Why Your Political Campaign Could Benefit from an Instagram

In this rapidly moving world dominated by social media, creating an Instagram account for your political campaign has never been more helpful to reaching your voter base. You might be asking yourself, “Why should I make an Instagram profile for my campaign when I already have an active following on Facebook and Twitter?” and though Instagram is owned by Facebook and both share a few similar features, having accounts on both is incredibly valuable. Their demographics vary, with Facebook boasting high percentages of users who are 65+ whereas Instagram favors millennials and Gen X voters. Similarly, Twitter has a very impressive reach of younger users with nearly 40% of users aged 25-34, but with roadblocks such as character limits, your Twitter followers are not always getting the full story. We’d like to highlight three essential reasons why adding an Instagram account to your media mix will deepen your campaign’s impact on your community and help spread your message.

1. You can reach entire demographics of voters in seconds.

Instagram is filled with young voters who are newly 18 and following the 2020 election, are becoming more and more excited to exercise their right to vote. However, too many people neglect the fact that even though Instagram is widely considered to be dominated by younger users, nearly 50% of active users are between the ages of 25-44, and its user base in older demographics is growing. Last year, the Generation X male population on Instagram rose by over 60%! Click here to read more about why there are common misconceptions about who is spending the most time on Instagram. 

According to a recent study, 63% of Instagram users are on the app at least once a day, and 42% of users check the app several times a day. Only a very small percentage of 16% checks the app on a weekly basis or less. According to the same study, nearly half of Instagram’s users browse their explore page a minimum of once a month. With the right hashtags and an algorithm that will push your content to people who might be interested in your campaign based on factors such as how much they interact with posts similar to yours, how recently you posted, and how long the user spends on Instagram, you have a good chance of being seen by people who are not even in your following – not yet that is!   

2. Engage with your followers in real time from anywhere. 

When running a political campaign, staying connected to your voters at all times is crucial, and for that reason, Instagram Live is your best friend. Hosting a town hall that you know your voters might have to miss because of work and other conflicts? Record a livestream of the event in real time so that followers can watch from wherever they are, then make sure to reupload it so that anyone who missed it can catch up. This is not only a great way to engage with your followers and voters – it lets them know how much you truly care by showing them the lengths you would go to make sure they can watch your campaign event, even if they couldn’t make it in person. Another great way to engage with your followers in real time is by uploading polls and surveys to find out what issues are important to them. If you have the time, you can even record yourself responding to select questions – not only to engage voters directly, but to promote your campaign platform in a more personal medium that feels like a conversation with the community, rather than a speech.

3. You can tell your story without limits. 

Since Instagram is a visual medium, you can use a variety of built-in features to post content that shows you interacting with your community, canvassing, speaking at rallies, or even just hanging out with your family from your living room! It’s a space for you to post freely and honestly, all while building momentum around your candidacy and the values you represent. Let’s take the Instagram Story for example – it not only allows you to repost your in-feed pictures and videos so you can reach people who might’ve missed it the first time – it helps build the narrative that your campaign is an active, ongoing event that the community can observe and participate in. It’s a great way to highlight your values as a candidate and feature your constituents and supporters, providing context for your content. 

The influence that Instagram has on our society and the opportunity it offers candidates to spread their message is truly remarkable and something that should not be taken for granted. The faster you create your campaign’s Instagram account to round out your media mix, the faster you will be reaching your voters across key demographics and communicating creatively in a way that makes your candidacy visible and relatable.

Thinking of creating an Instagram for your political campaign but don’t still know where to start? Not to worry! Shoot us a note at [email protected] and fire away with all of your Instagram-related questions. We’re always here to help!