In October 2018, Instagram rolled out a new feature on the app called Nametag. As Instagram stated, "Nametag is a customizable identification card that allows people to find your Instagram profile when it's scanned. Your nametag is uniquely yours and makes it quick and fun to add people and accounts you discover in person."
The key thing to note here is that people will be following your account by meeting you or your business in-person. This is a great way to be able to gain more followers wherever your business meets with people face-to-face, such as at networking events, conferences, and local presentations; the benefit of meeting you in-person means that people feel like they already know your business before they start following you, which can improve their brand loyalty right from the start.
To set up nametag, go to your Instagram profile and select "Nametag" from the drop-down menu in the top-right corner. You can customize the nametag to make it consistent with the rest of your company's brand by changing the colours and using your logo.
To use nametag to follow other people, Instagram users can enter the camera app on their phone and hover over the nametag (in-person) and hold down as if they were taking a picture, or they can view their own Instagram nametag and tap "Scan a nametag" at the bottom of the screen.
You can use Nametag to incentivize people to follow your business's social media in conjunction with something like a giveaway or a raffle. This works especially well for in-person events, as you can explain to people what the giveaway or raffle is and use Nametag as a quick way for them to follow your business on the spot. You'll likely need to collect some additional information, such as an email, to make sure they're notified if they win, but Nametag makes it easy for people to participate and talk to your business in-person.
For those of you with physical locations where customers can visit you, you can encourage customers to follow you by scanning your Nametag to receive a coupon or discount on their purchase. Because customers can only receive this by visiting the store itself, you not only get the potential to get new people to visit your store but also to convert regular customers into social media followers as well.
Developing business-to-business connections can allow you to cross-promote your social media accounts, and by having a Nametag created for your business, you make it easier for new connections to follow and link to your account. What's great about this is that you see them follow your account when they scan your nametag, so you're not giving a business card away hoping they'll look your business up on Instagram later.
While primarily designed to be shared in-person, you can also share your nametag through text messages and other social platforms, such as Facebook and WhatsApp by pressing the arrow at the top right of the nametag screen. You can also add it to your emails, website, LinkedIn, and other places to make it easy for mobile users to scan and follow your business on Instagram, without them trying to type in your username and getting it wrong.
These are just a few ways that nametag can help you promote your business on social media in ways that are simple and immediate. The convenience affords prospective followers means that some of the focus returns to the positive in-person or face-to-face interactions they have with your business as well as a strong online presence. If you'd like to learn more about how to develop a robust social media strategy or ways that you can make Instagram nametag work for you, please contact us today!