Join me as I chat today with my special guest, Jillian O’Keefe, New York based Instagram Strategist, to find out how she is helping her clients grow an engaged and loyal following.  She breaks down how you can use her method to build engagement for your Aesthetic Practice and convert your followers to patients.

With 5 billion people logging in each and every day, Instagram is growing faster than any other social media platform.  Your ideal patients are guaranteed to be among them, which explains why you want to be involved.  It is worth your time to create consistent content for Instagram.

If you’ve been on Instagram for a year or more you are likely familiar with the accounts full of bright, beautiful, stock photos.  You may also have noticed a recent shift to sometimes imperfect photos and more thoughtful captions.  This is because people want to connect, and if you want to connect with your ideal patients you need to get real.

Posts with the most engagement are the first to be seen in the feed, so try to think about the ways you engage during in-person exchanges and translate that to social media.  You have the opportunity to start a conversation with your ideal patients.  Be personal.  Invite interaction.  Leave boring at the door.

Instagram is not just about posting content. You can and should use hashtags and locations to go find your ideal patients and engage with them on their feeds.  You want to connect with followers in your area, who share interests with your ideal patients.  Don’t know who your ideal patients are?  That’s ok!  Go listen to The #1 Key To Successfully Marketing Your Aesthetic Practice and complete your FREE Ideal Patient Avatar Worksheet.  Then jump down to links below to watch Jillian’s screencast on how to search for relevant locations and hashtags. 

When utilizing hashtags on your own posts there are a few things to keep in mind:

• The number of photos tied to the hashtag determines how efficiently your photo will rank. Use smaller hashtags so you don’t get lost.  You want to keep it relevant but limit competition.
• The limit is 30 hashtags for post. There’s no one perfect number of hashtags to use for the best results.  Play around with it to see what works for your practice.  Just don’t use the same ones every time; it looks spammy.
• There are banned hashtags. Scroll down to the links for a handy list.
• You can add hashtags to the bottom of the caption or as a comment. There is no right way and it doesn’t affect the algorithm.  It is completely your preference.

One of the biggest questions is “How often should I post?”  When it comes to your feed, 2-3   posts per week has proven to be the sweet spot.  What’s even better is that it’s a really doable number!  You absolutely also want to incorporate Instagram stories at the rate of about 2-3 per day.  That may seem like a large undertaking but when it comes to stories it’s perfectly fine (and even preferable) to be imperfect.  Use testimonials, a simple procedure, a featured product or sale, and anything behind the scenes to spark interest.

When it comes to tools, Jillian recommends keeping it simple.  Later is a scheduling app you can use from your phone or desktop.  And there’s no need to invest in an analytics tool because Instagram’s in-app reporting is pretty robust.  Just make sure your account is a business account to access this data.

Bottom Line: Don’t be afraid to break the mold. Avoid being overly professional as you will come off cold.  If you are fun or goofy, show it.  Connection builds trust and your ideal patients want to see your personality before investing in your practice.

What you will learn:

• Why you should be on Instagram
• What type of content is working in 2019
• How to use hashtags and locations to find ideal patients
• How to use hashtags to get more exposure for your posts
• How often you should be posting to Instagram
• How to use Instagram stories
• Jillian’s #1 tip for creating engaging content on Instagram
• Recommended tools for scheduling posts and reviewing your analytics

 Links:

Jillian’s ‘Using location to connect with other patients‘ screencast
Jillian’s ‘Using hashtags to connect with other patients‘ screencast
Jillian’s ‘How to Find Hashtags for Your aesthetics practice‘ screencast
Banned Hashtags
Heather’s Instagram
Jillian’s Instagram
Jillian’s website