Category: Marketing Automation

If you’ve been on Instagram lately, you’ve probably noticed that the app looks a bit different every time you log on.
The heart-shaped notification button seems to move with a mind of its own, IGTV has disappeared, and the addition of the Reels and Shop buttons has completely changed the way we interact with the platform.
While these changes seem arbitrary, they’re the crucial next steps in Instagram’s evolution into a video-centric social shopping platform.
In 2022, Instagram will continue to prioritize video, expand on social shopping tools, make it easier for creators to monetize their content and partner with brands, and rework direct messaging (DM) interfaces.
While these shifts align with the trends we saw in our Social Media Trends survey, we decided to dive even deeper by asking another 580 Instagram marketers about how they’ll approach marketing on this changing platform in 2022.

Top Instagram Marketing Survey Findings
Based on our results, most Instagram marketers are already ahead of the game:

79% have leveraged Instagram Shopping tools and one in three plan to use them for the first time in 2022.  
82% post video content on the platform and the content formats they use most are video-based.
Instagram Live has the highest ROI of any content format. It is also the most effective for gaining followers, gets the most shares, and will see the most investment from Instagram marketers this year.
Content that reflects your brand’s values and showcases your products/services have the highest ROI on Instagram.
The best strategies to grow your following on Instagram are posting interactive and engaging stories, engaging with other users, and partnering with influencers.
Instagram marketers will prioritize fostering relationships with their customers in 2022 by focusing on interacting with their audience and creating content that encourages engagement.
35% use the app for customer service and see high ROI.
30% work with influencers (or creators) and 42% plan to start this year.
84% say Instagram marketing was effective for their company last year.

Now that we’ve given you a taste of our survey findings, let’s dive deeper and take a look at some Instagram benchmarks to help you see how your brand’s account stacks up against the competition. 
If you’re looking for some specific insights, click below to jump to the section you’d like to read first.

Instagram Marketing Benchmarks
Instagram Marketing Strategies
Instagram Content Types
Instagram Audience Growth Benchmarks
Effective vs. Ineffective Instagram Marketing

Instagram Marketing Benchmarks To Know In 2022
1. Over half of branded Instagram accounts have between 10K-100K followers.
More than a quarter, or 27%, of branded accounts have under 10,000 followers, while 19% have over 100K. Regardless of the size of your community, stay tuned for a breakdown of the top strategies for growing your Instagram following.

2. Impressions can come from anywhere on the platform.
Hashtags, Explore, and Profile, are all tied at 19% for the top Instagram impression sources, but Home and Location are just slightly behind.
Hashtags and Profile are more easily discoverable by search, so make sure your handle and hashtags are search-optimized.
Some posts may do exceptionally well due to a certain combination of hashtags you used, or thanks to the algorithm suggesting your content on the Explore page. Take a look at where the impressions came from on your top posts and keep an eye out for any patterns you can turn into a consistent strategy to re-create your success.
3. Less than half of business accounts have major YoY follower growth.
But, this doesn’t mean brand accounts are dramatically losing followers. In reality, only 14% report a loss while 42% have a stagnant following. 

Now that we’ve gone over some benchmarks, let’s talk about goals and strategies.

Instagram Marketing Strategies
Top Strategies and Goals of Instagram Marketers
With all the changes coming to the platform, marketers’ goals on Instagram are also shifting.
The top goals Instagram marketers have for 2022 are increasing brand awareness/reaching new audiences, advertising their products/services, increasing sales, fostering relationships with customers/increasing brand loyalty, and improving customer service and retention.

Let’s talk about each of these goals in terms of how they relate to Instagram’s changing platform.
1. Spreading Brand Awareness with Content Like Videos
Instagram has made clear that its focus is turning away from photos and toward video content. Not only does this indicate that Instagram users are more interested in seeing video content, but we can assume that video content will be more likely to be suggested to users by Instagram’s algorithm.
But which type of videos should you be making?
If the amount of Reels present on your Instagram feed and explore page didn’t give it away, Instagram also added a dedicated tab for Reels in the navigation bar to drive the point home — Reels are taking over.
And it’s not just Instagram — our social media trends survey found that short-form video is the most popular and effective format across all social platforms.
So to reach the widest audience on Instagram this year, focus on videos, especially Reels.
2. Driving Leads and Conversions With Instagram Advertising.
Advertising products/services is another top goal for Instagram marketers, and they will accomplish this by creating content showcasing their products/services and leveraging Instagram’s new shopping tools.
Content centered around a brand’s products/services is the second most popular type of content among Instagram Marketers and has the second-highest ROI of any content type.
My survey also found that marketers who leverage this type of content are 13% more likely to say their Instagram strategy was effective last year than those who don’t.
However, the most popular and most effective Instagram marketing strategy is leveraging the app’s shopping tools. But with a handful to choose from, let’s take a look at which ones perform the best.

