This year, Instagram stopped being an iPhone-only app. The Android app was released in early April. Less than a week later, Facebook announced it was acquiring the company for about a billion dollars, a considerable sum for an app that generates no revenue. In August, Instagram added Photo Maps, which show where a user's photos were taken. This month, Instagram finally launched web profiles, so a link to your feed can be shared and viewed on a computer.
For dive operators, the timing is favourable. Underwater photography has always been a relatively closed world: large cameras, housings, strobes, and results that mostly remain on a hard drive or in a Facebook album no one browses. Instagram makes it social, and quickly. A photo from the morning dive can be seen by lunchtime.
The app can also absorb an entire afternoon. That aspect is addressed below.
Why post what happened today rather than stock photos?
Instagram accepts only square photos, uploaded from a phone. The constraint is real, but it imposes a form of authenticity: you post what you have, what you saw today.
The dive shops achieving good results post authentic content: the frogfish that has been sitting on the same sponge all week, the boat at 7 a.m. at sunrise, an instructor's expression when a student masters buoyancy for the first time. Nothing retouched. The viewer feels present.
Those achieving weaker results use it like a brochure: perfect whale shark shots that clearly do not date from this week, or even from that location. The audience is not fooled, and divers even less so. They know what visibility looks like in the rainy season and can distinguish a stock photo from a phone shot taken through a mask.
Use filters sparingly. A reef does not need to resemble a 1970s postcard. A slight correction of the blue is acceptable; turning a grey day into a fake sunset is not.
How can underwater photos be transferred to a phone?
This practical detail matters. Most good underwater photos are taken with a dedicated camera, not a phone. To post them, they must be transferred from the camera to the phone: card readers, laptops, files emailed to oneself. GoPro's new Hero3 has built-in Wi-Fi, which should make this easier. Whatever the equipment, posting must be simple, or it will not happen: one responsible person, one routine, one set time in the day.
How should hashtags by place and species be used?
Hashtags are currently the main way people find you on Instagram. Many businesses use them poorly, with thirty generic tags on every post: #love #instagood #happy #diving #ocean #blue.
The hashtags that attract the right audience are specific: a place, a dive site, a species. They are terms a person planning a trip, or a photographer looking for a particular creature, would actually search for: the name of the island, the name of the well-known site, #mola, #mantaray, #nudibranch, with the exact species name when you know it.
Someone searching for mantas in your area should find your post. That person is worth more than a thousand passing likes.
Add your location to the photo as well. With Photo Maps, people browsing a diver's map see your dive site along with your name. This detail helps people choose their destination.
Finally, write a proper caption: where, what, when. Instagram does not allow clickable links in captions, so place your website in your profile and mention it when relevant.
Why tag guests who consent?
The best marketing a dive centre can obtain on Instagram is a guest posting their first turtle.
That post is seen by their friends, family and coworkers: people who trust them, many of whom have never considered learning to dive. No advertisement produces that effect.
Make this sharing easy, then. Share the day's photos with guests. Tag them when they wish to be tagged, and only then. Ask for consent every time. Some people do not want to appear on anyone's feed, and some should not, for reasons you will never know. With children, obtain the parents' consent first.
When guests consent, they share, tag you in return, and their friends follow your account. This growth is slow but authentic, and in our observation it is the only kind that lasts.
How can Instagram be used without devoting the whole day to it?
This is the aspect owners find most difficult.
Instagram is designed to keep users scrolling. For personal use, that poses no problem. For a business, it is a trap: you log in to post one photo, check what competitors are doing, reply to a comment, look at someone's holiday, and forty minutes have passed.
The solution is to set boundaries around its use.
- Choose a time, once a day or a few times a week, to post and reply.
- Post from a short list of photos selected in advance, rather than browsing your camera roll on the spot.
- Answer comments and questions in a single batch, giving priority to booking enquiries.
- Turn off notifications outside that time.
If the task is too demanding, delegate it: to a staff member who enjoys the app, or to a professional in social media management. Whoever handles it, the posts must remain authentic.
What developments should be expected for Instagram?
Facebook did not invest that sum in a photo app to leave it unchanged. Advertising is likely to appear before long, along with tools for businesses. When that happens, Instagram's business side will be the place to look.
These changes will alter the platform's atmosphere. For now, it remains mostly people sharing what they saw, which is worth taking advantage of.
A broader perspective is nonetheless needed. Do not build your entire marketing on an app you do not control. Its rules can change with a single update, as Facebook page owners are discovering this year. Use Instagram and make the most of it, without making it the only place people can find you. Your website and your email list are the channels you own.