Have you heard of Instagram? It’s a social media photo sharing platform. Find out more in our brief
guide.
- What is Instagram?
- Who uses Instagram?
- Key things you need to know
- Further resources you may find helpful
1. What is Instagram?
Instagram is a social media platform where users share images or short videos. You can follow other users, use hashtags to tag images and use @ to mention people in comments. Other users can like your posts or comment on them.
2. Who uses Instagram?
According to research by Sprout social:
- 53% of 18–29 year olds use Instagram.
- 25% of 30–49 year olds use Instagram.
- 11% of 50–64 year olds use Instagram.
- 6% of people 65+ use Instagram.
The dominant gender on the photo-sharing site is female – 29% of women use Instagram, 22% of men use Instagram.
3. Key things you need to know
Instagram is easiest to use from a smartphone. You’ll need to download the app from the Play Store if you have an Android phone or the App Store if you have an iPhone. Once installed you’ll be able to sign up for an account. You can also use it on a computer by using this URL: https://instagram.com/
To find help on how to use Instagram, go to the Instagram help centre.
Shortening links for Instagram posts
Online tools like Bitly allow you to shorten links for free – useful for social media posts. You can use Bitly without signing up.
If you sign up, Bitly also provides you with an overview of interaction with your links so you can see how many people have clicked or shared them. See our article on measuring your social media success for more information
4. Further resources you may find helpful:
- Find all of our social media guides here
- Go to Instagram’s help centre for guidance
- To listen to our Social Media manager responding to partner’s questions about social media, see our Social media Q&A