3. Gaining Revenue With Instagram Shopping Tools
Although Instagram Shopping tools are still rather new and evolving, Instagram Shopping strategies offer the highest ROI and are already used most by Instagram marketers. 
While just 37% currently use the app’s shopping tools, 94% of them will increase or maintain their investment this year. On top of that, one in three plan to use Instagram shopping tools for the first time this year.
Also, marketers who leverage Instagram’s shopping tools are 15% more likely to say their Instagram strategy was effective last year than those who don’t. So which tools perform best?
Of the shopping tools, Instagram Live Shopping and Instagram Shops have the highest ROI and are the most leveraged.

Additionally, the use of both will grow significantly in 2022, with 55% planning to try Instagram Shops and 48% planning to use Instagram Live Shopping for the first time.
Instagram feed shopping posts, Instagram Stories Shopping, and Instagram Guides Shopping are all used by over one in three marketers and are just behind Instagram Shops and Instagram live Shopping for ROI.
Reels Shopping has the lowest use and ROI, however, 42% of Instagram marketers plan to use Reels Shopping for the first time this year, the 3rd highest of any Instagram shopping tool.

Is selling on Instagram right for you? And, what are the biggest benefits and challenges you could see when using it? Stay tuned for a deep dive on even more data that we’ll be sure to link to this post. 
4. Building Customer Relationships and Community
The ability to foster meaningful relationships with customers is one of the biggest benefits of having a brand presence on social media platforms, so it’s no surprise that this is a top goal for Instagram marketers that will become even more of a priority in 2022.
Marketers will accomplish this by investing in interacting with their audience and creating content that encourages engagement.

The Importance of Interacting With Your Audience
Audience interaction is the #1Instagram strategy marketers plan to leverage for the first time in 2022, with 46% planning to try it this year. On top of that, 15% of marketers plan to invest in it more than any other Instagram marketing strategy.
Instagram offers a wide variety of ways to interact with your audience, from simple reactions to comments and DMs. Taking the time to engage with your followers can make them feel special and strengthen their bond with your brand. But interaction is a two-way street, so you’ll also want to create content that encourages engagement.
5. Putting Engaging Content Before Other Tactics
Creating content that encourages engagement is the strategy Instagram marketers plan to invest the most in for 2022, with 17% planning to invest more in it than any other strategy.
Additionally, 43% plan to use it for the first time in 2022, the second-highest of any Instagram marketing strategy, and it has 3rd highest ROI of any strategy.
Encouraging engagement can be as simple as ending your video with a question that your followers can respond to in the comments, running a poll on your story, or going live and having a conversation with your viewers.
Going out of your way to connect with those in your digital community, especially when you aren’t trying to sell them anything, can help foster a deep relationship between them and your brand.
But there’s another great way to leverage Instagram to help serve your customers and keep them coming back – using the app for customer service.
6. Embracing Customer Service
Being a marketer doesn’t mean you should toss good customer service opportunities aside on Instagram. 28% of Instagram marketers say improving customer service and retention is among their top goals in 2022, and with good reason. Leveraging Instagram for customer service is the 2nd most used Instagram marketing strategy and has the 2nd highest ROI of any strategy.
To make the case for providing customer service on the app even stronger, I found that marketers and brands who leverage Instagram for customer service are 17% more likely to say their Instagram strategy was effective last year compared to those who don’t.
7. Leveraging Hashtags
Hashtags have been around on Instagram since 2011, and 82% of Instagram marketers continue to leverage them, with 85% following a documented hashtag strategy. But are they effective?
80% of Instagram marketers say hashtags were effective for their Instagram strategy last year. Furthermore, marketers who leverage hashtags when posting on Instagram are 23% more likely to say Instagram marketing was effective for their brand last year. That number goes up to 30% when looking at those with a document hashtag strategy.
We also found that marketers who use a mix of niche and general hashtags are 20% more likely to say Instagram marketing was effective for their brand in 2021. 
Make sure to leverage a few specific hashtags like #Dachsunds along with more popular ones like #Dogs for the best results.
How Many Hashtags Should You Use on Instagram?
Our survey shows that 62% of Instagram marketers use 4-9 hashtags, and only 1% use the maximum of 30.

