Instagram is renowned as a place for creativity, community and culture. And as these forward-thinking brands show, that powerful combination can solve a range of marketing puzzles and deliver spectacular results.
Instagram offers an array of creative tools for the results-driven marketer that few other platforms can match.
From Stories to Reels, Instagram Live to augmented reality, and content collaborations with influencers, brands can interact with their community – and attract new fans – in many inventive ways.
With so many options to innovate, marketers can inspire campaigns that get their brand noticed and deliver strong business results.
The following case studies are just two examples of brands that have turned to Instagram to supercharge their results.
Nestlé KITKAT
The pandemic has thrown up many challenges for the physical retail sector, lockdowns chief among them.
Streets emptied, stores closed and cash tills went quiet. In 2020, the effects were felt especially over the commercially-critical Christmas period.
While some brands brought the shutters down and waited for the storm to pass, others sought innovative solutions. And for Nestlé Australia, that meant leaning into Instagram.
In the run-up to Christmas, Nestlé traditionally opens its KITKAT Chocolatories – physical stores where shoppers can explore the KITKAT world.
But with the pandemic forcing people to stay indoors, Nestlé marketers sought creative solutions. If people couldn’t visit the chocolatories, perhaps Nestlé, Facebook and Instagram could take the chocolatories to the people?
And by utilising Facebook Live and Instagram, they did just that.
The vision was brought to life through a real-time festive event, ‘Live from the KITKAT Chocolatory’. This experience featured a host of creators engaging with the Nestlé community and gave consumers a virtual tour of the KITKAT Chocolatories.
To generate awareness and to build anticipation, Nestlé teamed up with creators and tagged in creative tools including Instagram Stories and polling ads.
And to illustrate Instagram’s creative possibilities, viewers also became part of history – by creating the first-ever crowd-sourced KITKAT using Instagram polling. Consumers could be sent the finished product they’d helped design simply by leaving a comment.
And to further drive sales, Nestlé ran product ads and special offers that enticed consumers to visit its virtual shops on Facebook and Instagram.
The imaginative campaign – from event creation through to purchase – led to some sweet results. Onlines sales lifted three times and there was a 35 percentage point rise in ad recall and a 6.7 point lift in awareness1.
Sweat
Aussie fitness innovator Sweat was another brand that successfully tapped into Instagram’s marketing tools to inspire consumers and lift engagement.
Formerly known as Bikini Body Guide (BBG), Sweat achieved its goals by enlisting the help of its Instagram community in launching a new program, BBG Zero.
The fitness brand kicked off its mission to drive app downloads by encouraging fans to share uplifting stories about BBG and how it had transformed their lives.
Heartfelt and passionate content from six Sweat fans from around the globe featured in an Instagram Video docuseries – a first for Sweat. This prompted conversations with its wider community through Live Chat sessions with Sweat founder and influencer Kayla Itsines.
To broaden the audience reach, Sweat used snippets of the highest-performing docuseries content as paid advertising in Instagram Stories and Feed.
Additionally, it collaborated with sticker artist @badassfemme to interpret member posts and create a Stories sticker pack. Armed with this creative gold dust, more people began to post and the Sweat message spread.
Sweat’s approach, shall we say, worked out. The brand reported a 91 per cent increase in link clicks, a 12 per cent decline in cost per install and a 31 per cent lift in trial-to-paying rate2.
Great ideas and game-changing results
For marketers, Instagram is not only a platform for showcasing memorable creative and driving consumer engagement, but one that solves business challenges too.
By harnessing its helpful tools, Instagram campaigns can provide your business with positive results and ultimately strengthen your brand.
To learn more about how Instagram can power your marketing, check out the brand new how-to guide.
Sources:
- Facebook Brand Lift Study (Dec 2020), compared to the Facebook CPG industry average, Facebook Brand Lift Study (Dec 2020).
- Facebook SWEAT Case Study, 2020.
