Instagram is an online photo sharing and video sharing service that enables users to take photos, videos, add comments and share them on other social media sites. It was created in 2010 by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, both graduates of Stanford University, as a mobile app and was initially used as a photo-sharing phone application. It has grown exponentially and now has over 1.386 billion active monthly users. The service allows users to upload photos and videos, apply digital filters to them, and share them on a variety of social networking services including Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Flickr.

Why Instagram?

• Instagram allows businesses to market themselves uniquely
• It increases customer reach and uses a powerful algorithm to engage with audiences
• Instagram allows businesses to create a community around their brand instead of just selling products
• Instagram is the ideal platform for businesses to share their expertise
• Instagram allows businesses to show users who they are through textual and visual content
• It offers businesses an unmediated channel of communication between brands and their customers
• Instagram is the simplest social media platform for user-generated content
• Instagram can help drive traffic back to your website