Social networks have been huge since the start of the decade. Facebook was the first behemoth that took off. Whatsapp followed, with a huge user base running into the billions.
And then came along Instagram.
While there is a lot of advice on how to market to users using Facebook's brilliant ad platform, many marketers are still to tap into Instagram's highly active community.
And then I came across some stats:
- Instagram has the most sought after user base for brands of all sizes- millennials who fall in the 18-24 age group and earn between 50,000 and 75,000 USD
- Almost half of the users on Instagram also use it for product discovery
- And then the stat that floored me- Instagram has 30 times the engagement rate of Facebook, a much larger organic post reach, all with an advertising platform that is as robust as that of Facebook (if you've forgotten, Facebook owns Instagram)
I was shocked.
But I was convinced- I had to get into Instagram. And I decided to do it for our in-house ecommerce project: Matcha-tea.com
So I created an Instagram account for Matcha tea and set up a process to post curated content regularly.
Well- we began getting likes, comments, and followers, but few clicks to the actual website, and no real traction. So I decided to step out of my comfort zone and study what it took to gain traction on Instagram.
Dozens of blog posts and recommendations later, I came across InstaRise, an Instagram Marketing course by Angelo Lo Presti and Giles Thomas, the founder of AcquireConvert. It looked promising, so I reached out to Giles directly about the course.
The course turned out to be a game changer for me. I now know more than I've ever known about Instagram marketing, and so I thought I'd write a detailed review about InstaRise. And even better- turns out the course is geared towards ecommerce marketers. Giles was kind enough to offer a discount for our readers too. (if you'd like to straight away see the discounted course, go here)
So without further ado, here's my super detailed review of what's inside InstaRise, and how it'll help you up your ecommerce marketing game on Instagram.
InstaRise review: How is the InstaRise course structured?
The entire course is divided into 5 modules and 3 bonus areas:
MODULE 1: Brand Awareness
MODULE 2: Marketing Strategy & Plan
MODULE 3: How To Create Killer Content
MODULE 4: Influencer & Viral Marketing Hacks
MODULE 5: Driving Sales & Instagram Analytics
BONUS 1: Instagram Tool Lessons
BONUS 2: Expert Interviews
BONUS 3: Software Discounts
Also, you can keep track of your personal progress as you complete each module and lesson, without any urgency, so that you can complete the course in your own pace and time.
InstaRise is also available for tablet and mobile devices, so you can use any device you’d like to take the course.
What's inside Module 1?
Module 1 has 5 lessons:
In this module, Giles and Angelo go into how you can and should position your brand on Instagram to be seen among all the noise, and find your target market and ideal customer.
All the lessons have videos where Giles and Angelo explain everything involved.
And the best part: they have worksheets that outline the process with real examples that'll help with what's taught in each lesson.
And for the lesson on how to create good profiles on Instagram, Giles and Angelo also cite some good examples of brands that do it the right way.
What's inside Module 2?
Module 2 has 6 lessons:
In module 2, Giles and Angelo go into how you can create an effective marketing plan that is in line with your ecommerce brand and products.
As just like module 1, they have worksheets to walk you through the processes and tactics they teach in each lesson.
They first teach the theoretical stuff- like what the law of attraction is, and how it helps in crafting a great marketing plan that resonates with your audience. Then they go into how to actually go about doing it in the worksheets. I particularly loved lesson 5 where he talks about a simple way to get more followers on Instagram, and two tools that can help you with it.
What's inside Module 3?
There are 6 lessons inside this module:
Almost all the lessons are about how you can create killer content that stays true to your brand. And they're pretty thorough with it- they talk about the right way to use hashtags, repurpose content well, and how to create engaging videos and images for Instagram.
Lessons 5 and 6 are about how you can leverage Instagram stories and Instagram Live to market your brand and products. I particularly loved Angelo's ideas in lesson 6 about Instagram Live. He talks about the elements that make up a good and engaging video, and shows some pretty good examples of brands that are killing it this way
What's inside Module 4?
Module 4 has four lessons in it.
Instagram is perhaps most well known for the influencer marketing opportunities it offers. Many influencers across a variety of niches monetize their accounts this way.
My favorite lessons in this module were lesson 3 and lesson 4- about how to harness user generated content (the best way to create viral content marketing campaigns) and lesson 4 that goes into how you should be reaching out to influencers.
What's inside Module 5?
Module 5 has 3 lessons in it:
I think module 5 is the most important part of the InstaRise course- where Angelo and Giles explain what we do all this for- actually creating a sales funnel for Instagram. They go into several types of sales funnels you can use, and how we can set up lead magnets to get our visitors and followers to sign up to your list, click on to your store and drive sales.
Instagram analytics was totally new to me, and I learned a bunch of stuff about how to compare the performance of content types and buckets against each other to identify what works best with my audience and maximises ROI. It will take a while until you get enough valid metrics to run such an analysis, but it's invaluable.
And what are the bonuses?
Giles and Angelo also offer 3 bonuses along with the above modules:
The first bonus is lessons to some tools that you can use to market on Instagram-
The second bonus (again, something I really liked) are a few expert interviews with marketers behind some well-known brands. I particularly liked the interview with Ethan from Social Insight- highly recommended!
The third bonus is a few deals that Giles and Angelo have fetched for you, all discounted links to tools that can help you with Instagram and your eCommerce store.
Now, onto what I like most about the course:
- The Worksheets. I can't emphasize more on how important actionable worksheets are. I've bought in some very reputed marketing courses in the past, and although the tutors are very well-known marketers, the training provided is often very high level without actionable insights.
For example, we all know retargeting is great. But when a course on retargeting has worksheets that walk you through each step and explain step-by-step how to do it, it's invaluable.
- The lesson on UGC. User generated content is how the big brands kill it. Almost all the major fashion and sports brands leverage this tactic to increase the reach and exposure for their products. This lesson in module 4 will show you how to get started while on a budget.
- The Analytics lesson. I'm a bit biased with this one because I'm new to Instagram analytics, and now I have a clear cut idea on what type of content works best for my Matcha account's followers- insights I didn't have to date.
What I don't like about the course
- Over-the-shoulder walkthrough videos: Okay, I'm biased with this one too. And it's a personal preference. We'll have to document all the market research done anyway, and this works better with a worksheet, but I prefer having walkthrough videos along with the worksheet. There are, however, a few videos per module.
But no complaints- Giles and Angelo have done a great job with the worksheets and step by step instructions, so it would be nice to increase the number of videos in the future.
Now, onto how much the course costs, and the special deal I brokered for the Ecommerce Platforms blog readers.
InstaRise sells for $249 or $99/month for 3 months, but Giles and Angelo have agreed to offer it for $149 or $59/month for 3 months for our readers. And the membership is lifetime, so you’ll also have access to all the future course updates and new lessons. Instagram is constantly updating their platform, so I expect a lot of updates too.
And of course- it comes with a hassle free refund guarantee, so there’s absolutely no risk in buying.
Get it while it's hot folks:
On another note, I'm finally equipped to set up a good process for my matcha Instagram account, and improve the engagement, reach and following, and hopefully get more people to the site. I'll be posting an update on it in a few months!
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