Since 2010, Instagram has undeniably dominated as a powerhouse in social media. With over 700 million monthly users on the platform, there is an insane amount of room for travel program providers—like you—to gain a huge audience. The world is lustin’ for aesthetics, craving worldly views, and yearning for authenticity—so it’s time to show em’ what you got! No matter the size of your organization, incorporating Instagram into your marketing strategy is a MUST! Read the following (five) tips on how student and youth travel organizations can step up their Insta-GAME!
Geotagging… It’s life-changing✨
Nothing irks IG users more than a travel account with no location added. How else are users supposed to go and re-make the same picture? Instagram has continued to expand on its geo-tagging feature so users have the ability to post from whichever location! Research shows that posts with location have 79% more engagement than those without. By going back and inserting the geolocation, your organization will raise engagement and increase views/likes. Using geotags in the future will bring in new wanderlusters who will discover your page via location.
Check out our friends at API Abroad — they did a 💯 job on their post.
Move over Snapchat—It’s all about Instagram Stories
Instagram’s most recent algorithm now shows posts with higher engagement (likes & comments) on a users IG feed FIRST instead of chronologically. Because of this, it’s estimated that only 10% of your audience is actually viewing your posts. This can be extra frustrating for providers hoping to reach new audiences and customers. But fear not my international educators, by using the Instagram Stories feature, you can make sure you’re still noticed by your followers!
Instagram Stories have over 300 million daily active users (almost double of Snapchat). Increasing posts on IG Stories will cause an increase in user interaction—thus your posts are more likely to show up first on your audience’s feed (since Instagram’s algorithm rewards you for engaging with your followers).
Below are just a few ideas on what to post:
- Show day-to-day life at your headquarters
- Do an employee “takeover”
- Post promo videos
- Create polls your users can engage with
So make some time with your content creation team to create the perfect interactive story. Here’s and example of how you can encourage interaction:
Ask those questions, get those comments—use Call-to-Actions in every post!
Lasting engagement naturally leads to followers. In other words, as you continue to post engaging, relevant images, your follower count will grow organically! The simple act of requesting your audience to comment or inviting them to engage can go a very long way when it comes to boosting your Insta-GAME for international ed.
Check out some examples below:
- [Caption] Tag a friend you’d like to go with here!
- [Caption] Who would you want to cross this off your bucket-list with?
- [Caption] Where’s your dream location?
Our friends at Rustic Pathways are KILLING the game by using both call-to-actions AND IG Stories! 👏👏👏
The road to becoming IG famous—Let the presence of your staff shine!
Staff members are the face of your company and the voice of your mission! Build a culture where staff members have a strong Instagram presence too. When an employee has a 10/10 profile, they will be representing your organization in the best way possible! This can lead to a series of new followers and increase the authenticity of who your organization is and what they truly stand for.
Tagging members in stories will also help build a connection between your followers and employees. Check out our friend and GoAbroad writer Megan who works at Greenheart Travel below. Her profile screams colorful aesthetics, friendly vibes, and travel superstar!
Tell a story
Most people love stories. With a variety of fairy tales, story books, and reality TV shows growing up — we have become drawn to the act of storytelling. With storytelling, you step into the world of your community and are able to use emotions like empathy and sympathy. By communicating with images, you make things more memorable. The posts and images you use can get people to change how they feel, think, and act and as a result create long-lasting change.
From a business perspective, your organization should ensure that every caption used tells a story. While quotes are nice, stories are what sell. Capture the hearts of your audience and your Insta-GAME will be #1.
You can do this by implementing the following:
- Introducing your staff members
- Represent your company! Show em’ who’s working for you, where they’re from, and what they love about the organization!
- Ask your users for advice
- What is some advice your program users have for everyone else? Get the story, get their favorite travel picture, and get to steppin’!
- Tell an actual travel story!
- Check out our friends at ISA Abroad below and their great storytelling example!
- Introducing your staff members
Instagram has focused on follower engagement and brand storytelling as a way to build quality content. By using these five tips, your Insta-GAME will be top notch! Pay attention to the small details and your followers will grow in no time.
(Just don’t forget us here at GoAbroad when you reach 2 million + followers. ❤)