The world of social media is constantly evolving, with new features popping up on multiple platforms seemingly on a daily basis. These features are often in favor of businesses and influencers who aim to use their platform to market their brand. For example, we’ve seen the recent growth of video content skyrocket due to TikToks and Instagram Reels. On Instagram, while Reels have taken the spotlight, there’s another underrated and underused feature called Guides that more businesses should be taking advantage of.
What are Instagram Guides?
The best way to describe Guides is by comparing them to a blog. This social media tool is like the mini version of a full-blown article that is published directly to Instagram. They consist of content and commentary and are best used to convey inspiration, i.e. showcasing products, curating gift guides, highlighting customers, giving recommendations and reviews, and much more. With Guides, what you choose to showcase is entirely up to you, as long as you have access to the content to support your topic.
Why should I use the Guides feature on Instagram?
Guides are beneficial for both influencers and businesses because they can generate views, followers, and sales, depending on what you plan to post about. For example, if you have a collection of products, you want to give your followers inspiration and a motive to buy those products. Creating a “mini-blog” on what you offer is one of the ways to do this.
How do you create a guide?
Setting up a guide is fairly simple. On the Instagram app, go to your profile and select the Create button on the top right corner (the plus sign with a square around it), click Guide, then choose between the following types:
Places – recommend places in your city and beyond – this one is best for creating review guides, such as top restaurants, top photo locations, etc.
Products – recommend your favorite products – you can select content from a product catalog (if you are a business, having your own IG product catalog is essential for this type of guide.)
Posts – recommend posts you created or saved – this one is the most fluid of the three because you can select both your own posts and others’ posts (if they’ve been saved to your collection).
Follow the steps in each type above to make your post selections (the app is very helpful in explaining what you can and can’t do). After you’ve selected your posts, then you can write your commentary via titles and descriptions. Once done, you’re ready to share your guide!
Guides must have the following in order to post to your profile:
- Title
- Cover photo
- At least 2 items
What can I create as a guide?
There is a wide range of possibilities when it comes to creating a Guide. What you should create depends on the type of account you have. If you are an influencer, then your guides will certainly be more recommendation/review based, and if you’re a business, then your guides would be more product/inspiration/feature based to sell your catalog and promote your brand.
Here are some examples of our own Guides that you can view to gain inspiration to make your own:
You Can Showcase Products
Highlighting your product catalog is ideal when it comes to making a guide on your profile. You can share these types of guides at any time on your stories as a reminder of what you carry and what you can accomplish as a company.
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You Can Feature Customers
Featuring customers is a good way to show appreciation for your client base, encourage future orders from both those same customers and new ones, and of course, boost your credibility as a brand.
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You Can Provide Inspiration
People are constantly seeking inspiration to make their next move. When it comes to selling products, you want to be able to provide motivation to place orders through inspiring content.
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At GotPrint, we’re all about using the tools we are given to create beneficial and meaningful content for our readers and customers. Using Instagram Guides for your business venture would be an advantage that you shouldn’t pass up, especially because it’s an underrated feature. By creating guides for your followers, you’ll be setting your account apart from other companies and growing your business at the same time.