Do you need an Instagram business account, or a personal one? The answer may surprise you.
Instagram offers two different types of accounts, each with its own set of features. Before you make the switch to either type, it’s important to understand what each one offers and its pros and cons.
Instagram Business Account vs. Personal Account: Get the Facts
Business, personal – what’s the difference? Get the facts to know which type of account is right for you.
Instagram Business Account – What You Need to Know
An Instagram business account comes with extra features that help influencers and brands grow their accounts. There are more than 200 million business profiles on Instagram, and it’s free to create one.
Pros
Cons
The main advantage of a business account is that you get access to analytics, or Insights. Insights give you a closer look at your audience and the accounts that are interacting with your content, including their:
- Age ranges
- Locations
- Genders
- Most active times of the day
You can also view your growth, reach and more.
If you’re a business or an influencer, having access to these insights right on the Instagram app is so convenient and useful.
You also have the ability to boost your posts with a business account, which is something you cannot do with a personal account. Boosting your post will allow you to expand your reach and help you build your follower count.
Switching to a business account is free and easy to do. Here’s how it works:
How To Switch to a Business Account
Step #1: Open the Instagram app and tap the main menu at the top right corner of the interface.
Step #2: Tap Settings.
Step #3: Choose Account Type And Tools.
Step #4: Tap the Switch to Professional Account button.
Step #5: Choose Business.
As soon as you make the switch to a business account, you’ll be able to start seeing insights on future posts.
Now that you understand what a business account offers, you may be wondering why you would ever want a personal account. Depending on your goals, you may find that a personal account is better for you.
Instagram Personal Account – What You Need to Know
A personal Instagram account is what you are likely to use if you don’t know what type of account that you have. Don’t worry – most of Instagram’s 1+ billion users have a personal account.
Pros
Cons
You don’t need to have a business account if you use Instagram to show pictures of your cat to your friends and family, but if you want to do the following, go with a business account:
- Build a following
- Become an influencer
- Focus on your analytics to post better content
However, for most people, not having a business account isn’t a major concern. If you’re like most users who don’t have a social calendar and aren’t concerned with analytics to make your account grow, you’re not missing out on anything.
Should You Have a Business or Personal Instagram Account?
Are you a feature junkie who wants to dive into your account’s analytics and really see what’s working and not working? If so, switch to a business account and you’ll have access to a wealth of analytics.
You can switch to a business account for free, so there’s no harm in trying it out and seeing if you will actually make use of the tools available.
However, we recommend staying on a personal account if:
- You value your privacy and want to keep your profile private.
- You rarely post and don’t want to build a following of people you don’t know in real life.
If you want to become an influencer or run a business, switch to a business account. Why? You’ll be able to:
- Purchase ads to build your following and sell products.
- Schedule posts in the future, so you can create a strategic schedule ahead of time and always be active.
- Browse your account’s analytics to learn what posts resonate with your audience and which do not.
- Create automated replies, so you can rapidly reply to messages and save time.
- Easily add a contact button to your profile.
Lead generation tools and audience insights are the two main reasons why anyone who has a personal account on Instagram would switch to a business account. If you’re trying to build a brand on the platform, we recommend making the switch to a business account.
You can use the insights in your account to boost engagement and gain more followers.
Just remember. If your profile is private, you will lose access to this feature and it will be public. You won’t have the option to hide your posts – anyone can see them.