Also consider using a branded hashtag when posting on Instagram, such as #CocaCola, for example.
53% of marketers say most of the brands they work for use branded hashtags, which can be great for creating a community around your brand and offer an easy way to find posts from or about your brand in one place.
Next, let’s talk about which call-to-action is most effective on Instagram.
8. Including Calls to Action in Content
We asked Instagram marketers whether asking followers to “like,” “share,” or “save” their content is most effective at triggering the algorithm to promote their content, as these are known to be the top metrics Instagram monitors. Here are the results:

While Instagram marketers rank likes at #1, shares second, and saves last, I would argue that this is backwards.
To explain why, consider your behavior when on Instagram. If you’re like me, you probably give out likes mindlessly while scrolling through your feed, but how often are you sharing content to your story or in chats with friends? How often are you saving posts to look at later? Those pieces of content are probably much more carefully selected.
When we share posts on Instagram, we are telling others that we found the content so valuable that we couldn’t help but share it with them – the algorithm picks up on this. Sharing also gets bonus points because it inherently exposes more people to a piece of content.
Similarly, when saving content, we tell the algorithm that we found it so valuable that we want to bookmark it for future reference.
So while all three of these are the most important metrics Instagram tracks, I would prioritize saving, sharing, or even commenting in your call-to-actions ahead of asking for likes.
Strategies Marketers Aren’t Using in 2022
User-generated content, contests or giveaways, and affiliate marketing have low usage, ROI, and are the least likely to be leveraged on Instagram for the first time in 2022.
While these strategies can still be successful and valuable to some brands, marketers we surveyed say they are not as effective as the other strategies we asked about.
If you’re having difficulty building an effective UGC, affiliate marketing, or giveaway plan, consider alternatives, like partnering with influencers in your niche who can generate authentic content for your brand to establish social proof and spread awareness. Our marketing trends survey found influencer marketing to be the most popular and most effective trend, with the highest ROI.
Now that we’ve gone over Instagram marketers’ goals and strategies in 2022, let’s talk about which formats are most effective on the platform.

Which Instagram Formats Are Most Effective?
The formats Instagram marketers leverage most are live, stories, and interviews/Q&A/Expert discussions. Let’s take an in-depth look at each of them.

Instagram Live
Instagram Live has the highest ROI and use will grow significantly in 2022 as 49% of Instagram marketers will invest in Instagram Live for the first time and 22% will invest more in Instagram live than any other format.
We also asked Instagram marketers which format is most effective for gaining followers, and Instagram Live came out ahead there as well, though closely followed by stories and feed posts.

 
Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories have the 2nd best ROI and are leveraged by 45% of Instagram marketers. Of those who don’t use it, 45% plan to leverage stories for the first time in 2022, the 2nd highest of any format. Instagram stories are also the #2 format for gaining followers and getting your content shared on IG.

Interviews, Q&As, and Expert Discussions
Interviews/Q&As/Expert discussions are used by 31% of marketers, with 42% planning to try them for the first time in 2022 and 10% planning to invest more in them than any other format.

Instagram Reels
Only one in four Instagram marketers use Reels and just 29% of Instagram marketers plan to leverage reels for the first time in 2022.

While Reels fall in the middle of the pack across all metrics, we believe that this is feature is greatly underutilized and could actually provide unique and new opportunities for brands.
In fact, brands and influencers who have focused on it have seen major benefits to leveraging it. For example, we recently spoke with Kar Brulhart, who has organically grown her Instagram account from zero to 45,000+ viewers in under 10 months using Reels. She told us about the incredible opportunity Reels presents for Instagram marketers:
 “I went from less than 2,000 followers in February 2020 to over 15,000 the next month through Reels, because Instagram is pushing Reels to new audiences. And 75% of the people who find my account are coming from Reels — compared to Stories and posts.”
Considering the popularity of short-form videos and the emphasis Instagram is placing on Reels, Instagram marketers may want to give Reels a shot as they are relatively easy to make and can provide a boost in exposure.
Now that we’ve gone over the top formats, let’s take a look at which content types are most popular on Instagram.

Which Types Of Content Perform Best On Instagram?
The top Instagram content types reflect a brand’s values, are centered around a brand’s products/services, are interactive, authentic, and funny. Let’s take a look at what makes each of these content types so popular among Instagram marketers.
Content That Reflects Brand Values
Content that reflects a brand’s values was the #1 content type in our social media trends survey and that is also true for Instagram marketers, 44% of whom use it.

Instagram marketers say it has the highest ROI of any content type. Additionally, 45% say they will invest in it for the first time in 2022, the highest of any content type, and 11% will invest more in it than any other type of content.

Content Centered Around A Brand’s Products/Services
Content centered around a brand’s products/services is leveraged by 39% of Instagram marketers and has the 2nd highest ROI. 39% will leverage this type of content for the first time in 2022.
Interactive Content and/or Authentic/Behind-the-Scenes Content
Interactive content and authentic/”behind the scenes” content are both popular among Instagram marketers and will grow in 2022.
44% of Instagram marketers plan to leverage interactive content for the first time in 2022, followed by Authentic/”Behind the scenes” content at 40%. Both are tied at the #1 spot for the content type marketers plan to invest more in than any other in 2022.
Funny Content
Funny content is the most effective for getting followers, shares, and engagement on IG.

