Have you heard of this new thing called Instagram? Of course, you have; along with 1 billion other monthly users of the nearly decade-old social networking app. If you’re not currently using the platform as part of your online promotion regiment, then get ready for a quick course in the basics of booster club Instagram marketing.
For anyone in the early phases of launching a new club, check out Booostr’s how-to on creating an Instagram account. We recommend establishing a Facebook account for your club as well, as the two share many administrative, financial and managerial functions. Once your designated administrator completes the club profile page, they can access Instagram’s settings and mark your account’s business profile to non-profit.
The Power of Booster Club Instagram Marketing
Instagram is one of the most used social networks, in particular by teens and people less than 40 years of age. (Hootsuite/2019) With so many eyes on their phones throughout the day, it’s no surprise that businesses and individuals use Instagram marketing to reach a global audience.
The challenge booster clubs face is how to gain local attention using a worldwide entity. First, focus on raising awareness in your neighborhood, school district or region of your community where your club has influence. The content, images, and stories your club will share don’t necessarily need millions of viewers, so start small and use existing contact lists from events, fundraisers and the body of students to build your Instagram followers. This will take up a good amount of a staffer’s time initially, but once the early round of Instagram users has been researched, making posts and finding others becomes easier and less time-consuming.
Booster Club Instagram Marketing 101: Share Your Stories
There are several ways to use Instagram for booster club online promotions, and some don’t involve spending money. Certainly, there are sponsored ads, but let’s come back to that in a moment. Once the club’s Instagram account is created, an easy way to advertise it is through shared accounts. The chief administrator can name others to an admin level so they can link their personal Instagram account to the club page and share posts and activities between the two. Followers of either can comment and engage, allowing their friends and family access to the club’s page.
This is true with Facebook as well. Because they are tandem networks, users can share stories and build associations across the two. Invite Facebook friends to the Instagram page and ask them to bring a plus-one.
Grow your followers using Instagram’s standout feature – Stories. These are personal messages that appear atop the news feed each day. Stories allow your club the flexibility of posting images and videos to share the triumphs of student and club achievements. After 24 hours, the story is removed so there’s less clutter from out-dated information remaining in the feed. Important posts are easily highlighted to be saved as part of the page or used later for your booster club marketing campaigns.
Be The Herald
Once the page has people to view it, give them what they came to see. Make sure your Instagram marketing posts are honest, with inspiring content about your students. The basics of booster club Instagram marketing isn’t just about getting likes, it’s about giving our youth a chance to shine and have their talents, aspirations and good deeds trumpeted throughout their community.
If you’re not sure what makes a good post, just search and explore Instagram or Facebook for the activities and programs your booster club supports. Topics like high school choir, scholastic art, student-athlete, and elementary education will lead you to posts about them. Look for popular pages, then try to emulate a few and share some eye-catching photos, entertaining videos and motivational stories about your students, club members and the community that supports them.
Prime-time Postings
Ok, now you have an idea about the basics of booster club Instagram marketing and what makes a good post. But understanding when you should post will come with some trial and error. People check their Instagram accounts throughout the day, so there are potential viewers at any given hour. You’ll need to monitor your analytics to see when traffic is best, but an adopted consensus notes early morning, mid-day and late evening as prime intervals for online traffic to take notice of your posts.
To avoid stacking too much content or not creating enough on any given day, schedule postings so they load periodically. The staffing team can compile posts collectively, and send them out when traffic is at its highest. Be sure to go live at booster club marketing events, extracurricular activities, and fundraisers. Again, you can make highlights of key Instagram Story posts to earmark them in your history before they expire.
Advance beyond the basics of booster club Instagram marketing by forming partnerships with other locally active accounts. Devote a little time each season searching and exploring Instagram for clubs, students, influencers and others posting their support for youth activities. Like, follow, share and engage with those that resonate with your club’s message and invite them to follow your page. Each week an admin staffer can look over the number of views your page receives and see the usernames of anyone active within it. By noting the comments, regrams, and engagements made by other users, you’ll have the ability to connect with, follow and direct message them to spread your booster club’s reach.
Low-Cost Promotion
Because Instagram is free to use, clubs of any size can create an account and promote their support without having to spend a lot of money. Pace yourself as you learn the basics of booster club Instagram marketing and use these tips for low-cost advertising. One tried and true technic involves the use of branded hashtags in your posts. Key in on popular ones, like # dancerlife or # trackandfield, then create your own specific to the school mascot, battle cry or event. A word of caution on hashtags- some people tend to go overboard with them, so use them sparingly but purposefully.
Another cost-free booster club marketing technique is to invite your followers to create content. Interest in your Instagram feed will increase when others are active with it and their fans and followers will find your account more quickly too. Ask your fans to share what moves them or make a contest of it – best buzzer-beater video – and be sure to regram their posts in your Story upload to reach followers in their networks.
A few other ideas for cost-effective booster club online promotions include mentioning your Instagram account in the regular club emails and newsletters sent to subscribers. Then promote the Instagram account when the local press writes a story involving your club, the school or individual students. Account managers can share the booster club’s Instagram nametag with their smartphones so new followers can scan it and follow the page. Place the Instagram icon as a link on the club’s webpage. And don’t forget to set-up a link to Instagram on the club’s other social media accounts, like Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube.
Promotion on a Budget
To maximize the impact of the booster club’s Instagram page, consider sponsoring paid ads with part of the group’s promotional budget. Ads run similar to Facebook in that you determine the spend amount and time-frame for how long you want a particular ad to run. Payment can be made directly from the Instagram account or via Facebook’s business tools.
Your desired ads can mirror each other between the two networks, but it’s often better to make each pitch specific to its platform. Keep Instagram promotions simple but striking. Get the attention of your target audience earnestly by tailoring content to what’s important to them, like a headshot of a swimmer with their medals or a brief video of the marching band at a competition.
There are several options for creating sponsored ads that utilize the basics of booster club Instagram marketing principals, so familiarize yourself with each and get plenty of input from the creative-types in your club. Remember to evaluate ad performance often, and adjust accordingly so you can fund popular posts and not overspend on those that don’t perform well as part of your online marketing portfolio.
Understanding the basics of booster club Instagram marketing can be a fun and rewarding process. Using the social media platform to promote student activities and awareness of your club takes an involved and dedicated staff. The number of Instagram users grows daily, so keep your initial involvement local and grow engagement organically. Share compelling stories across individual and club accounts with captivating photos, amusing videos and emotional tales of student endeavors. Explore other user accounts and unite for the common good by sharing content.
and be sure to make use of your other social media accounts, websites and emails as an Instagram marketing tool and monitor your ad spending for its effectiveness. With time and patience, your booster club’s Instagram experience will be a beneficial and enjoyable one.
