Social media has taken over our everyday lives and with that comes social media marketing where companies ranging from small to large are all competing on social networks for your attention/business. And when it comes to marketing on Instagram does it really work?

The simple answer is yes: If you create a strategic Instagram marketing campaign that jives with the interests/needs of your target markets and use social media for its intended purpose – to be social – Instagram marketing will work for you.

On the other hand, if you take the “set it and forget it” approach where all of the effort is put into creating content then posting and hoping things will pop off… well… they’re not going. And that’s where horror stories come up and people doubt the power of Instagram marketing, though their opinions are many times based on their own failures.

When done right, Instagram is a very powerful marketing tool for all businesses (airlines, hotels, restaurants, etc.) but you gotta be social. Show your customers/followers that you care by engaging their content, say congrats when a longtime customer has a baby, and other little things.

Nightmares occur in the social media marketing space when companies operate with blinders and therefore can’t see things coming out of nowhere. On the flip side, when you open your eyes and realize the true potential of platforms like Instagram it’s a game changer.