Instagram Lead Generation: 10 Tips and Strategies

You probably know of Instagram even if you don’t use it. It’s a social media platform for personal, creative, and business use, and it is home to over 2.4 billion active users from around the world. For lead generation, it’s a necessity.

As a business owner, tapping into that large user base is an excellent way to build brand awareness, find leads, get conversions, and stay connected with potential and return customers.

But getting leads on Instagram isn’t necessarily easy, particularly if you’re a small business with a limited budget. There is competition, and you need to know how to generate the right kinds of content to reach your business’s target audience.

What are leads on Instagram?

Social media leads are simply customers who have previously expressed interest in your products and services. These individuals provide you with their personal information in some form, whether it’s an email address, home address, username, or other kind of data, and you can use that data to connect with them, follow up, and, hopefully, convert them to customers.

With around 80% of Instagram accounts following at least one business, it makes sense to look for leads on Instagram.

Why generate leads on Instagram?

No matter what size business you run, lead generation is one of the steps you always need to have in motion. Good lead generation leads to business growth, building up your presence in the communities you serve and helping you convert more leads into buying customers.

There are several reasons to use Instagram to generate leads. Like many other social media platforms, it has great potential to help you reach the right audiences and capture leads. Additional reasons Instagram should be a major part of your online presence include:

Cost-Effective Approach

Instagram is very affordable, making it a good tool for building your brand even if your business is small and has a limited budget. Instagram ads cost approximately $0.20 to $2.50 per click. So, even if you have a budget of only $100 or $200, you could still generate leads for your business and see an increase in your conversions and revenue.

Instagram also has several organic lead-generation options, such as using hashtags and loading Reels up with trending music. With organic lead generation processes, you don’t have to spend a penny to get your content in front of the people who will appreciate it most.

Additionally, with options such as Instagram Shopping, you can get your items in front of your audience without a storefront. This feature is perfect for people with dropshipping companies or warehouses full of products ready to ship.

Highly Engaged Users

One of the top reasons to turn to Instagram to build your customer base is that people are heavily engaged on the platform. Among the social media platforms available on the internet today, Instagram boasts one of the highest rates of user engagement. Users are genuinely interested in the content created by the brands and individuals they follow, creating a perfect platform to find warm leads. They’ll even check your Instagram bio, making it easy to link them to external resources such as your website.

Strong Buying Interest

Having plenty of followers is great, but it’s not always reflective of your total sales . With Instagram, you have a better chance of converting leads. Instagram users often use the platform for product discovery and will shop through the app or platform directly. Users who show interest in your products and company are more likely to convert from leads to buyers, so pay close attention to them.

Effective Lead Generation Tools

Instagram has several tools to generate leads, give you more insight into your audience, and do more with your content. Your business can have a bio link, set up its own shop, make clickable ads, and build out clickable Instagram Story links, too. When you launch ads, you can choose to work with a lookalike audience or build your own requirements.

Access to a Wide Customer Base

Finally, don’t forget about those 2.4 billion active users. They come from all over the world, giving you the opportunity to expand your brand globally. And, even if you want to stay local, you’ll find that you can show your products or services to people of different demographics easily.

The majority of the people who use Instagram today are between the ages of 18 and 34, but with so many people online, you’ll find users of other ages as well.

How to Find Leads on Instagram: 10 Strategies

To convert Instagram users into leads, there are several techniques you can use. Try one of these 10 options to get your business on the map and get more leads pouring in:

Craft Compelling CTA’s

Call-to-action (CTA) phrases are common because they work. Telling someone to sign up for your newsletter, pointing to your website’s link and saying to click it now, or giving other commands to your audience can grow your number of leads and conversions.

That’s why one of your priorities, no matter the platform, should include compelling call-to-action buttons and phrasing throughout your page. On Instagram, that means having a powerful call to action in your bio and on every post you write. For example, adding a simple “Link in Bio!” to your post will inform visitors that your bio has what they’re looking for rather than allowing them to scroll away empty-handed. And, in video content, remember to refer to your bio or website to get them to visit you there, too.

