7 Steps to Host an Instagram Takeover Perfectly
Wondering the best way to host an Instagram takeover? Here is our step-by-step on how to do the perfect Instagram takeover for your next campaign.
Posted 1 month ago
Written by
Mackenzie TaylorPosted 1 month ago
Influencer marketing on Instagram is popular now. Just look at the stats.
A staggering 72% of marketers say they work with influencers and creators on the platform to achieve their business goals. Why wouldn’t they? For every $1 spent on influencer campaigns, you can get $4.12.
Plus, 30% of marketers say they get the biggest ROI for influencer marketing on Instagram.
Want to jump on the Instagram influencer marketing bandwagon? You could ask an influencer to promote your products on their accounts. But why not try something a little different and host an Instagram takeover instead? Hosting a social media takeover can make your own profile stand out with fresh content ideas and new faces.
Keep reading to find out all about this social media marketing tactic. We’re also sharing seven steps to do it the right way.
What is an Instagram takeover?
An Instagram takeover is when you hand over your Instagram keys to someone else for a specific time. This could be a day or a week. Essentially, you let the guest, usually an influencer, run your social media accounts.
For that period of time, the influencer can share Instagram stories, posts, or live videos, giving these content pieces their unique twist.
Why do an Instagram takeover?
An Instagram takeover is a way of giving your target audience something new to look at. The guest can create a buzz around your brand, help you build stronger connections, and inject a fresh perspective into your feed.
For both the Instagram profile’s owner and the guest, it’s a smart marketing strategy. The real owner gets engaging content without breaking a sweat. When someone new takes the helm, their unique style and perspective can also reinvigorate their audience’s interest. For the guests, they get to tap into the real social platform owner’s audience.
This type of collaboration can also lay the foundation for future partnerships. It’s networking done the Instagram way—fun and impactful.
7 Steps to host a successful Instagram takeover
Before you hand over your Instagram account, it’s important to have a plan. Here are seven key steps to host a successful Instagram takeover.
1. Establish takeover goals and KPIs
The first step is to ask yourself, “What do I want to achieve with this takeover?” Are you aiming to increase your follower count, boost engagement rates, or drive traffic to your website? Maybe you’re looking to showcase a new product or service. Whatever it is, your goal should be clear.
Then you need to choose your Key Performance Indicators. These are your checkpoints along the way. If your goal is to increase brand awareness, your KPIs might include the number of new followers and the reach of your posts. For engagement, look at likes, comments, shares, and story views. And if sales are your aim, track website clicks and conversions.
When setting your targets it’s good to dream big but stay grounded. If your account averages 50 new followers a week, aiming for 5,000 from a single takeover might be a stretch. Set achievable targets.
Make sure your chosen guest host knows what you’re aiming for (we’ll talk more about how to choose them later). This way, they can tailor their content to help hit those targets.
2. Decide on your target audience and know them
Knowing whom you’re talking to is key in any conversation, right? The same goes for your Instagram takeover. Deciding on your target audience from the get-go ensures your guest’s content resonates and engages.
Your target audience should depend on your Instagram takeover goals.
Do you plan to merely engage your already-existing social media audience? Then your Instagram takeover target audience should be your existing social media audience. It’s only a matter of getting to know them.
Using social media analytics tools, understand who currently follows your Instagram accounts. Take a look at who engaged with your Instagram content as well. If you buy Instagram likes from a reputable company, then consider these likes, too, in your accounting. After all, the people who gave you these likes are real, active people as well.
Based on your analytics data, determine if the people who follow you and interact with your Instagram content are fitness enthusiasts, fashion lovers, or foodies. What are their demographics and other preferences? You can also send them surveys to get to know them better.
But if you plan to expand your product market to a different sector, then this new target market should be your Instagram takeover audience. For instance, if you’re currently selling shoes to boomers but want to sell to a younger market as well, then a good target audience for your Instagram takeover campaign would be GenZers.
You should actively look for people with these characteristics to understand them. Then, as with the other option, send them surveys about their preferences and interests.
3. Choose a takeover host
Selecting the right host sets the stage for a successful takeover. So, how do you spot your star? That would depend on the target audience you chose for your Instagram takeover. The takeover host you choose should have the same audience as the target audience you select for your campaign.
For instance, because Weight Watchers wants to engage fitness enthusiasts, it frequently allows one of its members–also fitness buffs with a social media audience composed of fitness enthusiasts—to run their Instagram for a day.
For a brand like Vita Coco that caters to health buffs, it also makes sense to employ a healthy food enthusiast–with an audience of health buffs as well—for a takeover (note that the two next screenshots don’t show Instagram takeover campaigns. They’re just to give you an idea of the types of audience these specific personalities cater to that make them perfect to take over the Insta account of the brand mentioned):
What if you’re targeting a new market? If you want to also sell shoes to Gen Zers, then an Instagram fashion influencer who caters to that demographic like Emma Chamberlain is your best bet:
But it’s not enough to consider whether or not a potential guest’s audience aligns with your target audience. Consider, too, whether that person complements your brand’s personality and values. If you’re a fun brand, you’ll want someone just as fun who creates witty posts. If you’re more of an authoritative brand, then an influencer who creates in-depth posts should be who you’re looking for.
