The Benefits of Becoming a Verified Account on Instagram

If you want to start marketing on Instagram, then all you really need is an account. With an account, you’ll be able to start posting images and linking back to your page and your services.

But while this is true, it’s also true that it’s worth going the extra mile in order to set up the best kind of account possible – if you want to maximize your sales potential and your success. That means many different things, but it particularly means getting your account verified. Here’s why and what that means.

What is a Verified Account?

On Instagram, you can choose any name and profile image you like for your account. That means that you could very easily create a profile pretending to be a famous celebrity, or to represent a big brand. Of course, this can then create a number of issues as users struggle to know who is the real deal. By getting your account verified, you essentially tell Instagram that you are the one true YOU and that way you get a small badge to denote that fact by your name in the search results. This reassures users that yours is the official account for that brand or name.

Why Get Verified?

So that’s what a verified account is. The next question is why you need to go about getting it verified.

On the one hand a verified account gives you the authority that comes from being the genuine article. This means that anyone looking for your brand will know to click on your account, and it of course helps you to avoid copycats and fakers!

At the same time though, verification also acts as a stamp of authority for those that don’t know your brand. This suggests a certain level of notoriety, and therefore that you must be a serious player in your niche.

Then there’s the fact that being verified will give you access to additional features. One of the most important of these is the ability to link to external sites from a story. Users just have to swipe up on your story, and they’ll be taken to the page you’ve chosen. This makes it possible to sell directly from a story, which is huge.

Another big advantage of this, is that having a verified account allows you to create IGTV videos running for several hours.

So what are you waiting for? Go ahead and get verified – it takes five minutes!

How to Sell the ‘Value Proposition’ on Instagram

The old saying goes that you ‘don’t sell hats, you sell warm heads’. This is one of the most useful sayings in business and one that everyone should always keep in mind.

What does it mean? It means that you are not selling the materials themselves, but rather the way those materials make your customers feel and the way they improve their lives.

This is what makes any business tick. And the most successful companies are the ones that truly understand this.

And the great news is that there is no platform better suited to this kind of marketing than Instagram.

How it Works

The reason for this is that it’s much easier to communicate a value proposition – or to ‘sell the dream’ as it were – when using images.

And to use an example of Instagram, we can turn to fitness brands. Fitness brands make money from selling products like clothing, supplements, or training tools. And the way they work, is by using images of people with six packs running on the beach with attractive members of the opposite sex.

The viewer will then see those images and they will feel a sense of longing – they will wish that they could be that healthy, attractive, and happy. And in doing so, they will be moved to a) follow the brand for more inspiration and b) buy the product.

This is a simplification, but it’s exactly what makes Instagram work.

How to Use This Strategy

So how do you use this strategy yourself? The key is to understand first and foremost what your value proposition is. What are you selling? How do you want to make people feel? Even if your business is a relatively straightforward and corporate one, there is still that value proposition. For instance, if you sell life insurance, then you are really selling peace of mind for family men and women.

If you sell EPOS systems, then you are selling the dream of having a restaurant, hotel, or similar.

The next step is to identify your target audience – your buyer persona – and to understand what they want and who they are. Speak to their deepest desires and you will be able to sell them anything!

Finally, make sure that your posts all work within that context and framework. That means that you should be taking photos that perfectly illustrate the point you’re trying to make.

5 Tips That Will Make Your Instagram Account Grow More Quickly

If you’re posting regularly to an Instagram account with beautiful images and you still aren’t seeing growth, then you might understandably find yourself feeling very frustrated. Perhaps Instagram just isn’t right for your business, you may think. Perhaps you’re doing something wrong?

Unfortunately, the fact of the matter is that organic growth on Instagram takes time. With that said though, here are five tips that can make a big difference and ensure you grow that bit more quickly.

1 Use Portrait Orientation

Taking photos with a portrait orientation is generally considered the best practice in Instagram marketing. If not, then you should at least choose square images. This way, your image will stay on the page longer while the users are vertically scrolling, meaning more engagement and hopefully more likes.

2 Post at the Right Time

Posting at the right time of day has been shown to be hugely important when it comes to your Instagram success. This way, you maximize the number of people who are awake and who are using the app. Research suggests that posting some time between 10am and 3pm on a weekday will net you the best results. BUT this doesn’t account for global time differences. If you’re aiming for a global audience, then posting at 6pm GMT might just be the smarter strategy.

