Instagram launches Small Business Mentorship programme
Instagram has announced its first Small Business Mentorship programme in the UK in partnership with Small Business Britain, the UK’s leading champion of small businesses, offering five lucky businesses a number of benefits which are listed below. You can enter your salon or spa here.
The programme is said to celebrate the “creativity and resilience” of entrepreneurs and small businesses following a challenging 18 months due to Covid-19, many of which turned to Instagram to stay afloat, including many salon and spa owners.
This iniative is continuation of the social media platform’s efforts to support small businesses in the UK, including many technological innovations to help connect businesses to customers. These include short-form video content creation through Reels, updates to the Insights tool which offers information about how content is performing, and continually re-evaluating the Shopping tools to reach new audiences.
The mentorship programme will offer five UK based small businesses:
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A content workshop afternoon with one of the UK’s top Instagram creators, covering creative tips and tricks, and developing a three-month Instagram content plan.
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An hour-long virtual coaching session with a business mentor.
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Three monthly hour-long sessions with an Instagram product expert, to discuss how to best use Instagram for Business.
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£1,000 worth of ad credits donated by Instagram - to support growth ambitions.
Instagram’s brand development lead, Gord Ray, comments: “This is a real opportunity for those looking to learn more about social commerce, creator content strategy and Instagram advertising. Small businesses have an unprecedented opportunity to re-shape the way people engage with, and buy from their brands - we want to make sure they seize it. We hope this mentorship programme will bring ambitious small businesses together, encourage creativity, and help ‘the nation of shopkeepers’ accomplish great things in the run up to the Holiday period, and beyond.”
Michelle Ovens CBE, founder of Small Business Britain, said: “It is vital for small businesses to develop digital skills to flourish and thrive. Instagram is a powerful channel for engaging audiences, and its importance has only increased during the pandemic. We are excited to be working with them on this programme which offers a really great opportunity for ambitious entrepreneurs.”
The deadline for entry submissions is midnight 19 September and winners will be contacted directly after 27 September. The mentorship programme will commence in October 2021 and run until December 2021. All businesses which submit an entry to the programme will receive a specifically curated Digital Toolkit, compiled by Instagram, which details best practice guides for social commerce on Instagram. You can enter your salon or spa by clicking here.