Now that we’ve gone over the different Instagram formats and content types, let’s dig into the top strategies for growing your following on Instagram.

Instagram Audience Growth Benchmarks
How Brands Grow Instagram Audiences
To grow your following on Instagram, the top 3 strategies are posting interactive and engaging stories, engaging with other users, and partnering with influencers.

At #4, sharing your Instagram page and content on various channels, like other social media platforms or your website, is also important for growth.
The next most popular strategy is diversifying your content to resonate with a wider audience, but you’ll also want to study your audience for trends and make targeted content to attract others with similar interests.
Another powerful growth strategy is adding a simple call-to-action to “like,” “save,” or “share” your content at the very end of your captions – if someone read it all the way through, they probably got value from your content and will be inclined to comply. If users take these actions, it will give your content a boost in the eyes of the algorithm and put it in front of more people, who may end up following you.
Lastly, you can also get a boost in growth by partnering with brands or accounts in a similar niche, as their audiences will likely be interested in your content as well.
These are the best strategies to grow your following in general, but we also asked marketers about the top strategies they used to reach their first thousand followers, and the results show some key differences.
How To Get Your First 1,000 Instagram Followers
Earning your first 1,000 followers on Instagram is a massive milestone, and 78% of Instagram marketers have been part of growing an account to 1k followers. According to them, creating shareable content and captions, as well as using relevant hashtags are key to reaching your first 1k followers.

Remember that the formats most effective at getting shares are live video, stories, and feed posts, while the top content types for shares are funny, interactive, and reflective of your brand’s values.
Now that you know how to reach 1,000 followers, you may be wondering how long it might take.
How Long Does It Take To Reach 1,000 Followers On Instagram?
Around 1 in 4 Instagram marketers reach 1,000 followers in 1-3 months, while 39% say it takes 4-6 months. Only 13% were able to reach the 1k milestone in under a month, and just 1% took over a year.
But just as you gain followers, it’s also possible to lose them. Let’s take a look at what has caused Instagram marketers to lose followers, so you can avoid those mistakes.
What Causes Instagram Marketers To Lose Followers?
Not posting enough and being too “sales-y” are the top culprits when it comes to losing followers. 1 in 3 Instagram marketers also report losing followers from posting too often and not being consistent with their brand voice or aesthetic.
Lastly, using “banned” hashtags can result in your posts being hidden. You can check if a hashtag is banned by searching it on Instagram and looking at the top or most recent posts — if those sections come up empty, it’s likely banned.
Speaking of hashtags, we asked marketers how many they use, and whether broad or niche hashtags perform better. Let’s take a look at the results.

Instagram Video Features
In line with Instagram’s video-centric changes, 82% of Instagram marketers currently post videos on the platform, and those who do are 16% more likely to say Instagram marketing was effective for their brand last year.
The most popular video formats among marketers are Instagram Live, posting videos to their stories, posting videos to their feeds, and Instagram Reels.
So let’s take a look at some feature-specific data on each of these.
Instagram Live
Instagram live is not only the most leveraged video feature, but marketers who use it are 22% more likely to say that Instagram marketing was effective for their brand last year. Here are the content types that get the most engagement when going live on Instagram:

Instagram Stories
78% of Instagram marketers leverage stories, and those who do are 23% more likely to say that Instagram marketing was effective for their brand last year.
But how often should you be posting stories? 43% post stories multiple times a week, while 26% post multiple times a day, and 23% post daily.
Another common question is how long stories should be. 75% of Instagram marketers who leverage stories say their audience watches 4-9 story pages before dropping off, with only 7% saying their audience watches the entire story regardless of length.
We also asked about the ideal number of stories to have up at once – 74% of Instagram marketers say 4-9 stories is best:

Curious about which story types are most engaging? Check out this post.
Instagram Feed Posts
Though not exclusive to video, the modern Instagram feed is dominated by video content. 80% of marketers post to their feeds in their marketing role, but the frequency of their posting varies, with 45% posting multiple times a week, 23% posting once a day, and another 23% posting multiple times a day.

You may also be wondering about how long your captions should be when posting to your feed. 2 in 3 marketers say the optimal caption length to maximize engagement with a feed post is medium (31-50 words).

For a deeper dive on this, check out this post on instagram video formats.
Next, let’s take a look at whether Instagram marketers are leveraging organic or paid media on the platform, and which performs better.

Organic vs. Paid Instagram Content
Among those who use a mix of paid and organic content, paid content is somewhat more effective for reaching business goals and for gaining followers.
However, effective marketers are 20% more likely to leverage both organic and paid content compared to those who described Instagram as ineffective for reaching their business goals in 2021.
Speaking of effective and ineffective marketers, let’s end with a look at what sets the two groups apart.

