing their important moments, which weren’t usually on a daily basis. Instagram nailed the hammer on the head with Instagram stories, giving people a better reason to share their everyday moments without actually having to keep the content on their profile.

This is a cool feature to increase engagement and also, gain followers.

This is also a great opportunity for businesses to increase their visibility.

Instagrammers Follow Brands

50% of Instagram users follow at least one business meaning that businesses have a great opportunity to increase their reach through Instagram. Whether you’re a local business or businesses around the world, you have the potential to improve your business by using Instagram.

With an Instagram Business profile, business owners can add their additional contact information that isn’t an option available for personal profiles. This includes a business phone number and address. If you’ve got an Instagram Business profile you also have access to Instagram analytics which can provide you data about impressions and reach per post, as well as more information about your demographic. This can help you to understand what type of content your audience likes the most. So, whether it’s roof, landscaping, or any niche that you’re interested in, you can be hopeful that there are users who are interested to follow you or your business on Instagram.

All my clients are set-up with a Link Tree account so we can add more URLs or links to drive certain viewers to better landing pages.

Instagram Engagement Matters

Instagram engagement is on the rise for businesses. It increased by 29% between October 2017 and May 2018. This means that businesses can generate over 4x more interactions on Instagram compared to Facebook.

With Facebook business page organic reach being little to none.  This is a big opportunity for local, small businesses.

While we understand that Instagram engagement is important for businesses, the question still remains about what Instagram engagement actually is and how it’s measured. Instagram engagement is the degree of involvement that your followers show toward your Instagram content. This could be in the form of likes, comments, or shares.

Instagram is a visual content-based platform which is one of the reasons why it has such high engagement. It offers a platform for different types of content creation such as photos, videos, live videos, stories, and also the IGTV app. This increases content creativity, as it gives you a wide variety of content types to choose from. If you’re a business, you should be making use of Instagram’s potential to improve interactions. We’ve got a plan for you.  Our Social Media Management service is hard to beat.  In terms of interaction and return on investment. 

Instagram Has an Impact on Buyer’s Journey

We’ve already gone over the impact of Instagram for business, but let’s take it further. Instagram helps 80% of Instagrammers decide whether to buy a product or service. Instagram users report making a purchase decision based on something that they saw while browsing Instagram, I know I have.

Influencer marketing plays a huge role in influencing these purchase decisions too, so if your business is not including Instagram to your social media marketing, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity.

Especially if your business is targeting people between 25-45 years old.

There’s a bunch of different tactics that you can use to impact the buyer decision on Instagram. Whether it’s Instagram ads, engaging users with creative stories, or including the relevant Instagram hashtags to be more discoverable, it all can matter if you do it right.

Like and follow Contractor Marketing Network to keep up with new developments in marketing your contracting company, it’s what we do.

Wrapping Up Our Instagram Top 10

Over the years Instagram has proven to be a powerful marketing tool for businesses that are looking to expand both their visibility and reach. We’re hoping that these 10 Instagram statistics for 2019 have helped explain why you should be investing in Instagram and given you some ideas of what to do on the platform.

Check out the “Name Your Price” marketing services Contractor Marketing Network offers.