The Ultimate Guide To Instagram Guides
Written by Amelia Crisp
What Are Instagram Guides?:
Instagram Guides are a new feature on Instagram that you should definitely be utilising. They are the perfect opportunity for you to promote locations, products, or your previous posts in an easy-to-read blog-type format.
Guides provide a way to discover new recipes, tips and tricks, recommendations and so much more all within the one platform from your favourite creators and brands. Not only are they informational, but they are also great to look at!
They are still relatively new and still being tested out by the Instagram community which makes them the perfect tool to use to get ahead of the competition whilst boosting your social media presence and informing your audience about your brand and services.
The Instagram guides themselves can be best described as mini-blogs. They are interactive and can send the user to your previous posts (which means your old posts can have the spotlight again), different locations or even to your Instagram shop which means that they not only look good but can increase brand awareness and the overall performance of your business goals.
With the opportunity to promote gift guides, travel destinations, outfit ideas, recipes and product tips, Instagram allows this information to be brought together interestingly, creating a seamless experience for the user.
Guides are located Instagram profile page, just above the grid posts
How To Create An Instagram Guide
Follow these easy steps to create your first Instagram Guide:
- Go onto your profile and select the “+” symbol In the upper right-hand corner
- Select “Guide”
- Select the guide type that you are wanting to create
- Select the posts, products that you are wanting to use, and create a guide title and description and start to customise to create the perfect guide.
- Tap “add place” until your guide is complete.
Why Use Instagram Guides?
There are many benefits of using Instagram Guides that will benefit your business. One of these benefits is keeping the users on your page and looking at new and old content that they can engage with, as they don’t have to leave the page for more information. The more guides you create, the more information the user gets in one sitting which allows them to learn more about the business and the services you offer.
With the new algorithm that Instagram is rolling out, they are now increasing the importance of keyword searches which means that users can find your guides by searching for the keywords from the guide, which allows the discovery of your business to increase. Hashtags are becoming a thing of the past so guides are the perfect tool for more keyword insertion and higher relevance.
Now that keywords are increasing in importance, it will help you as a business to identify new audiences as well as understand what they are searching for so that you can adapt and create your content to become more valuable to your users.
With the product feature in the guides, you can generate an increase in conversions as the users can shop directly from Instagram which shortens the buyer’s journey, creating a seamless experience.
Ways You Can Use Your Guide
Instagram Guides are easy and fun to use, read below for some inspiration for your first Instagram Guide.
- Gift guides
- How to’s
- Recipes
- Shopping guides
- Travel guide
- Tips and tricks
- Specific themes
- Ranked lists
- New products
- So much more
Check out this example of some that we have created for one of our travel agency clients:
The best thing about Instagram Guides is not only are they really easy to create but they don’t require new content, you can reuse older posts to bring them back to life, especially those that were successful. Users can share your guide with others on their story or in the direct messages, so make it interesting and good to look at!
So, what are you waiting for? It’s time to create your first Instagram Guide!
