Rafaella Aguiar October 5, 2021 Tracking Instagram analytics is an absolute must for every business that markets itself on Instagram. Analytics help you understand how your posts are performing and what your audience wants to see. And when you know that, it’s easy to post the content people want so your account — and your business — will continue to grow. Take a look at just why Instagram analytics are so important, plus the top four tools you can use to track yours.
What Are Instagram Analytics?
Your Instagram analytics are made up of data and metrics that are gathered from your Instagram account. These numbers help you measure the performance of your Instagram account. You can use your analytics to inform future social media strategy decisions.
Instagram metrics are individual statistics — different numbers that you monitor for your brand (things like follower count or the number of likes on a post). Instagram analytics help you understand and evaluate those stats (for instance, follower growth rate or engagement rate).
It’s extremely important to track your Instagram analytics. If you don’t, there’s no point in having a social media strategy. Your analytics show you what you’re doing right and what you’re doing wrong so you can do as many things right as possible.
What specific metrics should you track? The following metrics are generally recommended for Instagram:
- Engagement — likes, comments, shares, engagement rate, mentions, etc.
- Awareness — impressions, reach, etc.
- ROI — referrals, conversions, etc.
- Customer care — response rate and time
The metrics you focus on will also depend on your personal social media goals. If your primary objective in a certain time period is to increase conversions, for example, you’ll want to prioritize all metrics related to that goal.
You can track your analytics using Instagram automation tools. There are several options out there, such as Later or Buffer, that offer analytics as part of their platform. Or you can use insights straight from the Instagram app.
Analytics Available On The App
Instagram has a native tool called Instagram Insights that allows you to track analytics. While this tool isn’t especially sophisticated, it’s a great start in keeping an eye on basic metrics from right there in the app.
You’ll need an Instagram business account to access Insights. Go to your profile and tap the “Insights” button (right under “Edit Profile”). The first screen will show you an Insights Overview. Select a date range and view accounts reached, content interactions, total followers, and content you shared.
You can tap into each of those categories to view more information. For example, going into the “Accounts Reached” tab will bring up details such as which accounts reached in a certain time period were followers and which ones weren’t, as well as which content type they viewed the most.
These types of analytics are hugely helpful as you make future posting decisions. For instance, if you notice that non-followers viewed your in-feed posts more often than your Stories, you could determine that posting more often might be a way to draw in more new users and get them to follow you.
Why Do Instagram Analytics Matter?
Instagram analytics should be an essential part of your social media strategy. Analytics act as a window into your target audience, allowing you to get a feel for the kind of content they most want or need to see. And when you understand what that is, you can post more of what they want.
It’s not enough to just look at metrics, like how many followers you have or how many comments you got on a post. Analytics are the only way to get a big-picture view. Using analytics lets you understand how your content is performing among your target audience. And analyzing this information is the best way to cultivate an Instagram account that will engage and grow.
How often should you track analytics? Most Instagram analytics tools show you a real-time dashboard that stays updated with how things are going. Social media managers often choose to export a weekly or monthly report to share with their team, summing up the main takeaways from that period of time.
Knowing your Instagram analytics will help you post the right content at the right time for the right audience — which, in turn, will drive more engagement and web traffic, helping your brand awareness and conversions grow. Tracking Instagram analytics is an absolute must for any and every marketer.
Top Four Third-Party Tools for Instagram Analytics And Insights
If you’re looking for something more sophisticated than Instagram Insights, there are plenty of free Instagram analytics tools out there. Here are the top four third-party tools you can use to analyze your Instagram account.
1. Iconosquare
Take your Instagram account to the next level with Iconosquare. Iconosquare is an official Instagram partner that makes it easy to save time on tracking analytics. This advanced tool provides a sophisticated range of metrics, but is easy to use. First-time users get a free audit on your Instagram profile and you can also export your data by timezone to learn more about your global audience.
Iconosquare users say this platform is their one-stop solution for all things social media management. In addition to analytics and reporting, Iconosquare includes a scheduling tool that allows you to schedule posts in advance.
How It Works
Sign up for a free trial and give Iconosquare your Instagram information. You can add multiple social media profiles to one account and view and manage all of those profiles from one streamlined dashboard. Use the “Analytics” tab in the dashboard to look at account statistics. Select a custom date range to view metrics for a certain time period if desired.
Iconosquare makes it easy to share key metrics and reports with your team — deliver the information to the inbox of your choice, or export the data for easy viewing. Iconosquare also has an app available for iOS and Android.