3 Post Frequently

How frequently? Ideally you should be posting 2-3 times per day. This will ensure that there is a steady flow of content on your site, and that it doesn’t seem as though the page has been abandoned. What’s more though, is that posting this regularly will mean almost all of your viewers will see at least one image from you per day.

4 Use Hashtags

Hashtags make a big difference on Instagram, so make sure you use them often and use them well. One of the most important tips is to use as many as possible (30) in order to maximize your chances of a big hit. Find the sweet spot in terms of popularity too – 30,000 is a good number of posts to see.

5 Choose a Look

Many accounts are all over the place, with every image they post looking completely different and the end result being a page that has no consistency. Making sure the majority of your images have a consistent look – even picking the same filter for every photo – can prevent this issue and help people to better understand what you’re about and whether they should follow.

How to Sell From Instagram

Instagram is an incredibly popular and potentially hugely powerful marketing tool. Did you know that Instagram has 1 billion active users? That’s 1/7^th of the population!

Moreover, Instagram is extremely effective when it comes to promoting products and brands that have any kind of visual appeal. This will allow you to create an account filled with pictures of people using your products or services, or living the lifestyle that you are promoting. That can be highly motivating and encouraging for your followers, and thereby ultimately encourage them to make a purchase.

But how do you go about turning those views into sales?

This is where things can get a little trickier, and the problem here primarily lies with the fact that Instagram doesn’t let you place live links in your descriptions. You can include the URL sure, but your users won’t be able to simply click that link in order to be taken to the store page. And what this means, is that they likely won’t make the effort to go there – and you can’t elegantly convert those views into sales.

So what can you do? What some marketers will do, is to add the buy link in their bios. The text that is used as the image description can then point to that link (link in bio!) and this way, interested viewers can follow it.

This still isn’t perfect however, and what many creators will end up doing, is changing that link practically every day as they update their page with new offers. A better option then would be to link to a storefront, and then to simply move the hottest items to a more prominent position in the store as they are promoted on Instagram.

Better yet though, would be to link directly to the product. Thankfully there are a few ways to do this now. One is by using an Instagram story, which is an image that appears for a short duration of time. If you have 10,000 followers OR a verified account, then you can use this in order to link directly to any items you like – the user just has to swipe upward.

Otherwise, you might be able to use ‘Shopping on Instagram’. This relatively new tool allows images to directly link to buy pages through tags. It’s not available for everyone, and you will need your business to be approved first. But if you can manage it, this has huge potential for sales.

How to Succeed On Instagram Without Taking a Single Photograph

Instagram is extremely popular among internet marketers for a large number of reasons. This is a marketing platform with a great ROI, as well as a huge reach (1 billion active users). It’s also extremely trendy and popular right now, and showing no signs of slowing down or losing momentum (unlike Facebook).

But there are several things that might be holding you back from fully exploiting the potential of Instagram. One of those things, is the fact that Instagram – at least on the face of it – appears to require you to have some skill when it comes to photography. This is a visual medium and it trades in photos that have been taken on smartphones.

If you don’t have a high quality camera phone, if your business doesn’t have a particularly visual aspect to it, OR if you have zero confidence in your own ability to take artistic looking photos… then you might find yourself avoiding this particular social platform.

But here’s the good news: you can actually be highly successful on Instagram without taking a single photograph. Here’s how…

Stock Photography

One way to accomplish this is by using stock photography. Stock photography is photography taken from the web: websites that share photos for creatives to use, either for a fee or in some cases for free!

Most of these sites let you simply search for a term and then download the images you want to use. It’s a great way to find a large resource of images that you can share.

Editing

Another option is to use photography and then edit it. This can likely work in tandem with the stock option. In this case, you might search for photos of people standing on mountains, or making other accomplishments, and then simply add artistic filters and quotes about success and the like. It’s a simple and easy method that has worked for countless people!

The Work of Others

Many Instagram accounts are highly successful simply as a result of sharing photos that other users have taken. Alternatively, this could mean sharing art from others, or video.

The only thing to keep in mind is copyright and fair play. Make sure you get permission from the creators. The good news is that in most cases they will be flattered you asked and excited to get the free exposure. Everyone wins!

By Emily Morrow, Director of Editorial Content, SAP Customer Experience

Mindfulness at work is something we’re hearing a lot about these days. It’s supposed to make our lives better, but what is it?

