How to Use Instagram for Business Marketing in India?

Instagram has gained a huge user base in India, alongside the growing popularity of influencer marketing. It is now essential for brands to know how to use Instagram influencers for marketing.

This article explains how you can leverage Instagram influencers to grow your brand in India, especially by focusing on Instagram marketing.

📊 Why use Instagram for Business in India?

Instagram sees around half a billion daily users from India alone, making it the third-largest user base in the world after the US and Brazil. This figure is set to rise to over 800 million by 2025.

This has led to the emergence of around 1.2 million Instagram users registered as influencers, of which over 600K have over 15K followers. The rise of Indian influencers has also been spurred by the need for brands to establish trust with Indian audiences.

In fact, Instagram is now the most favored platform for influencer marketing in India, with over 70% of users stating that they have purchased an item from a brand after seeing it on Instagram.

💡 Tips for Instagram Marketing in India

1. Identify your target audience

Instagram is divided into different demographics. If you are running a business in India, it’s very likely that you’ll be targeting the local market.

Users from India generally fall into the following segments:

• Youth: 15–30 years old. The majority are students or starting their professional careers.
• Young professionals: 30–40 years old. Most are working professionals, entrepreneurs, or homemakers.
• Mature: 40 years old and above. The majority are senior professionals or retired.

Understanding this division will allow you to tailor your content strategy and marketing approach accordingly.

2. Establish an Instagram Business Profile

Instagram offers two types of accounts: personal and business.

Opting for an Instagram business account allows you to utilize the various tools that Instagram provides to analyze your audience, post content, and even run ads.

There are a few things you need to establish your business account. These include:

• An official business email address
• A business phone number
• A business address
• A name that matches your business identity

A business profile will boost the credibility of your brand and also encourage users to engage with your posts.

3. Create an active posting schedule

Instagram is notorious for leaving users in an algorithmic slumber when they don’t regularly engage with the community.

Thus, staying active on Instagram is essential for maintaining your brand visibility and keeping your audience engaged.

You can establish a posting schedule that best suits your brand and audience. Suggested posting frequencies include:

• Posts: 2–3 times a week
• Stories: 4–5 times a week
• Reels: 3 times per week

Regularly auditing your Instagram Insights can also help you determine when your audience is most active, allowing you to tweak your posting strategy.

4. Collaborate with Instagram Influencers for Marketing

Instagram marketing is best done through influencers. Influencers have established themselves as trusted sources within their niche.

Over 70% of users state that they trust social media influencers more compared to brands when it comes to product recommendations.

❗ Risks of Instagram Marketing in India

While Instagram marketing holds a lot of promise, it can also be risky if not executed properly.

Here are a few risks that brands need to be aware of before collaborating with Instagram influencers.

1. Fraudulent influencers

Despite the popularity of influencers, the industry is rife with fraudulent accounts.

Around 40% of influencers on social media are fake. Fake influencers typically use paid services to inflate their follower count and engagement metrics.

This has led to the rise of various third-party tools that can detect fake influencers, such as:

• SocialBlade
• Upfluence
• Klear

Using these tools will allow you to detect fraudulent influencers and mitigate the risks of ineffective marketing.

2. Influencer scandals

Instagram influencers are mere humans with personalities. This means that they can occasionally engage in scandalous behavior or make inappropriate statements that can subsequently tarnish their image.

Unfortunately, associating your brand with a scandalous influencer can also damage your brand’s reputation. This can lead to users losing trust in your brand, causing traffic and sales to dwindle.

Thus, it is best to thoroughly vet influencers before collaborating with them.

3. Lack of foresight

As with any type of marketing, brands need to have clear goals and metrics of success.

This means that brands need to understand how influencer marketing works, from the costs to the deliverables.

Lack of foresight can lead to low expectations, which can ultimately lead to transaction failure and a waste of resources.

🚀 Conclusion

Using Instagram for business marketing can propel your brand to new heights and ultimately lead to business growth.

Instagram marketing works best when brands collaborate with influencers. Influencer marketing will continue to grow in India, with the number of Instagram users set to reach over 800 million by 2025.

However, you must ensure that you follow the right practices to avoid the risks of influencer marketing.