In the digital era, social media platforms have become arguably the most powerful tool for marketers. With billions of users spread across the globe, marketers now have easy access to a large audience.

In recent years, Instagram has emerged as one of the top marketing tools. It is now ranked second for the most downloaded free app on the Apple app store. On Google, it is now among the top ten search queries. Instagram monthly users have risen to 1 billion globally, a level of demand that is very enticing to marketers.

Before you can draw marketing value from this platform, you must first understand key usage statistics for Instagram. Don’t forget to check out the 2020 Facebook statistics as well!

1. US Instagram Users Will Reach 117 Million in 2020

According to an emarketer report, Instagram user statistics have been changing in recent years. In 2019, there were 106.7 million Instagram users in the US. By the end of 2020 and 2021, this figure will rise to 112.5 million and 117.2 million. This growth trend is projected to continue as it is expected that the platform will have 125.6 million users by 2023.

Considering the present opportunities Instagram already presents, such growth indicates that it will have a bigger role to play in digital marketing in the future.

2. ⅔ of Individuals Ages 18-29 Use Instagram

Even with one billion users, your marketing efforts will be ineffective if your ideal target market does not use the social media channel. This is why it is crucial to have key demographic insights. Instagram is more popular among the younger generations, which means that marketers must have a presence here to reach this large market segment. Here’s a breakdown of the percentage of each age group that uses Instagram in the US:

75% of people aged 18-24
57% of people aged 25-29
47% of people aged 30-49

For the age groups of 50-64 and 65+, only 23% and 8% use the platform, respectively. Also, it is important to note that the gender mix is slightly skewed towards women. Of all Instagram users, 52% are female.

3. 200+ Million Users Visit a Business Profile at Least Once Daily

As the number of active users increases, so does the number of businesses on Instagram. At present, there are over 25 million business profiles on Instagram and 2 million monthly advertisers. More than 200 million users visit a business profile at least once daily.

Here are some additional stats on Instagram for business that paint a picture of the marketing landscape:

Over 200 million Instagram users visit one or more business profiles each day
Instagram is a crucial tool for product discovery among 70% of shopping enthusiasts
1/3 of the Instagram stories with the most views are posted on business profiles
69% of US marketers plan to dedicate the largest portion of their influencer budget to Instagram

4. 130 Million People Tap on Instagram Shopping Posts Each Month

Ultimately, the goal of marketing is not just to reach many people but to generate sales from your audience. Though shoppable posts are still new on the platform, they attract a lot of traffic. Each month, there are 130 million accounts that tap on shopping posts. With the new checkout feature, your customers can purchase without leaving the Instagram app.

To capitalize on this feature, make sure your storefront is attractive and immersive for users to explore products comfortably.

5. 375 Million Monthly Instagram Direct Message Users

One of the biggest challenges for marketers is connecting with their audience. Instagram has a direct message feature that allows businesses to communicate directly with individual users and there are over 375 million people that use Instagram Direct Message.

75% of consumers also prefer to engage with brands using private messaging channels vs traditional channels. Yet, one out of three people finds it difficult to remember where to find a certain conversation thread.

Facebook has already integrated Instagram Direct and Facebook Messenger, and is working to integrate WhatsApp into one streamlined messaging experience that can be accessed from all three apps as well.

When it comes to messaging platforms, Instagram Direct message is only behind Facebook messenger as the most used and is tied in second place with Snapchat.

6. 79% of Users Search Instagram for Product Information

Shopping through Instagram is continuing to grow, with 79% of users using the platform to find product or service information for brands. Users trust the platform to provide valuable product information and feedback.

It is essential that brands are available on Instagram to answer questions and provide product recommendations. Leveraging DM automation through Spectrm will ensure that you are reaching every customer, every time.

7. Brand Engagement is 10x Higher on Instagram than Facebook

Though it came after Facebook, Instagram is proving to possibly be an even more important channel for brands to reach their target audience. A study concluded that brands see engagement rates 10x higher on Instagram than they do on Facebook.

With these levels of engagement, brands can have multiple opportunities to connect with customers every day, though posts, stories and DMs.