Features
Iconosquare features include:
- Reporting
- Analytics
- Hashtag tracking
- Competitor performance tracking
- Comments and likes count
- Top follower identification
- Influential posts tracking
- Data filters
- Follower growth measurement (and daily followers lost and gained)
Pricing
New users can try out Iconosquare with a free 14-day trial. After that, you can choose from the following payment plans:
- Pro — $ 49 per month; best for small businesses and professional marketers
- Advanced — $ 79 per month; best for marketing teams
- Enterprise — $ 139 per month; best for agencies
2. CrowdFire
CrowdFire is a social media management tool that helps you manage all of your social media accounts from one place. Use Crowdfire to track the metrics of individual posts, look at a general overview of your analytics, or view charts that present your brand’s historic performance. This Instagram analytics tool also gives you the ability to follow your competitors’ audience so you can see the type of users they’re engaging with — informing your own content strategy in the future.
How It Works
Access the information you need from the “Analytics” section of your CrowdFire account. This is also where you can keep up with tracking, monitoring different social channels for mentions of your brand so you can reply to any relevant comments.
CrowdFire also makes it easy to download and share customized reports. With these reports, you can view essential metrics at a glance and share them with your entire team. The higher tier payment plan you choose, the more data you can see.
Features
CrowdFire offers analytics-based features including the following:
- Report builder — Build and share custom professional reports with the data points you want to highlight (including a ready-to-use template that you can customize, and the ability to schedule weekly or monthly report exports directly to your email)
- Advance analytics — Take a deep dive into analytics to understand your ROI and refine your strategies (find detailed insights on each of your posts and download reports in PDF format)
- Competitor analysis — Compare where you stand against your competitors and improve (find their top posts and get an overview of their performance)
- Analytics overview — Quickly glance at the numbers every day to be sure you’re on track (keep track of your engagement, followers, and fans)
Pricing
CrowdFire pricing breaks down into the following payment plans:
- Free
- Plus — $ 7.48 per month; best for solopreneurs and small businesses
- Premium — $ 37.48 per month; best for medium businesses
- VIP — $ 74.98 per month; best for agencies and larger businesses
3. Sprout Social
Sprout Social is an all-in-one social media management platform that helps you reimagine the role of social in your business. Sprout Social offers Instagram analytics that are perfect for social analysts and strategists, illuminating business-critical insights by tapping into the world’s largest and most transparent group — social media. With Sprout’s social data and intelligence solutions, you can uncover critical customer, competitor, and industry insights to help grow your business and become a market leader.
How It Works
Despite being a comprehensive, sophisticated tool, it’s easy to get started on Sprout’s platform. Sign up and give Sprout your Instagram information. Then start measuring the metrics that matter from day one using Sprout’s easy-to-understand toolset. The platform provides comprehensive training and education materials if needed. Plus, the customizable reporting options help you maintain complete oversight of all connected social profiles from one location.
Features
Sprout offers both analytics and social listening features. Analytics help you measure content performance across channels to gain a clear picture of what’s resonating with your audience and what isn’t. Features include:
- Profile performance report
- Tag report
- Post performance report
- Competitor reports
- Team and task reports
- Paid performance report
Premium analytics features include interactive charts and graphs, advanced filtering, and more.
Sprout’s social listening tools help brands tap into global social conversation to extract actionable insights, identify industry gaps, and improve brand health. Core features include:
- Audience analysis
- Customer feedback
- Consumer research
- Influencer recognition
- Sentiment research
- Campaign analysis
- Competitor comparison
- Trend identification
Pricing
Sprout Social offers a free 30-day trial, no credit card required. After that, you can choose from the following payment plans:
- Standard — $ 89 per user per month
- Professional — $ 149 per user per month
- Advanced — $ 249 per user per month
4. Phlanx
Phlanx is an online marketing platform for your business. This tool offers resources such as an Instagram influencer auditor, Instagram engagement calculator, and marketing tips. You can use the engagement calculators and engagement manager to get an idea of how your Instagram posts are performing. Phlanx also offers Instagram audits.
How It Works
Several of Phlanx’s services can be used without creating an account. Go to the website and enter your Instagram handle to view your engagement rate, as well as average interactions per post and how your numbers compare to other IG accounts of the same size. The engagement calculator manager will show you further statistics while users with a paid subscription can get an Instagram audit.
Features
Phlanx has several features that are relevant to Instagram analytics:
- Instagram engagement calculator
- Instagram likes calculator
- Engagement manager
- Instagram auditor
Pricing
Phlanx has a 30-day free trial and three pricing plans:
- Basic — $ 25 per month; one user account
- Premium — $ 35 per month; three user accounts
- Business — $ 50 per month; eight user accounts
Best Instagram Analytics Tools
It’s clear that tracking Instagram analytics is a task you can’t overlook. Luckily, this job is made easy by the robust analytics tools out there on the market. Use a helpful platform like Iconosquare, CrowdFire, Sprout Social, or Phlanx to keep up with your Instagram analytics and grow your account long-term.
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