Use Paid Ads

With paid ads, you advertise on Instagram and guarantee your posts will get seen. Paid ads will cost your business money, but the return on that investment can be great on Instagram. Paid ads aren’t too expensive, with a high average of $2.50 per click down to around $.20. So, even if you run a small business, that low-cost advertising option can be a good deal.

Combine your paid ads with a genuine organic lead-gen campaign to advertise on Instagram, and users who come to your site or page through Instagram will be more likely to enjoy the other content, too. Better content equals more followers and better user engagement, which is something to keep in mind for the long term.

Optimize Your Bio Link

Your bio link is a great place to link to your main website and to point customers where you want them to go. Some best practices for using your bio link correctly include optimizing it by keeping it short, using a call-to-action above it in your bio, and promoting it in each post with “link in bio.”

When you create your bio, also remember to keep it in your brand voice and avoid making it too long or confusing. Stick to the specifics, and show visitors why they need to follow you right now.

Partner with Influencers

Influencers can help you reach your niche audience members while building trust with your brand. For new Instagram lead generation, partnering up with an Instagram influencer can be an excellent way to build credibility and reach people you might not have through other means, so consider this option when you go online. Be cautious, and choose an influencer who works in your niche.

Run Lead Gen Campaigns

Running your own lead generation campaign is another excellent way to find new leads on Instagram.

When you use Instagram lead ads, you create ads that are designed to collect information from your potential customers. For example, a lead ad can ask for a phone number or email address, which you can then use to reach out to the customer directly.

You need an Instagram business account to use lead ads, but once you have one, you can go to Facebook’s Ads Manager and select lead generation as your priority. Just keep in mind that Instagram has ad specifications you have to meet.

Leverage Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories is a feature that allows you to set up 24-hour stories containing photos and videos in a slideshow. The stories are posted at the top of the Instagram app in a vertical format, which allows users to scroll through them and see what’s new.

Stories are great for your business because users know they’re time-sensitive content. Additionally, you can use GIFs, set up polls, use AR filters, create text, and make a more immersive experience for your followers.

Optimize Your Profile

Your profile is where you want followers to add you and where you’ll host your bio link so they can get more information. Optimizing your profile helps ensure those who visit it will be more likely to stay on that page, click to follow you, and interact with your content.

Having a well-optimized profile is possible on Instagram. You can set up a plan in advance to make your profile visually appealing by selecting a color scheme or creating a well-written bio to discuss your brand. You can schedule posts to create one big 9-square image on your profile page (it’s a feat, but it looks cool). You may want to use your logo as your profile image, and you may also want to invest in the Blue Check verification to show that this is the official brand page for your business.

Be Consistent with Your Content

The next thing you’ll want to do is be as consistent with your content as possible. Think about your target audience and when they are off work or out of school, for example, and then set up a schedule that works with that in mind. Additionally, think about the kinds of content your preferred audience will want to see.

You should opt for value-added content rather than promotional content, since most people who come to your page don’t want to mainly see ads for your products or services. Instead, take the time to show them why they need your products and services and how your business solves consumers’ problems. When these posts resonate with your audience, you’ll see an uptick in leads, conversions, and engagement.

Engage with Your Customer Base Whenever Possible

Finally, remember that your potential customers want to interact with you. They may leave comments on your content, send you questions they need answered, or just want to verify that you do respond when you get interactions.

Your goal should be to respond to as many direct messages and comments as you can. These are potentially valuable leads, so taking them seriously will help you improve your conversion rates, too.

When people talk about your business, you want them to say your customer service is excellent. Keep that in mind as you develop a way to respond to incoming leads. Some businesses like to automate this process. You can do so with Podium, which integrates with Instagram to help you keep your incoming messages organized in one consolidated inbox. And, with Podium’s AI Employee, you can respond instantly to every lead—without any human oversight.

Gain Leads on Instagram

Getting leads is just a part of the process. Once interactions begin and you have potential leads to explore, turn to Podium to help you manage your incoming messages, respond to potential customers, and convert those leads into active buyers. And, add Podium’s AI Employee to take your response times from “when we have time” to “on time, every time.”

Ready to see how Podium can change your lead-gen process? Watch a demo.