8. Median Engagement Rate on Instagram is 1.6%

With social media platforms, marketers gain access to hundreds of millions of users each day. However, the most important thing is the level of engagement your brand gets. It is from this that you will get leads that translate to sales.

When it comes to Instagram posts, expect an average engagement level of 1.6%. As little as it may seem, this is actually a significant level of engagement. Compared to Facebook and Twitter, it is 17× and 33× higher, respectively. And, you can expect 38% more likes on posts that include faces.

However, due to fluctuating user activity levels across the day, it is best to time your posts during times with the highest activity level for your target audience. In general, the best time to post on Instagram is on Wednesday at 11 am or Friday between 10 am and 11 am.

It is important to note that posting many times on Instagram does not directly translate to higher engagement. Therefore, your focus should be on creating high-quality content.

Instagram Marketing Trends

If there’s one quality that sets a top-notch digital marketer from the rest, it’s the ability to pick up or set new marketing trends. Instagram marketing is continuously evolving. One trend, the growth of Instagram Messaging, is expected to shape Instagram marketing in the coming years.

DM Automation on Instagram

Consumer demand for messaging businesses is growing fast, accelerated by e-commerce growth due to COVID-19. In the first half of 2020, online spending in the US grew by 30.1% to reach $347.26 billion. The adoption of e-commerce increased from previously infrequent online shoppers by 160%. With 75% of consumers now preferring to engage brands in private messaging channels vs traditional channels, conversational marketing platforms, like Spectrm, are seeing rapid adoption by consumer brands.

For every business, social media marketing aims to gain a wide audience. However, as this audience grows, handling individual queries becomes a marketing and customer support nightmare. This is why businesses are turning to Spectrm to automate their DMs on Instagram.

How to Capitalize on Instagram Messaging for your Marketing

Undoubtedly, automating your Instagram messaging should be part of your Instagram marketing strategy.

Spectrm’s Instagram Messaging Solutions help marketers identify and convert pre-purchase messages automatically on Instagram, respond to FAQs, and hand over customer service requests to live support agents in the app. The launch follows Facebook’s release of cross-app messaging for Instagram and Messenger, which means businesses can now reach 2.3 billion customers via the Messenger API by using Spectrm. It’s a step towards unifying the architecture of Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp that Zuckerberg announced in 2019.

“We are thrilled that Spectrm is launching Instagram Messaging Solutions. Businesses and people are messaging with each other more than ever, and Instagram is an important channel to connect with customers and build relationships,” said Konstantinos Papamiltiadis, VP of Platform Partnerships at Messenger. “Messenger API support for Instagram means businesses and developers can now handle more complex person-to-business messaging at scale.”

Why Automate Your Instagram Messaging?

Your customers want to connect 1:1 on Instagram. Identify and convert pre-purchase messages automatically. Don’t ghost a valuable relationship or risk giving them a poor brand experience.

Instagram Messaging automation enables you to engage your audience on the channel they already trust. Declutter your inbox, reduce time to response and increase customer satisfaction.

You can instantly respond to customers and turn every message you receive on Instagram from a service pain to a marketing gain. On average, 70% of incoming messages on social media are pre-purchase. Reduce the manual effort of replying and give customers what they want, when they want it. If they need to speak to a live agent, you can collect relevant details before transferring the chat to support teams.

“We’re excited to add Instagram to the growing list of messaging channels our conversational marketing platform integrates with,” said Max Koziolek, CEO at Spectrm. “Private messaging is the most popular form of social communication today. It’s increasingly how people want to engage with brands. Messaging offers customers the personalized and instant connection to brands they want. For brands, it enables marketers to identify preferences and tailor buyer journeys at scale in real-time. The result? Better customer experiences that generate more revenue and build stronger long term customer relationships. Making it easier for people and brands to connect with Instagram messaging is a big step for the industry.”

Reach out to us to learn how spectrm will help you with Instagram DM automation.

Awareness content to reach marketing directors and other top personas who may be wondering if Instagram is a valuable marketing channel and may not know about Instagram Direct and the new launch of chatbots for DM marketing automation on Instagram. This article should focus on real data, while tieing Spectrm in as the number one choice for Instagram Direct automation. This is a new service that Instagram is rolling out.