Setting Effective and Ineffective Instagram Marketers Apart
Lastly, we asked Instagram marketers whether Instagram marketing was effective or ineffective in 2021, and looked at the data by the two separate groups. Here are some of the biggest differentiators:
As we end this post, here are a few themes we’ve picked up from the chart above, and the overall results of our survey:

Video is key: Instagram is constantly evolving to welcome more and more video formats. While you don’t need to create a large live video event, consider starting small with Reels as it is being favored by consumers and the Instagram algorithm.
Engage constantly: Whether you’re responding to their comments, exchanging DMs, or creating content that sparks a conversation – it’s important to ensure that your Instagram strategy caters to your audience and meets them where they are.
Social Shopping is the future: Shopping on social media is the future of e-commerce, and Instagram is the best place to do it. With a handful of shopping tools to choose from, there is no better time to get started.
Use Instagram for customer service: Using Instagram for customer service is a quick and convenient way to answer customers’ most pressing questions, and marketers who use it see high ROI.
Hashtags aren’t going anywhere: Hashtags are highly searchable, make your content more discoverable, and most marketers who use them plan to continue doing so. While you shouldn’t go overboard with too many hashtags, consider how you can leverage them creatively within upcoming content or if there are ways you can participate in hashtag trends on the platform.

More of Our Instagram Marketing Research
Check out these posts for a deeper dive as well as tips and tricks related to our Instagram marketing data.

The Top Instagram Marketing Challenges
The Top Reasons Brands Lose Followers
Do Brands Use Instagram Shopping Tools? [Data from 500+ Marketers]
Which Instagram Story Formats Really Engage Viewers [New Research]

Interested in learning even more about Instagram marketing and engagement from some of our expert partner brands? Be sure to download the free resource below.

There are seven steps in the sales automation process: Automated guidance Lead management automation Communication automation Automated data entry Automated research Automated activity logging Automated record creation Let’s get into the details. Automated guidance With this form of automation, the sales teams receive reminders and notes from the sales automation software. This keeps the reps on-task and prevents them from missing important prospects who could be converted into paying customers. Lead management automation Speaking of converting prospects into customers, there’s lead management automation. With this step of automation, the sales executive can use rules and filters that allow them to create a more curated list of leads. Based on lead characteristics and behavior, including email opens, click-through rates, and social searches, your sales automation software can easily segment and score your leads and divide them into neat lists or ‘buckets’ to work on. LeadFoxy – Best B2B Lead Generation & Lead management automation Software. Try LeadFoxy Free Trial Today. Communication automation From sales email automation to automated voicemails, appointment scheduling tools, and personal email sequences, communication automation matters a lot. With automated voicemails, the sales reps can pre-record a message at their leisure that the lead or customer receives when they don’t answer the phone. This prevents the agent from having to come up with responses on the spot, again and again. With built-in appointment scheduling, your sales agents can work with customers quickly and conveniently to schedule meetings based on when they’re both available. The software does all the tracking, so nobody has to make notes. The software sends reminders to the sales reps and customers as well. With personalized sales email sequences, customers can keep receiving important information in bits and pieces about the product or service on sale. Then there’s sales email automation, which can automate tasks like unsubscribing the email addresses of inactive subscribers from the email lists. This helps save time and reduce bounce rates and spam complaints. Automated data entry Data entry can be incredibly tedious and time-consuming, but it’s also a duty that’s unavoidable. Well, that was before the proliferation of sales automation tools. By auto-filling sales data like prices, product details, and contact details for leads and customers, the sales automation software streamlines contact management and saves valuable hours for your sales reps every day. Automated research Sales automation software goes beyond the sales team’s human ability to shake down the web and social media for key information on prospects and customers. It uses that information to create and update lead profiles, score leads on their win probability, and identify hot sales opportunities. This helps the sales reps incredibly because it saves them time and ensures that they are constantly up to date on the latest information about their contacts and prospects. All this knowledge is stored in a central repository so it can be easily accessed by all members of the sales team. Automated activity logging Sales emails, phone calls, in-person visits: all this needs to get logged in real-time, so other reps know how far one rep has gotten with a prospective customer. Automated activity logging does all that for the agent, once again saving them a lot of time to focus more on lead generation and closing deals. Automated record creation When your sales teams scan business cards or receive newsletter opt-in confirmations, they can simply let the sales automation software create the new records and profiles. As record creation is automated, the sales reps are relieved of a major time-wasting task. They can instead focus on closing deals with hot leads that the software identifies for them. submitted by /u/New_Bat_151 [link] [comments]

Webinars can help you to generate qualified leads, educate customers, facilitate onboarding processes, and foster partnerships and collaborations. However, to achieve the desired results, you need to promote your webinar to get a good number of attendees.  In this guide, we’ll show you how to use email marketing to convince people to sign up for…
The post How to Promote a Webinar with Email Marketing appeared first on Benchmark Email.

