Starting a series of posts giving you tips to increase your shop’s profit even during recessions and times of inflation, the SlabWare team comes up with ideas on a simple, and very popular tool and tips to guide you on the best way to use it: Instagram.
We have already talked about the 7 essential tips for dealing with unhappy customers, and how to make them happy. If you still need to look at it, do it now before continuing with this one: it may prevent you from losing money!
In today’s digital world, Instagram is one of the best places to show off your work. For those in the countertop business and design, where looks matter a lot, Instagram is a top spot to market your work.
Let’s start with the basics: Instagram functionalities.
(if you’re already an Instagram user, you can skip to the second part of this post: – Tips to use each tool as a shop owner to promote your business)
Visual Platform
Instagram is all about visuals, which is perfect for showcasing beautiful countertops. High-quality pictures and videos can show off the details, textures, and colors of your countertops, giving potential customers a clear idea of what you can do.
Tip: Use a good camera or hire a pro to take the best shots of your countertops. Natural light and a clean background will make your countertops pop. Stories, highlights, feed… We’ll talk about them below in this post.
Engagement and Reach
With over a billion users, Instagram gives you a massive audience to tap into. The platform’s algorithm favors posts that get lots of likes and comments, increasing your visibility – besides, you can simply activate your location, and it will even suggest your posts to potential customers in your area.
Tip: Get involved with your audience. Respond to comments, like their posts, and use features like polls and questions in your stories to get people talking. This will help you get noticed more and build a loyal following.
Cohesive Brand Look
Consistency is key on Instagram. A cohesive brand aesthetic—using a specific color palette, high-quality photography, and a recognizable style—can help solidify your brand identity.
A cohesive look is an important step to escalate your production. If you’re curious about other steps you can take to escalate from low to high production, we talked about them in this post.
Tip: Plan your posts in advance to ensure a consistent look and feel. Use editing tools to maintain uniformity in colors and styles across your feed.
And here are tips to use each tool of Instagram as a shop owner
1. Stories:
- Daily Updates: Share behind-the-scenes content of your workshop, installations, or new projects. Show the process of cutting, polishing, and installing countertops.
- Polls and Questions: Use interactive stickers like polls or questions to engage your audience. For example, ask them which countertop material they prefer or what design trend they like the most.
- Client Testimonials: Post short video testimonials from satisfied clients. Real experiences can build trust with potential customers.
- Exclusive Offers: Share time-limited promotions or discounts through stories to create a sense of urgency.
2. Highlights:
- Portfolio: Create highlights for different types of countertops (granite, quartz, marble, etc.) and showcase your best work in each category.
- FAQs: Dedicate a highlight to frequently asked questions about countertop materials, maintenance, and the installation process.
- Customer Reviews: A highlight reel of customer reviews and testimonials to build credibility.
- Services: Outline your services, such as custom design, installation, or repair.
3. Feed:
- High-Quality Images: Post high-resolution images of completed projects, focusing on details like edge profiles, finishes, and unique designs.
- Before & After: Showcase transformation projects with before-and-after photos to demonstrate your craftsmanship.
- Educational Posts: Create content that educates your audience about different materials, care tips, or the latest trends in countertops.
- Project Stories: Tell the story of a project from start to finish, including challenges faced and how they were overcome.
4. Reels:
- Process Videos: Short videos of the fabrication process, from selecting the slab to the final installation.
- Design Tips: Share quick tips on choosing the right countertop material or design.
- Customer Interactions: Post reels of client reactions to their finished countertops.
5. User-Generated Content:
- Client Tags: Encourage your customers to tag your business in their posts after their countertop installation. Repost this content on your own feed.
- Contests and Giveaways: Run contests where followers can share photos of their kitchens or bathrooms for a chance to win a discount or free consultation.
6. Hashtags:
- Local and Niche Hashtags: Use hashtags related to your location and niche (e.g., #CountertopsNYC, #QuartzCountertops, #KitchenRemodel) to reach a targeted audience.
- Branded Hashtags: Create a unique hashtag for your business and encourage customers to use it when posting about your work.
7. Instagram Shop:
- Product Tags: If you offer products like countertop care kits, consider setting up an Instagram Shop and tagging products in relevant posts.
8. Influencer Collaboration:
- Local Influencers: Partner with local interior designers or home improvement influencers to showcase your countertops in their spaces or content. It can work to promote both residential and commercial spaces.
9. Instagram Ads:
- Targeted Ads: Run targeted ads to reach specific demographics interested in home renovations, kitchen remodels, or interior design.
- This is an advanced feature, that can be hard to operate, but it can bring profit to you, or even let your balance positive on a hard month. We strongly recommend you talk to someone who understands how it works and how it can be applied to your shop.
By consistently posting high-quality content, engaging with your audience, and utilizing Instagram’s features effectively, you can create a huge reputation for your shop or stone business.
And where does SlabWare come in?
SlabWare will give you a full-functioning website where you can direct your customers to, using your Instagram posts. On this website, you can sell materials and products directly from your inventory – if you work with one – or enable them to visualize materials in their environment using tools like 3D Visualizer.
Besides that, have you realized how hard it is to keep customers updated with the offers you have for them? With SlabWare, that problem is also over With Mailing tools, you can send offers directly from your stock – or the materials you work with, if you don’t have stock – to groups of customers as you would like.
Simple and easy as that! No complications or complexity, anyone can use it! Click here to get in contact with our team.
Conclusion
Instagram’s visual nature, huge reach, and engagement-driven algorithms make it an ideal platform for countertop marketing. By leveraging high-quality visuals, engaging content, and strategic collaborations, countertop businesses can effectively showcase their work and connect with potential customers. Using Instagram as a marketing tool can lead to increased brand visibility, customer engagement, and sales.
And don’t forget to follow @slabware on Instagram!