Check out their number of followers as well. A host with a million followers sounds great, but not if those followers aren’t engaged. A smaller, more interactive audience can be much more valuable. In the social media world, it’s quality over quantity.
Although takeovers are usually done by influencers, sometimes, the best person for the job is already part of your crew. Employees, loyal customers, or community members can make fantastic hosts, bringing authenticity and a genuine love for your brand to the table.
Once you’ve found your ideal host, it’s time to pitch your takeover idea. You can use an email finder to look for your chosen host’s email address. In your email, be clear about what you admire in their work, how you see this collaboration benefiting both parties, and what you envision for the takeover. Before you hit that Send button, it’s also crucial to verify their email addresses. This way, you ensure your messages reach your intended recipient.
4. Select a type of takeover
There are many types of takeover. To choose the right one for you, consider your goals, audience, and the strengths of your host. Here are some suggestions:
- Instagram Posts takeover: Allow your guest to publish Instagram posts–images, quotes, for example—that align with your brand values and personality.
- Instagram Stories takeover: Why not give your audience a VIP pass to your guest’s life or your brand’s behind-the-scenes through Instagram Stories? Stories are engaging and build a stronger, more personal connection with the audience.
- Instagram Live Video takeover: You can allow your guest to take over your live videos so they can interact with your target audience in real-time. You can ask your guest to host a Q&A session either as the interviewer or the interviewee, for example.
Whichever type of takeover you choose, align it with a specific theme, special event, or cause your brand supports. It’s a way to keep the content focused and relevant.
You’ll also need to discuss with the takeover host the types of content your target audience loves (and doesn’t) to make sure the guest content hits the right note. Set clear rules about what’s okay to post and what’s not. Discuss takeover hashtags and any mentions that should be included. To be safe, put all these expectations in writing.
But don’t just focus on this guest content. You’ll also have to ensure the pages your target audience “lands” on after clicking on your guest’s posts also showcase content that caters to their interests. Creating landing page content that aligns with your target audience is pretty easy. You can just use Flick’s AI assistant. With a few clicks, it can help optimize your landing page content for better engagement and reach, and ensure your message hits the mark every time.
How about those landing pages? They’re pretty easy to design, too, with the many tools available. A popular landing page builder, for instance, is Clickfunnels. But if you find that expensive, there are ClickFunnels alternatives you can use.
5. Set permissions to your account
Giving someone else access to your Instagram may seem scary. But don’t worry, there are ways to keep things safe and secure.
Before the takeover, change your account password to something temporary. Once the takeover is over, you can just switch it back. This way, your main password remains your secret.
Another option is to give your host access to tools they can use to create and publish content without necessarily giving them full access to your Instagram account. The Flick social media scheduling tool is a great example. With its new Teams feature, you can just invite your guest as a member of your workspace without giving them your password. Then just limit what they can do on your workspace.
Once the campaign is finished, you can just as easily remove them from your workspace.
6. Promote the takeover
Promotion is key to making sure your brand takeover doesn’t end up like a surprise party where nobody shows up. You need to make some noise!
Start the buzz early. Create a unique hashtag to use in all promotional content.
Speaking of promotional content, you can leverage your IG stories (see example below) and even other social media platforms for this.
You can create a sense of anticipation with a countdown as well.
Also, have your host promote the takeover on their channels. If you do this, their followers will likely follow your account for the takeover event. Also, mention each other in posts leading up to the takeover. It helps spread the word far and wide.
Promoting your Instagram takeover effectively ensures that when the day comes, you’ve got an audience ready and waiting, excited to see what you’ve got in store.
7. Launch and measure the result
The big day has arrived! Here’s how to make sure everything goes off without a hitch and how to track your success afterward.
Before the actual takeover starts, do a final run-through with your host. Confirm they understand the guidelines, have the content ready, and know how to engage with your audience.
Stay on standby during the takeover. Even with all the planning, questions or issues may arise. Being available ensures you can quickly address any hiccups.
After the takeover, it’s time to see how well you did. Go back to the goals and KPIs you set at the start. Analyze metrics such as follower growth, engagement rates, and website traffic. Did you meet your goals and KPIs? Tools built into Instagram, as well as Flick’s analytics suite, can be invaluable here.
You can also ask your audience what they thought of the takeover. You can use polls, questions in stories, or direct messages. Also, talk to your takeover host to get their perspective.
Then compile all your findings into a report. Highlight what worked, what didn’t, and what you can do better next time. Reflecting on the event will provide valuable insights for future Instagram strategies.
Conclusion
And there you have it—the seven steps you should follow to host an Instagram takeover that will engage your target audience.
Set clear takeover goals, decide on your audience, and choose the perfect host by considering important factors like their audience and personality. Then select the type of takeover. Based on that, you can set permissions to your account. Once that’s done, promote your takeover before you launch it. As a final tip, measure your results for continued success.
Ready to take the leap and host your own takeover? Go for it and you’ll ensure an Instagram community that’s engaged and reap more rewards for that audience engagement.
Happy hosting!
Harry Flynn leads the digital marketing team at Twicsy, a site providing services to Instagram users. He enjoys traveling and relaxing with friends in his spare time.
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