What do a hamburger restaurant chain, a law firm, and a sustainable packing company have in common?They all use social media to grow their brand and they all call on the team at Influence Media to help them create and manage their social content.Founded by Luke Thornton and based in the UK, Influence Media has a broad spectrum of clients. Some large, some small. Some local, some international. It keeps life interesting for them and it makes Buffer the ideal tool for developing a consistent presence for such a variety of brands. Here’s what Luke had to say when we asked him about the role Buffer plays in his business:We have ten plus clients on Buffer, which means we manage about thirty social channels in total and rising. Social media management makes up a significant amount of what we do here, so Buffer is an important part of our business.A key ingredient in Influence Media’s secret sauce is their in-house creative team. Social media is an increasingly visual world, and having professional film and photography as part of their service enables them to deliver high-quality content for their clients’ social channels. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sapporo Teppanyaki Glasgow (@sapporoglasgow) We offer the full video production package; from initial strategy planning, creative ideation, and storyboarding right through to production services and post-production.The social content they create ends up in Buffer, where they plan and schedule posts across Instagram, Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter for all of their clients in a single, simple dashboard.Influence Media’s social content calendar in BufferBuffer makes business manageable for us. We can manage all posts in one place and it’s easy to use. It’s a real lifesaver.Luke has also shared new feature requests with the Buffer team and having that connection helps both Buffer and Influence Media deliver more value to their customers.Video is such a powerful medium, and not just on platforms like Instagram. We had been asking for a LinkedIn native video scheduling feature for a while and when Buffer added it to their product we were thrilled!As for advice for any business that wants to grow its social media following? Consistency is key, according to Luke.The secret to a great social media strategy is consistency. Buffer is the perfect tool to maintain a consistent posting schedule, especially if you’re juggling content across multiple channels.

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Last Updated on April 18, 2022 by Rakesh Gupta I want to thank, each reader, and follower of automationchampion.com, for their support and feedback(s). Some of you requested me to write a blog post to explain (1) MALFORMED_ID Error; and, (2) how to solve it.  I have and will continue to, try
The post How to Fix MALFORMED_ID Error appeared first on Automation Champion.

