New Instagram feature to help brands

According to Social Media Today, there are some new features coming including analytics tools and ways to buy ads via mobile.

The next logical step for Instagram was to make profiles for brands - which is exactly what they've done. Coming to a newsfeed near you soon, Instagram is rolling out an update to business profiles that allow users to contact the brand. The profile information has always been a bother for Instagram, as it's difficult to find a linkable URL or address for a brand with the character limit.

With the latest update there's a contact option that brings up a separate menu where users can either contact, get directions or email the brand, making it easier to interact and find information.

There is no doubt a sigh of relief from advertisers and brands as Instagram is one of the fastest growing social media platforms behind Snapchat. The user base has grown from 200 million in 2014 to over 400 million now. With over 80 million photos shared a day, Instagram is becoming an essential social media marketing tool for brands.

Instagram is an avenue that's being overlooked. Especially here in South Africa, the app is a great way to relate and interact with millennials who take to the app more than Snapchat, which is popular amongst Generation Z. The algorithm that dismisses the chronological feed is a push towards making advertisers happy, and will set the top images to those which users have interacted with - or paid for...

This strategy is resonant of Facebook (which owns Instagram), which has made it consistently more difficult for brands to reach an organic audience. Of course, Instagram needs to monetise somehow, so business profiles will likely bring in more advertisers. It's now just a matter of time to see how brands take to the Instagram algorithms and unleash some impressive Instagram campaigns.

The business profile update hasn't been implemented yet and is still being tested among user groups.