A BEGINNER’S GUIDE

WHAT IS INSTAGRAM?

Instagram is a photo sharing social

media application. Instagram users

share photos, videos and graphics

with their followers. Followers can

like, share and comment on user

content.

This e-book will explain how to set up

an Instagram account and how to

use Instagram to gain followers for

your business.

INTRODUCTION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

▪ GET STARTED – SET UP AN ACCOUNT

▪ CREATE A PROFILE

▪ THE INSTAGRAM BIO CHECKLIST

▪ CREATE A POST

▪ FOLLOWERS – WHO TO FOLLOW

▪ HASHTAGS – HOW TO USE THEM

▪ HOW TO BUILD AN AUDIENCE

▪ ANALYTICS & REPORTING

▪ CONTESTS & GIVEAWAYS

▪ DO’S & DON’T’S

▪ ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

SET UP AN ACCOUNT

To set up Instagram, download the app to your phone and set up your account.

Download the app

o Launch the App Store for iPhone/iPad, Play Store for Android, or Windows Phone Store for Windows phone. Search for Instagram and download it to your device.

o Tap the Instagram icon on your device after downloading.

Set up an account

o Select "Register with E-mail" to sign up with your e-mail address or "Register with Facebook" to register using your Facebook account. If you registered using your e-mail, enter a username and password and then complete your profile. Tap "Done" when finished.

o If you opt to use Facebook to register, simply log in using your Facebook username and password.

CREATE A PROFILE

Username

Add a photo

Name

Create a bio

Include your

email and

website URL

CREATE A PROFILE - DETAILS

Username – The name used to

sign up for Instagram. It will

shown on Instagram as @your

name. Make sure your

username and name are

similar.

Name – This is the name of the

profile.

Bio – Tell people who you are

and what you do.

Website – List a URL for your

business.

THE INSTAGRAM BIO CHECKLIST

✓ Describe yourself and your

business.

✓ Use humor, creativity and your

unique voice.

✓ Use relevant keywords for your

industry.

✓ Provide a website or blog URL.

✓ Create a CTA (call to action)

that encourages users to follow

and interact with you.

This business offers 50% off as a CTA for users

CREATE A POST

Open Instagram

Select the symbol

Select PHOTO or VIDEO

Tap Next

Add a filter of your choice

Select Next

Create a description

Select Share

Selecting a photo to post

FOLLOWERS – WHO TO FOLLOW?

Facebook friends – Go to

settings - find & invite friends –

and then select "Facebook Friends"

Contacts - Go to your “Home” tab and select contacts

Instagram suggestions

Users from searches – Select

the star key to explore

Browse through relevant hash

tags to find similar users

HASHTAGS - HOW TO USE THEM

A hashtag is a label for content. It helps users find content for a

topic that interests them.

A hashtag always starts with the

symbol # followed directly by

letters and/or numbers.

To join a discussion where a

hashtag already exists, add a

hashtag somewhere (usually at

the end) of your Instagram post.

HOW TO BUILD AN AUDIENCE

➢ Be an expert in your niche. Offer unique and different content than

everyone else in your field.

➢ Post on a regular basis.

➢ Ask questions with your posts.

➢ Respond to your followers. Follow back and like photos.

➢ Answer questions about your products immediately.

➢ Use analytics to track your audience.

Network with influencers and use contest and giveaways.

ANALYTICS & REPORTING

Use third-party tools like Iconosquare and Squarelovin to track your

Instagram analytics.

Business profiles can access Insights, Instagram’s analytics feature.

Click the little bar graph icon on your profile to open Insights and

seek weekly metrics.

To analyze how many people see your posts, look at the metrics for

Impressions and Reach. The Impressions metric is the total number

of views, and Reach is how many people saw your post. If a post

has 200 impressions but a reach of 100 people, it means people

viewed one post multiple times.

Pay attention to how many people view your Instagram profile.

Tracking this metric can be very useful for marketing and CTAs (call

to action).

CONTESTS & GIVEAWAYSContests and giveaways are used on Instagram to gather new followers and

engage your current ones.

Types of contests include:

➢ Like-to-WinYour followers “double

tap” an of a product and

follow your account. The

winner gets a free

product.

CONTESTS & GIVEAWAYS

➢ Repost

Instead of double tapping

an image, you repost to

win.

CONTESTS & GIVEAWAYS

➢ Photo Challenge

Followers post photos with

a theme and a

predetermined hashtag.

Make sure you follow the Instagram’s Promotion Guidelines.

INSTAGRAM DO’S & DON’TS

DO:

Interact

Promote Your Brand

Create A Distinctive Bio

Use relevant hashtags

Use Instagram Ads

Don’t:

Post content for the sake of it

Abuse hashtags

Pay for followers

Spam

Direct message EVERYONE

Example of hashtag abuse

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION &

RESOURCES

How to Drive Website Traffic with Instagram – Social Media Examiner

(this article is great for those selling a product)

How Hipsters Make Their Instagram Photos Look So Damn Good –Buzzfeed (for giggles)

How to Create a Posting Schedule for Instagram – BGB Community

(because consistency and frequency go hand-in-hand)

The Blogger’s Guide to Instagram Photography – In It for the Long

Run

3 Proven Tactics to Build Your Instagram Community – Hootsuite

6 Ways to Create a More Engaged Instagram Audience – Melyssa

Griffin

ABOUT US

Canadian Virtual Gurus is a virtual assistant company based in

Canada and the US. We provide virtual assistants for businesses that

need office support without the additional costs and training of full

time employees.

Are you interested in hiring a virtual assistant? Contact us for a hassle-

free consultation. We’ll review your business needs and recommend a

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Interested in becoming a virtual assistant? Click here to learn more

and apply!

INFO@THEVIRTUALGURUS.COM

(403) 460-4878

(888) 504-4449