How And Why Should We Use Instagram

As you all know, the famous social media Instagram is a must for hotels in 2014. Social media is a group of Internet-based applications that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). SM enables enterprises to communicate and build relationship with their customers.

Social media is a must these days and many hotels are using it as part of their marketing strategies.

The purpose of this first post is to explain how a hotel should use Instagram for his marketing?

Instagram is the fastest growing social network that allows you to share pictures or videos with a community of followers. According to statistics released this February 2014, there are 150 millions of its active users and 55 millions of pictures are shared everyday. Instagram is a simple way to capture, customize, and share photos and short videos using your smartphone or other mobile device. You can upload pictures and videos to your Instagram profile to share with other Instagram users, or connect your Instagram profile to other social networks, such as Facebook, to share with friends and followers across multiple social platforms.

It is really easy to use Instagram.
Here are eight important techniques on how to use Instagram for hotel social media marketing:

1. Create a great looking profile ' telling who you are, what you do, where they can find you.
   Post relevant photos, and don't forget to expose a more intimate side of your hotel by showing employees and their workplace. Add hashtags, geotags and captions so that other users can view, share, comment and like those pictures.

2. Keep your content fresh and varied
   The same images get boring, so keep a general theme, while still including variation. Occasional random posts are always a great idea.

3. Post original quality photos
   Be critical about what you post, give your pictures a special arty style by adding filters, changing the lighting and adding effects. You can even use other apps to edit and filters your pictures to make them look even better. Keep also some pictures with no filter to show your hotel in his natural habitat.

4. Use hashtags
   Hashtags your pictures with relevant subject headings is a simple way to categorize pictures with keywords and it's easy for Instagrammers to find and follow you. The more popular the tag, the more views and like your post will receive. Also, create your hotel brand specific hashtags so that Instagrammers can tag you in their posts.

5. Share your Instagram pictures on other social media
   Stay active by connecting your Instagram profile with your Facebook hotel page, via your blog, tumblr' Update regularly to other networks to popularize your Instagram, having the same name across different networks make it easier to follower to find you.

6. Engage and follow
   Follow your followers, connect with other hotels and comment or like their posts. You have to show to their followers that you are active.

7. Hold some contests
   Ask the visitors to share their best pictures or videos of the hotel or the surrounding areas. You can offer them reward as a free stay, hotel voucher or event tickets. It is a great way to keep your followers involved and encourage engagement.

8. Track your statistics via Statigram
   With the use of this application, you can monitor your Instagram activity. It will show you different statistics about the most liked picture, the filter usage, the growth charts, the followers, the best time to post your picture' Good way to see how your business grows.
   Whenever you are taking photograph for your venue, whether it's of the room, the garden, the restaurant or a pretty product, you should be considering Instagram.