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Last Updated on April 18, 2022 by Rakesh Gupta Big Idea or Enduring Question: How do you resolve the FIELD_INTEGRITY_EXCEPTION error?  The Record-Triggered Flow is a way of automating business processes. Record-Triggered Flow is a powerful tool for system administrators and developers to implement business processes without writing code. However, with great power comes
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Earth Day is one of the (many) days when businesses can create or reaffirm a commitment to practicing sustainability. Business owners must take time out to create awareness, especially when climate action is more important than ever.Along with the environmental implications, sustainability is growing in awareness among consumers. A 2021 study by Deloitte found that 34 percent of consumers choose brands that have environmentally sustainable practices.Here are some ideas for small businesses looking to highlight Earth Day on Instagram.Keep it simple with an informative message.Sometimes, a simple approach is better than an elaborate campaign, especially when there’s an important message to get across. So these brands decided to take the simple route, with a bit of their own added flair.Agnes LDN, a fashion brand aiming to educate its customers about sustainability, shared an Earth Day post with a simple but effective message. They ask readers not to focus only on the discounts and offers on Earth Day but also on its core themes of environmental restoration. They also highlight a creator, Poppy Okotcha, an ecological home-grower based out of the U.K., who shares information about foraging and regeneration gardening on her Instagram. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Agnes LDN (@agnesldn) On the other hand, Reclaim Wellness, a sustainable self-care brand, offered a discount (15 percent off on all their products) and shared ways users could be more sustainable daily. Some of their tips include growing some of your own produce, recycling, and upcycling clothing. View this post on Instagram A post shared by reclaim Wellness (@reclaim.ng) You can choose to share how your product helps people cultivate sustainable habits as Circular & Co, a reusable cups brand did in their Earth Day post. The team member that wrote the post highlighted that his own reusable coffee cup had saved ~85 disposable cups from the landfill, a great example of small changes making a big difference. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Circular&Co. (@circularandco) Or, you might share the different ways your brand practices sustainability as natural skincare brand Cln and Drty did in their Reel. The Reel specifically highlighted reusing leftover products as samples and recycling at all points of production. View this post on Instagram A post shared by CLN&DRTY Natural Skincare | self care is mental health care (@clnanddrty) Whatever you choose to do, remember to keep Earth Day and its core purpose –   making life more sustainable – at the forefront of your messaging.💡Practical Tip: Here are some resources from EarthDay.org, the world’s largest recruiter to the environmental movement that can help you make the most of Earth Day.Highlight or collaborate with another sustainable brand or creatorEarth Day is all about working together as a community to improve the state of the world. Focus on the community aspect by highlighting someone else like a brand or creator doing great work in the sustainability space by giving them a platform to let their voice and vision be heard.Love Stories Bali, a sustainable fashion brand highlighted Closed Loop, a sustainable fashion consultancy in their Earth Day post. They spoke about the brand’s sustainability efforts and shared images and videos of Closed Loop’s work to upcycle used clothing. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Love Stories Bali (@love.stories.bali) Whiskers Laces, an environmentally-friendly shoelace business, took a similar approach, highlighting a digital tool called Ethicli that helps people practice sustainable shopping in their post. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Whiskers (@whiskerslaces) 💡Practical Tip: There are many ways to collaborate. You can do an Instagram takeover with a creator focused on sustainability. Or you might just pick up the activities of a fellow brand in the sustainability space and put a spotlight on them.Conduct a giveawayIn the days leading up to Earth Day, you can plan to give away some products or services if that’s a good fit for your business. A giveaway can be a simple way to create engagement for your brand and create awareness around Earth Day. That’s the approach these three brands took, asking participants to like the post, follow both brands on Instagram, and tag a friend in the comments.Grandy Organics, an organic food company, partnered with Eco Bags US, the long-time reusable bag brand for a giveaway. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Grandy Organics (@grandyorganics) Tegaa a sustainable resort wear brand, partnered with Maya’s Cookies, a vegan cookie brand to give away their products. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Maya’s Cookies (@mayascookiessandiego) Three Alaska-based companies – Alaska Glacial, Alpine Fit, and Elevate Art Studio collaborated to give their products away in the days leading up to Earth Day. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kelsey Fagan (@elevate_art_studio) 💡Practical Tip: You don’t have to only giveaway using one format. You can do a giveaway that requires less effort on the customers’ part, including a free item in every order made on Earth Day or during that week or month.Donate your profitsIn the weeks or days leading up to Earth Day, consider offering a promo on your products and donating the proceeds or a portion of them to a good cause.Grandy Organics is donating 10 percent of its profits to Appalachian Mountain Club, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting the outdoors. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Grandy Organics (@grandyorganics) Sense of Shelf donated 100 percent of their profits to black-led farming organizations, with information about why in their Earth Day post. They also encourage their audience to forgo shopping and instead support the farms directly if they can do so. View this post on Instagram A post shared by SENSE of SHELF (@sense.of.shelf) If you’re on the hunt for organizations to donate to, here at Buffer we’ve vetted and donated to environmental charities in the past like Cool Earth and VertueLab. You can also check out Giving Green to help you find the right cause that aligns with your brand’s values.💡Practical Tip: Donating large amounts can be a big ask for many small businesses, but if you have any deadstock or cash that you can donate, that works great.Encourage followers to participate in sustainable activitiesThe impact of Earth Day needs to be felt physically and online. As a brand, you can encourage people to participate in more local activities that practically help improve the environment.Sense of Shelf did an IG takeover with Tuesdays for Trash, an environmental conservation organization. The post encouraged people to clean up their neighborhoods and take a selfie to be entered into a raffle. View this post on Instagram A post shared by SENSE of SHELF (@sense.of.shelf) 💡Practical Tip: There are great Earth Day activities for every type of business, even if you have a primarily local audience. Consider organizing cleanups of a local beach or park or a recyclables collection event.Practice what you preach when it comes to sustainabilityAside from being active on social media, it’s essential to keep practicing sustainability throughout the year. Make it a core part of your business ethos, from paying your workers fairly to recycling materials.Greenvelope’s Earth Day post reflects this as they share a simple message about their efforts to be a sustainable company. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Greenvelope | Online Invites (@greenvelope) What are your favorite Earth Day campaigns from small businesses? Tag us on Twitter and Instagram to let us know!

