Why Using Instagram is so Important
Instagram is such a large social media platform which makes it the perfect way to share information about adoptable animals for free. Without using Instagram, people need to be specifically looking at websites with adoptable animals. However, through Instagram, they could easily read about shelters through shared posts or people tagging the shelters and rescues. This is a free way to catch people’s eye and intrigue them.On Instagram, word spreads quickly and to large audiences. Shelters should take every opportunity they can to share their adoptable animals, and Instagram is one of the easiest ways to do it.
How Can Shelters Use Instagram?
Every shelter uses Instagram differently, but there are some common tips that can help to make their use of Instagram successful.
Post Frequently
You don’t want to make so many posts that your followers get annoyed, but you should post updates often enough so that people know about your shelter and are aware of the pets that are available. A few posts a day can help get people interested in your shelter. Plus, more people will likely share your posts through their stories too. On Instagram you can post more than one photo in one single post. This is recommended for posts with similar content that would all be captioned similarity. Such as your new adoptable animals that day could each have their own photo in the same post. If you create plenty of unique posts, you will be able to reach more people on Instagram. Pet Rescue Resources provides free, eye catching, customizable, social media templates that you can post to your rescues site. See those under our “social media” page.
Post Quality
Sometimes posting quality posts to Instagram can be just as, if not more important than posting frequently. You want your posts to have clear, quality photos that display the information you’re conveying well and creatively. Pet Rescue Resources has free social media templates for you to use that are themed and pre-made so your shelter doesn’t always have to come up with fresh ideas and take time out of their day. Click here to see the available templates!
Respond to Questions Quickly
If people reach out to you through social media, don’t wait to get back to them. Always respond to any questions or comments in a timely manner to get the best results. If someone wants to know if a certain animal is still available, they might move on and look at a different shelter if they don’t hear from you quickly enough. Creating posts is just one thing, but responding to the community is also very important as well as updating posts about animals that are no longer available. This can be done with a simple edit to the post to read “ADOPTED” before the rest of the caption. No need to delete the post or get into details, save that for a “Happy Tails” update post.
Engage with Followers
Even if your followers don’t respond with specific questions, you should still find ways to connect and engage with them. You can respond to comments and create discussions through your posts. For example, you could create a post asking others to share stories about their adopted dogs. People love when they get to interact with the community and this will make your posts more likely to show up your followers’ feed. Instagram makes it super easy to engage with your followers through your stories. You can do this by posting quizzes, questions, and polls. Followers can then answer at their liking and you’ll get feedback and interest!
Also, there will likely be some comments that you won’t agree with. Some people might post something about breeding their dogs or they might say something bad about a specific breed. However, if you come across any of these negative posts, don’t delete them. Instead, respond to them in a professional manner and educate them. The more you interact with potential adopters on Instagram, the more people will be willing to adopt from your shelter and understand the importance of the work you do.
List Information and Needs
Even though you have a website, people will stumble onto your Instagram and want more information. Instead of redirecting them to your website and potentially losing them, you should keep accurate information on your Instagram as well. Make sure the information on the available animals is up to date and include information on how to donate and volunteer.
Types of Instagram Posts Shelters Should Make
When posting on Instagram, there are few types of posts that should be made in order to get the most positive result. However, shelters can be creative with how they want to approach these posts.
Introducing New Animals
When a new animal is up for adoption, shelters often like to make a cute post about them to share some information. This often gets people interested in seeing these animals in person, especially if they have high quality photos posted too. Plus, everyone loves seeing cute new animals!
Creative Posts About Adoptable Pets
Sometimes, a cute introduction post is not enough to help them get adopted right away. So, shelters will often make creative posts about the animals that have been waiting the longest too. These typically consist of clever posts, pictures with cute props, or silly videos of the animal. The more creative a shelter can be with their posts, the more views they will get. Pet Rescue Resources has free social media templates for you to use that are themed and premade so your shelter doesn’t always have to come up with fresh ideas and take time out of their day. Click here to see the available templates!
Transparency
Showing the public what goes into running a rescue can be a great social media post. This will allow people to understand the importance the rescue serves and how much effort goes into saving lives. This will also let donors see where their money is going. Your posts don't always have to be perfect posts of adorable animals, you can post more behind the scenes or vulnerable hardships as well, whatever your shelter is comfortable with.
Success Stories
Success stories might not seem as important as sharing the adoptable pets, but they can encourage more people to adopt. You can post when a dog finds their forever home, make a cute post about it if their new family is okay with it. People love to see happy dogs, so simply by posting more success stories, it could make more people view your shelter.
Events
Whenever a shelter or rescue has upcoming events, they should share them on Instagram. People are much more likely to see the events on Instagram than to discover them on your website. People will then be able to share the event to their stories as well as tag their friends in your post. Pet Rescue Resources has an entire section devoted to Events for Rescues. Click here to find ideas and checklists!
Help Needed
Whether it’s donations or volunteers, it is okay to ask for help on Instagram. People might not be aware that you even need assistance if you don’t post about it. Therefore, use Instagram as a free way to reach out to people and get help from the community.
Making Posts Public
When creating a post on Instagram, make sure you're Instagram account is public and your posts are public. If your posts aren’t public, then there’s no way for followers to share them. Without shares, it’s harder for people to spread the word. So, public posts are the key to growing your following. If you are unsure of how to make your posts public, click here!
Instagram Media
Instagram is multifaceted and has many options for sharing media. There are posts, stories, highlight buttons, live video, Instagram TV. Each of these have their own uses and it can be quite confusing when new to the platform.
Posts
These are what most people are familiar with. This is where people place photos, art, and videos for all their followers to see. Its a typical option and should be the majority of how a rescue uses the platform. All the above information applies to posts. If a rescue only has time for one thing, this should be where the attention lands.
Stories
These are similar to posts but are usually for less formal or high quality information. If you have ever heard of Snapchat, it is a similar idea, but for Instagram. People post less edited, more in the moment information here. Stories also have the options of added interaction tools. You can add a poll, quiz, Q+A, GIF, etc. to stories. Stories stay on your feed for 24 hours and then they are no longer available for followers to see, unless you add it to a highlight.
Highlights
Highlights are a great tool to use to organize information posted on your Instagram stories to a long lasting location. After a story has been posted, you have the option to add this to a "highlight" on your Instagram page. Highlights that shelters could use are "Adoptable Animals", "happy Tails", "Past Events", "Foster Fails", "Volunteers Rock". Highlights are optional and another way to get content to viewers.
Going Live on Instagram
Going live on Instagram is a way to post a video in real time. Your followers will get a notification that you have gone live and have the option to watch the content you are producing in real time. After you're done with the video, you will have the option to save the video to your camera roll or add it to your Story feed. Going live on Instagram is not necessary but is another way users can connect to their following.
There are so many different ways that Instagram can help animals get adopted, so it is important for shelters to use it as much as possible. It is important for them to do everything they can to help dogs find their forever homes right away, and luckily, Instagram is a simple and efficient way to do it.
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