If you want to use Instagram to promote your business, you need to switch to a business account on Instagram.
When Instagram first launched, all user profiles were personal by default. But in 2016, the platform introduced the Instagram Business profile.
For content marketers, this is a game changer and something that separates businesses from individuals who use the platform for fun and entertainment.
A business account lets you dig into the audience’s insight, analyze engagement, and see detailed marketing performance.
For marketers, the advantage of the Instagram business account has been positive.
In this post, you’re going to learn the following:
- The key difference between personal and business accounts
- Types of Instagram Accounts
- Benefits of an Instagram business account
- How to switch between personal and business accounts
- And more
Let’s get started…
What is Instagram Business Account?
Instagram Business accounts give you access to more marketing and analytics features. It lets you schedule posts, run ad campaigns (just like with Facebook ads), analyze audience engagements, and more.
It also allows businesses to add more relevant info to their profile, such as contact details, addresses, etc.
Difference between Personal and Business Accounts
Both look the same, but some features set them apart.
You can post content and view other people’s profiles with a personal profile.
Also, you can choose to set your profile as private, meaning only your followers can see your content.
With a business profile, anyone on Instagram can discover your content. This is a big boost if you use Instagram to reach more people with your content.
A business profile also gives you access to two important marketing features, lead generation and audience insight.
Plus, it provides more input fields for profile settings.
Instagram business profile saves you hours managing your Account and followers. You can automate and schedule your account posting from third-party tools such as Tailwind.
With a personal or basic profile, you don’t have access to such automation features. Also, you can’t run ads with a personal profile on Instagram.
Benefits of Instagram Business Accounts
Furthermore, there are several benefits of an Instagram business account for marketers worth mentioning.
Here are six advantages of Instagram business accounts for brands and content marketers
Analytics and Insight
One of the obvious benefits of the business account is the ability to see more about your account activity, followers, and content performance.
It gives you access to Instagram-native built-in analytics tools.
Though not as comprehensive as you might expect, still a good tool to give an overview of your marketing activities.
Boost Post
Now you can create ads from your Instagram page to promote your product or brand.
This is an advantage for marketers to reach more target audiences and followers, generate leads, and increase revenue.
Instagram paid ads can help brands and marketers quickly reach the 10,000 followers barrier.
And get access to more marketing features that only accounts with 10k followers and more can enjoy.
Schedule and Auto Publish
Time is important, especially for online marketers with many tasks to manage.
The ability to compose, schedule, and auto-published your Instagram post can save you lots of time.
Auto-published from third-party tools like Tailwind is only possible with a business account. And who doesn’t want to save time in marketing?
Add links to Instagram Stories.
Previously, adding links in Instagram stories was only possible for verified accounts, but now, business profiles can access the feature, too.
This is a positive feature for publishers and marketers to drive more traffic to their landing pages and websites.
While any account can have 10k followers and more, access to Instagram swipe-up link feature is only possible for a business account.
Tag Products and Services
Another great benefit of a business or professional Account is the ability to turn your Instagram feed into a mobile storefront.
You can tag products or set up shoppable posts, a helpful feature for eCommerce websites.
With an Instagram business account, you can activate the shop tab to sell your product and service.
Add Contact Info
When you switch to a business account on Instagram, more tabs are enabled on your profile page.
The contact tab allows you to add contact details to reach your professional helpline. This is a helpful feature for businesses that want customers to contact them for inquiries.
You can add mobile, WhatsApp, and email addresses and set them to display or hide. There is an option to allow calls directly from Instagram, just like you do with WhatsApp.
Schedule Post from Creator Studio
You can cross-publish content to Instagram from your Facebook creator studio dashboard. You don’t need to open the Instagram app to do this.
This is a great future to keep both audiences engaged, consistent, and timely posting.
3 Types of Instagram Accounts
Instagram has three types of accounts set up for different individual or business needs. And technically, you can switch to any of these accounts to see which works best for you.
Let’s explore all the account types…
Personal
If you use Instagram to inspire and keep up with family, friends, and followers, a personal profile is all you need.
You can post, share your favorite video content, and follow people on the platform. But you don’t have access to advertising and analytics tools.
For many people on the platform, a personal account is sufficient.
Business
This is ideal for marketers and brands that leverage social media to build their business and readership.
There are more marketing and audience insight tools in the business account.
You can also access advertising and analytics tools to understand your audience and expand your reach.
For e-commerce websites, business or professional accounts allow you to sell more goods and services on the platform. You can tag products, set up shoppable posts, and more.
Creator
This is an extension of the business account.
A creator account is a good option if you use Instagram as an influencer to collaborate with brands/marketers for business deals.
There are lots of this type of Account on Instagram.
You can easily tell when you see a creator or influencer account. Mostly, such accounts have thousands to a few million followers.
Sometimes, you see brand products being advertised or mentioned in a post or video by the influencer.
That’s part of the deal.
How to Switch to Business Account
Now that we’ve walked through the benefits and the types of account profiles you can set up, let’s see how you can switch to a business account on Instagram.
Step 1. Open The Setting Page
Open the Instagram app on your phone and go to your account profile page. Tap on the hamburger menu at the top right corner; it will open the setting page.
Click on Setting from the available menu, and next, tap Account from the list.
Step 2. Select Switch to Professional Account
Now that you’re on the account setting page, scroll down and click on the blue link that says “Switch to professional account“.
Step 3. Choose Business Account
You’ll be asked to choose between a business or a creator account. Your best option here is the business profile.
Instagram creator account is best for public figures, celebrities, influencers, etc. If you’re not anyone of those, choose business.
A business, marketer, or brand is not a celebrity or public figure like Micheal Jackson, Joe Biden, Mike Tyson, and co…I hope you get the difference.
Nike is a brand, Coca-Cola is a brand, Neil Patel is a marketer, Rand Fishkin is a marketer and the like.
The available tools in a creator account are slightly different or more than in a business account.
While creators can access almost every feature in the business, the Account is specifically created to cater to an influencer’s or public figure’s needs.
Step 4. Connect to a Facebook Page
The next step in switching to a business account on Instagram is to connect to your Facebook page.
Bear in mind that you must have admin access to complete this step. If you don’t have admin access to the Facebook business page, you’d better do that first.
Follow this instruction to request admin access to a page you’re not the owner of. In case you’re connecting to a client’s Facebook business page.
Your business account is ready to go once you confirm the page you want to connect to and validate admin access.
Can You Switch Back to a Personal Account?
Sure, you can switch between personal and professional accounts at will.
Also, you can switch between professional and creator accounts to test what works best for you. This assumes you have more than 10k followers to fully explore all features and benefits.
The steps to revert to a personal account are the same as the ones you take when switching to a business account.
The only exception is that this time, the blue link will be replaced with two options – Switch to personal and Switch to Creator.
So, to revert to any previous Instagram account, follow the steps described in this post.
When you reach the last step, choose the option that fits your needs and engage with your followers.
Conclusion…Switch to a Business Account on Instagram
Instagram is one of the most visited social media platforms and is well-used by notable societal figures.
Having a profile that showcases your brand identity and lets you explore marketing features to increase growth is vital.
If you want to switch to a business account on Instagram, this article details all the processes and step guides.