At Buffer, we’ve been working on a better admin dashboard for our customer advocacy team. This admin dashboard included a much more powerful search functionality. Nearing the end of the project’s timeline, we’ve been prompted with the replacement of managed Elasticsearch on AWS with managed Opensearch. Our project has been built on top of newer versions of the elasticsearch client which suddenly didn’t support Opensearch.To add more fuel to the fire, OpenSearch clients for the languages we use, did not yet support transparent AWS Sigv4 signatures. AWS Sigv4 signing is a requirement to authenticate to the OpenSearch cluster using AWS credentials.This meant that the path forward was riddled with one of these optionsLeave our search cluster open to the world without authentication, then it would work with the OpenSearch client. Needless to say, this is a huge NO GO for obvious reasons.Refactor our code to send raw HTTP requests and implement the AWS Sigv4 mechanism ourselves on these requests. This is infeasible, and we wouldn’t want to reinvent a client library ourselves!Build a plugin/middleware for the client that implements AWS Sigv4 signing. This would work at first, but Buffer is not a big team and with constant service upgrades, this is not something we can reliably maintain.Switch our infrastructure to use an elasticsearch cluster hosted on Elastic’s cloud. This entailed a huge amount of effort as we examined Elastic’s Terms of Service, pricing, requirements for a secure networking setup and other time-expensive measures.It seemed like this project was stuck in it for the long haul! Or was it?Looking at the situation, here are the constants we can’t feasibly change.We can’t use the elasticsearch client anymore.Switching to the OpenSearch client would work if the cluster was open and required no authentication.We can’t leave the OpenSearch cluster open to the world for obvious reasons.Wouldn’t it be nice if the OpenSearch cluster was open ONLY to the applications that need it?If this can be accomplished, then those applications would be able to connect to the cluster without authentication allowing them to use the existing OpenSearch client, but for everything else, the cluster would be unreachable.With that end goal in mind, we architected the following solution.Piggybacking off our recent migration from self-managed Kubernetes to Amazon EKSWe recently migrated our computational infrastructure from a self-managed Kubernetes cluster to another cluster that’s managed by Amazon EKS.With this migration, we exchanged our container networking interface (CNI) from flannel to VPC CNI. This entails that we eliminated the overlay/underlay networks split and that all our pods were now getting VPC routable IP addresses.This will become more relevant going forward.Block cluster access from the outside worldWe created an OpenSearch cluster in a private VPC (no internet-facing IP addresses). This means the cluster’s IP addresses would not be reachable over the internet but only to internal VPC routable IP addresses.We added three security groups to the cluster to control which VPC IP addresses are allowed to reach the cluster.Build automations to control what is allowed to access the clusterWe built two automations running as AWS lambdas.Security Group Manager: This automation can execute two processes on-demand.-> Add an IP address to one of those three security groups (the one with the least number of rules at the time of addition).-> Remove an IP address everywhere it appears in those three security groups.Pod Lifecycle Auditor: This automation runs on schedule and we’ll get to what it does in a moment.How it all connects togetherWe added an InitContainer to all pods needing access to the OpenSearch cluster that, on-start, will execute the Security Group Manager automation and ask it to add the pod’s IP address to one of the security groups. This allows it to reach the OpenSearch cluster.In real life, things happen and pods get killed and they get new IP addresses.Therefore, on schedule, the Pod Lifecycle Auditor runs and checks all the whitelisted IP addresses in the three security groups that enable access to cluster. It then checks which IP addresses should not be there and reconciles the security groups by asking the Security Group Manager to remove those IP addresses. Here is a diagram of how it all connects togetherDiagram for our solution to tackling Opensearch access problems through automated whitelisting, source: Peter Emil on behalf of Buffer’s Infrastructure TeamExtra GotchasWhy did we create three security groups to manage access to the OpenSearch cluster?Because security groups have a maximum limit of 50 ingress/egress rules. We anticipate that we won’t have more than 70-90 pods at any given time needing access to the cluster. Having three security groups sets the limit at 150 rules which feels like a safe spot for us to start with.Do I need to host the Opensearch cluster in the same VPC as the EKS cluster?It depends on your networking setup! If your VPC has private subnets with NAT gateways, then you can host it in any VPC you like. If you don’t have private subnets, you need to host both clusters in the same VPC because VPC CNI by default NATs VPC-external pod traffic to the hosting node’s IP address which invalidates this solution. If you turn off the NAT configuration, then your pods can’t reach the internet which is a bigger problem.If a pod gets stuck in CrashLoopBackoff state, won’t the huge volume of restarts exhaust the 150 rules limit?No, because container crashes within a pod get restarted with the same IP address within the same pod. The IP Address isn’t changed.Aren’t those automations a single-point-of-failure?Yes they are, which is why it’s important to approach them with an SRE mindset. Adequate monitoring of these automations mixed with rolling deployments is crucial to having reliability here. Ever since these automations were instated, they’ve been very stable and we didn’t get any incidents. However, I sleep easy at night knowing that if one of them breaks for any reason I’ll get notified way before it becomes a noticeable problem.ConclusionI acknowledge that this solution isn’t perfect but it was the quickest and easiest solution to implement without requiring continuous maintenance and without delving into the process of on-boarding a new cloud provider.Over to youWhat do you think of the approach we adopted here? Have you encountered similar situations in your organization? Send us a tweet!