“Imagination at work” constitutes General Electric’s promise in the fields of science – be it healthcare, finance, industrial engineering, energy or social media. GE has not held back in creating its space in the media mammoths like Facebook, Twitter and everything else. Now comes, Instagram – GE’s presence on Instagram? Over 170,500 followers – yes, it’s not much compared to some celebrities but for an organisation like GE, that’s a huge feat to achieve. How can a company that deals with manufacturing windmills and healthcare and industrial gadgets make people on the social media wait anxiously for a campaign created called Instawalk – #GEInstaWalk and #GEInspiredMe.
General Electric’s Content Strategy
The 120 year company deals in designing and building aeroplanes, power turbines locomotives and molecular imaging equipment. Every single day, those products are used by people all over the world. GE uses social media to share its story and engage its global audience. Instagram has become the hub of its visual storytelling allowing GE to connect with its followers in a new way.
1. High Quality Images
Since 2013, GE has prioritized on generating great content for its Instagram profile. It keeps up with the trend of high quality images, planning photo shoots at its most innovative facilities in the world.
A GE90 #engine at #GE #Aviation in Peebles, OH. Shot by @adamsenatori.
2. Real Time Feeds
Giving its viewers the a never-seen-before experience and access to its facilities that only a few people have, GE’s Instagram posts create images that make GE’s loyal followers crave for more. These photo shoots took place in locations like the GE Aviation Engine Testing Center and GE Transportation’s Manufacturing Facility. The loyal followers got in real-time feeds of the most popular airshow where GE boasts of its talent, displaying some of its most cutting edge technology at Dubai and Paris. GE takes their fans all over the world and immerses their followers in the beauty of innovation.
3. Crowdsourcing
General Electric\’s most popular campaign, the first one launched in November 2011, called Instagrapher, is highly sought after ever since.General Electric asked Instagrammers to take photos inspired by three areas of GE innovation and tag them with ‘#GEinspiredme’. More than 5,000 photos are submitted in every contest under the hashtag. The winner of the contest becomes the next official GE Instagram photographer and gets the opportunity to visit the GE facilities around the globe.
4. Adding A Personal Touch
GE\’s Instagrapher contest winners are invited by large to visit the brands magnanimous properties in London and this time at Cape Cod Air Force Facility in Massachusetts.
Making it all – REAL BIG!!!
5. Communicate With The End User
Linda Boff, the company’s executive director of global digital marketing, believes that social started because we wanted to be having conversations with people – consumers, employees, investors – and anybody else that shares our passions. If that’s what you’re looking to do, then you’ve got to be where people are now spending 22 percent of their time. GE uses Instagram to keep the customer engaged and up to date!
“We love the idea that Instagram lets us share this intersection of science and technology, but doing it from a very visual, artistic point of view,” said Linda Boff. “When you’re as complicated as GE, how you tell the story and how you bring the company to life is incredibly important.”
4 Tips For A Successful Content Strategy
1. Keep It Personal
The entire scheme behind adapting to Instagram for content marketing would be to share behind the scenes images of your company. This will create a bonding between you and your customer, giving them a glimpse of what employees have the access to.
GE quotes on Instagram from within premises – “Happy 3D Printing Day! We have racks of #3Dprinters from @3DSystems and @Makerbot ready to take your gift orders”
2. Professional Photography Is Not A Must
Investing into professional photography can cost a big hole in you pocket and if it falls out of your budget, it’s fine to do without it. A good picture at the right angle can always be edited with various softwares, including Instagram\’s edit features to give your images a beguiling feel.
3. Take Risks
Brands often use the excuse of not participating on social media in highly regulated industries like GE stating it could be too big a legal risk to be publishing on the social media. The fear of losing control of what is ‘apt’ to messaging holds them back. A solution to this was executed by GE which creates teams that consists of a strategist, producer, designer and a lawyer, who help it conceptualize and promote its social feeds on Instagram and other hubs.
4. Create A Story
An example of this would be the Instagrapher campaign by GE. Here users update pictures of products made by the brand on a hashtag promoted by GE. This way, great stories are made increasing the interest and involvement of the end user.
General Electric A contest created by a simple hashtag increasing engagement and reach.
When brands like General Electrics hold on the Instagram and make it count, other larger companies must not shy away. Instagram is explored to show the consumers, what’s happening behind the curtains of the company. “Photos can be so emotional,” says Amy Cole, Head of Business Operations, Instagram. “It’s a great way for users to really connect with a brand in a way that ‘s different from text posts.”
Book your Radarr demo today!
