There are arguably a good number of ways to draw in sales on Instagram. Some business owners prefer a strong post schedule. Some swear that “going live” is the golden ticket. But you will be hard-pressed to persuade a business owner that customer engagement is not an important part of a successful sales cycle.
Specifically, one form of customer engagement that we’d like to focus on is messaging. You may not know it, but messaging is a common and effective customer engagement tool used throughout the world, and those who use it are far ahead of their competitors.
Messaging as a direct channel
The days of holding the phone up to your ear and talking are long past. The preferred form of communication is now mobile messaging. Don’t believe us? Next time you’re out in public, take a look around. You’ll likely see a slew of people with their heads down, focused on their phones. As a business owner, you should be taking advantage of this.
But why use messaging? What sets it apart?
People miss the in-store atmosphere and helpfulness
Back before the days of COVID, 80% of people still were going to physical stores to make purchases. This was strongly due to the convenience of having what they needed in one day, It also gave them the opportunity to see and try a product in person. But it was also due to the human interaction involved.
Think about being on a website and having questions about a product you’re interested in. Without a store associate or a well-written FAQ section, you might be deterred by the lack of helpful information and leave the site. When you buy in-store, this problem is alleviated, since you have a clerk to help guide you through the product specs and purchasing process.
Messaging gives you back this human interaction while maintaining the convenience of online shopping.
It becomes a conversation, not just a “click ’n’ buy”
Enabling messaging through Instagram becomes a conversation for the customer rather than a sales cycle from landing page to checkout. It lets you talk customers through any hiccups and streamline the process. Engaging with your customers directly has several benefits:
- More info helps them buy quicker
- Lower loss of leads when they’re in a conversation
Recoup distracted guests
Have you ever looked at your checkout stats and noticed your bounce rate is through the roof? This isn’t always your fault. Many times guests get distracted by incoming messages, post comments, or emails. The difference between just steering them to your website and engaging them through messaging is, that with messaging, you have the ability to recoup seemingly lost sales.
With ManyChat, it’s easy to have a follow-up message sent to their DMs, which will inevitably pop up right on their home screen and bring them back to the conversation.
ManyChat and Instagram messaging
As a leader in chat automation, ManyChat has bridged the gap between Instagram messaging and business owners. Here are some of the great features ManyChat offers its users:
- Conversation starter: You can set up conversation starters that are great for providing answers to commonly asked questions, like “What’s your shipping policy?”
- Increase product sales: Help customers find the right product through Instagram DMs. Automatically answer product questions, create product quizzes, and send customers to the point of purchase.
- Lead generation: Save time by qualifying leads with automated conversations. Collect and store emails and phone numbers. Jump in where needed and speak with qualified leads in real time.
- Ability to increase engagement: Boost your follower count, comments, and reactions by running messaging-powered campaigns, like giveaways, promotions, and contests. Make it easy for customers to start conversations with you and ensure they get a response.