We associate mindfulness with things like meditation, yoga, and deep breathing, and know that it’s supposed to make us less stressed and more productive. But nailing down a practical, tangible explanation of what it means to be mindful, live mindfully, or practice mindfulness on a day-to-day basis can be challenging.

Let’s take a few minutes to define this seemingly nebulous topic and learn how you can actually work it into your already busy life.

Mindfulness explained: What it is, what it isn’t, and how to get there

Lots of explanations go something like: Mindfulness is the practice of being in the present moment, and accepting it in a non-judgmental way.

This sounds nice, but doesn’t provide much clarity.

Let’s start with what mindfulness isn’t.

Mindfulness isn’t yoga, and it isn’t meditation. Those are both extremely useful methods to improving mindfulness, but are not the thing itself. While “mindfulness” feels a bit harder to nail down, most people understand what it means to be mindless.

When someone is acting mindlessly, they’re usually lacking purpose, direction, or attention. We all know what it feels like to mindlessly scroll through our social media feeds, or mindlessly binge a series on Netflix. We’re there, but maybe only halfway. Our minds are wandering, without purpose or focus, and we become disengaged. We’re running on auto-pilot.

Mindfulness means the opposite: Being present and engaged with what’s happening in the moment. It’s engaging with purpose and attention....Click here to continue reading

4 Ways Entrepreneurs Can Improve Their Time Management Skills

Managing time has become an all too real struggle for entrepreneurs these days. With so much to do in both their work and personal lives, it can be challenging to get things done in during a day. There are many ways for entrepreneurs to improve their time management skills to help them get more accomplished in less time. Here are four ideas for entrepreneurs to enhance their time management.

Make a Schedule and Stick to It

You can start to improve your time management skills by taking the time to organize your days and weeks in advance. While there will always be surprises that you'll have to deal with, you’re more likely to be able to tackle those surprises better because you have an idea about what tasks and responsibilities you have to deal with each day.

Prioritize

Learning how to prioritize is the second way to improve time management skills. If you want to execute your projects efficiently, then you have to decide which stages or components of the project are essential to your business. You have to be able to determine which activities and tasks will deliver the best returns for your business.

Set Boundaries

If you want to be able to work in peace, then you need to inform those you work with when you're not available. Your partners and employees can't read minds, so it is your job to set appropriate boundaries when necessary. Make sure that you communicate your limits in a polite, yet direct manner to ensure that you can have the time you need to work on essential tasks.

Account for Good Distractions

There will always be distractions that get the best of you, no matter how hard you try to avoid them. However, no one can work for hours on end, and to stay productive, we all need breaks. The best thing you can do is accept this reality and try to incorporate some distractions into your schedule. Try to block out some downtime every day. This might mean setting aside a few minutes to take a short walk, grab a cup of coffee, or find some other stress management activities that you can do.

Managing your time requires discipline, planning, and a healthy attitude. However, if you get it right, you will start to notice improved productivity and lower levels of stress.

Increase Your Productivity with These Daily Habits

Everybody wants to get more done and feel like they accomplished something at the end of the day. While there are millions of different tips for productivity out there, you can increase your productivity levels by changing a few daily habits. Here's how you can improve your productivity by changing the following daily habits.

Arrive Early, Stay Later

If you live in a congested city, you can save some time and beat traffic by starting your day earlier. When you're not wasting your time sitting in traffic, you can start working on your most essential tasks sooner. Your ability to save hours not sitting in traffic will drastically increase your productivity. Make it a habit to arrive early and stay a bit later, and you'll notice an increase in your productivity.

Plan the Night Before

Spending just 15 minutes before you go to bed creating and prioritizing your to-do list for the next day will give you a head start the following day. After you create your to-do list, spend a few minutes marking the tasks that are important to remind you that those tasks have to be done to push you forward in achieving your goals.

Have Lunch Outside the Office

While small, this habit can have a huge and powerful effect on how you work for the rest of the day. Using your lunch to get out of your work environment can refresh your creativity, significantly reduce your stress levels, and help you re-focus when it's time to get back to work. Consider taking a short walk to help clear your head and think about what you want to accomplish the rest of the day.

