On Instagram pictures may not only be “worth a thousand words” but thousands of dollars for brands who use it. Interacting and engaging with customers online or at the point-of-purchase, Instagram can help drive customers further along in the buying cycle and drive sales. If you have not yet heard of Instagram, then you are probably not using social-media. Instagram is a photo-sharing and video sharing social media application that allows users to share their pictures and video with others via an app on their mobile phone. Instagram is owned by Facebook, and is one of the fastest growing social media networks services around ( they added 60 million users in 2013). It has become the king of engagement and monetizing the visual. Last month, L2, a digital innovation think tank, in partnership with Olapic, a visual e-commerce platform, released a report called, “Instagram 2014“.The study used in the report:
… assesses the performance of 249 prestige brands on arguably the world’s most powerful social platform. This data-driven report offers insight into prestige brands’ Instagram investments, the e-commerce potential of the platform, and the initial results from its latest features; Instagram Advertising and Instagram Direct. Our aim is to provide data, best practices, and case studies to help organizations formulate their digital strategies.
Below are a few of my takeaways from the report:
- Retailer’s understand the visual nature of a consumer, “92% of prestige brands [luxury brands] have an Instagram account.” If consumers can create their “own” experience or story to build an emotional connection, this facilitates the likelihood of a sale. According to data from the report, “User-generated photos increased conversion by 7%” (Source: Olapic, January 2014). So encourage picture taking, foster trust in your shopper and build the relationship, it can help retail sales and your small business.
- “93% of prestige brands are present on Instagram, up from 63% of July 2013.” This increase of 30% is remarkable when looked at the fact that in 2013, it acquired 60 million active users.
- “68% of users [Instagram] were women” and “90% of Instagram users are under 25.” Combine that data with the “16% of online adults with a household income greater than $75K” are using Instagram you have some very powerful data. This means almost 1 in 5 US women are using Instagram, if you are a retailer and not there yet, you should be.
The report is available to members and non-members; at this time non-members can download a 14 page brief, it’s really worth a download and a read: http://www.l2thinktank.com/research/instagram-2014
There is a corresponding video featuring Scott Galloway the founder of L2, and Professor of Marketing at the NYU Stern School of Business with a brief explanation about the report and some key findings: http://vimeo.com/86125356
Please share your comments and let me know if you enjoyed the article. Thanks, – Bob
Bob Strassel Jr.