[November 02, 2012]

54 Percent of Top Brands Now Using Instagram

Simply Measured today announced that more than half of the world's top brands now view Instagram as a major part of their social strategy. The company's quarterly study of Instagram found that the mobile-only photo sharing site has grown 35 percent among brands in the last quarter, quietly outpacing the growth of other social networks including Google (News - Alert)+ and Pinterest. In total, 54 percent of Interbrand 100 companies are using Instagram today.

While last quarter's report highlighted luxury brands, this quarter apparel brands moved into the spotlight. Nike, which ranks fourth among the Interbrand 100 in total Instagram followers, is one of many brands that saw a significant jump in engagement, along with GAP and Adidas. Much of Nike's success can be attributed to cross-posting on Facebook (News - Alert), which now allows users' "likes" on Instagram to appear in their Facebook feed. In fact, more than 90 percent of Instagram photos posted by brands were also shared to Facebook, allowing consumers to engage natively on both platforms.

Of the newest brands to join Instagram which include MasterCard, Philips (News - Alert) and Samsung, Volkswagen has quickly amassed a strong following by celebrating both new and vintage cars through visual storytelling.

"Seeing this level of activity, it's more clear than ever that Instagram has graduated from a 'fun new social network' to an integral component of a brand's social strategy," said Adam Schoenfeld, CEO at Simply Measured. "While earlyadopters are seeing a majority of the engagement, there's still time for newer brands to jump in and leverage the visual nature of the platform to engage and grow their audiences."

The Simply Measured Instagram study evaluates brands and verticals in the Interbrand 100, identifying key trends and strategies shaping the way companies engage with consumers through social media. Key findings include:

• 54 percent of the Interbrand 100 are now active on Instagram. This is up from 40 percent one quarter ago - a 35 percent increase quarter over quarter. Instagram still trails Pinterest and Google+ in total brand adoption, but is growing at a much faster rate over the last 3 months.
• Brand adoption is impressive due to limited admin features and mobile-only focus. Unlike other social networks, Instagram is mobile-only and currently offers no admin-focused features for brand managers. Despite this, brand adoption has exceeded 50 percent.
• Brand activity has also increased. 34 percent of the Interbrand 100 now post at least 1 photo per week, up from only 26 percent one quarter ago. Brands are not just creating a presence, but are becoming more active on Instagram and making it a key part of their social media marketing mix.
• Cross-channel activity is powerful. The Instagram-Facebook combination has proved very valuable for brands. More than 90 percent of Instagram photos posted by brands were also shared to Facebook, allowing consumers to engage natively on both platforms. Brand actively cross post to Twitter (News - Alert) as well, with 60 percent of photos being tweeted.
• Laggards beware. It's still early, but the time is now. With adoption on the rise, brands that arrive late to the party risk falling behind. Only eight companies on the Interbrand 100 have more than 100,000 followers, however those brands have seen an average 48 percent increase in followers quarter over quarter. Over the next quarter, leaders are expected to cross the one million follower mark.
• Lo-fi remains the most trusted filter amongst brands.

Simply Measured's analytics and reporting capabilities allow brands to track Instagram engagement in-context with other social media campaigns, including most engaging photos, most engaging filters, most engaging locations, cross-posting, keyword analysis and more.

To analyze any Instagram profile for free, visit: http://simplymeasured.com/freebies/instagram-analytics

About Simply Measured

Simply Measured brings social media analytics to life. The company's measurement and reporting solution aggregates social media data from more than a dozen sources and presents it in a single dashboard that is easy to access on the fly and share across a team. More than 25 unique reports can be created in real-time and pushed to familiar tools such as Excel or PowerPoint with the click of a button. Simply Measured is trusted by more than 25 percent of the top 100 global brands and 45,000 users. Learn more at http://simplymeasured.com.

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