Minimize Distractions

Distractions are everywhere. If you work from a computer, you have the temptation of checking your social media and surfing the Internet, among other things. There are plenty of tools that can help you minimize these distractions. If you work in an office with a door, place a ‘do not disturb' sign up, so your coworkers know not to bother you.

Always Keep Your Goals in Sight

After you’ve set your goals, keep them in sight at all times. You want to write your goals down and keep them in a place where you will end up seeing them throughout your day. Being able to see your goals throughout the day will give you the motivation to get tasks done that move you closer to accomplishing them.

Changing these five habits will move you toward being a more productive person. Keep track of your results and watch as the small daily victories start to transform your life.

Improve Your Productivity With These Essential Time Management Hacks

It seems that the one thing that technology can’t help us create is more time. There are only 24 hours in a day, so if you want to increase your productivity, you need to have a better sense regarding time management. When it comes to managing your time it is essential to understand that time management isn't about trying to squeeze as many tasks as possible into a day but instead finding a way to work smarter. If you're looking to improve your productivity here are some essential time management hacks to help you along the way.

Get Enough Sleep

Often, our rest and sleep are sacrificed to gain more time in the day. Being well-rested, well-fed, and having a healthy body removes the distractions that will rob us of our time. When you can get enough sleep every night, your focus is sharper, your attention span is longer, and your quality of work is higher, which lends itself to an increase in productivity.

Plan Ahead

When you can take the time to outline the events of the coming day, you provide your mind with the time to work through the tasks while you are sleeping. This allows you to start your day with many of the subtle details already worked out. Before you go to bed each night, take a few minutes to evaluate what you achieved. Spend a few minutes clearing your workspace, and create a list of the tasks that you need to complete the following day.

Create Work Bundles

Various tasks that you have to perform require different skills and different ways of executing them. To save yourself time with re-orienting yourself between jobs, create work bundles. Grouping similar tasks together that require related skill sets will allow you to more easily flow from one segment or tasks to the next without a break.

Create Routines

There are some tasks that you work on that require little to no thought. You can create a routine for these kinds of functions that will allow you to accomplish them without becoming distracted from the real tasks at hand. Establishing routines is similar to your overall planning and execution, but with the sole intention of automation.

Work on the Hard Tasks First

We tend to tackle the easy tasks on our lists first because they don't take much time to complete, which will leave you with more time to work on more involved things. However, to increase your productivity, you should tackle the more difficult tasks first with your fresh energy, which will make the lighter tasks flow quickly.

When it comes to time management, there is always time for improvement. Try to take into account the above tips, and you will find yourself getting more done in less time.

Boost Your Productivity with These Essential Time Management Skills

If you're looking to become more productive with your time, then you have to understand that you need to make constant and never-ending improvements to the way that you work. Fortunately, there are many time management skills that you can improve that will help you become more productive. Here are several essential time management skills that can help you boost your productivity.

Goal Setting

Time management isn’t a standalone skill. While you can't manage time, you can control how you use your time. When it comes to your productivity, the way you use your time should be directly driven by effective goal-setting. The most fundamental skill when it comes to time management is your ability to use the time you have in a manner that serves your goals.

Prioritization

When it comes to prioritizing work tasks, most people attempt to prioritize the items that are on their to-do list. However, many of the things that appear on their lists are ones that shouldn't be on there. When it comes to time management, your prioritization efforts should start with eliminating tasks that you shouldn't be performing. When you've done this, then you can begin to focus on finishing the most valuable work with the time and resources that are available.

Self-Motivation

There will always be days that you don't want to do anything. On days like this, you have to be able to motivate yourself into action. When you can improve your self-awareness, you give yourself the information that you need to get yourself motivated to work. While you may have all the other time management skills necessary to remain productive, if you cannot motivate yourself, you'll find yourself bowing to stress and pressure.

Focus

Being able to shut everything out and focus on the task at hand is one of those time management skills that you don’t realize the importance of it until you struggle with it. The best way to achieve focus is to stop multitasking and identify the most crucial task and block the rest out.

Delegation

As an entrepreneur, you need to ensure that all the necessary work gets completed. However, that doesn't mean that you have to be the one to do it. One of the most vital time management skills that you can master is knowing when you're not the right person to perform the task. If you have a task that is more suited to someone else's skill set, then you should consider delegating those tasks.

If you want to get the best results from your work, then you need to improve your time management skills. As you start to improve your time management skills, you begin to enjoy a boost in your productivity and get more work done in less time.