How to prospect on Instagram in 2025? Outbound Marketing and Inbound Marketing

You can't seem to start your subscribers and convert them into customers? Despite the relevant content you publish, no one is calling on your services? Don't know how to prospect on Instagram? There are plenty of people using Instagram to promote their services, products and even benefits.

However, businesses aren't relying on any reliable strategy for prospecting effectively on Instagram. In this article, the Boostfluence team shares actionable insights into leveraging inbound and outbound marketing strategies to prospect effectively on Instagram.

What Are Inbound and Outbound Marketing?

Marketing experts will sometimes refer to marketing as "inbound" or "outbound" marketing. Put simply, inbound marketing or "inbound marketing" is a prospecting method based on the creation of web content, which aims to attract as many qualified leads as possible.

Contrast this with outbound marketing or "outbound marketing", which is a strategy in which you address the customer instead of telling them to come to you. This can include going to activities, like going to networking events to introduce yourself. Or sending an e-mail to your prospects to offer your services, calling a customer you really want to work with to present your new offer, or simply buying a paid ad on Instagram.

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Inbound Marketing: Steps to Prospecting on Instagram

Inbound marketing is a strategy used by all large, successful companies. Generally speaking, sales approaches are made using digital solutions. Indeed, to attract consumers on Instagram, content marketing must follow the A-I-D-A method: Attention - Interest - Desire - Action. Below, we share the key steps you need to put in place to successfully prospect on Instagram.

1. Attract the visitor to your Instagram account. It's necessary to create relevant and influential marketing content to entice visitors to subscribe to your Instagram account and follow your news. The aim is to show web users that your brand has a presence on Instagram and offers exclusive deals to this social network.
2. Convert visitors into leads or prospects (calls to action, ebooks, newsletters, free trial days). This is the step that allows visitors to determine their needs. If they differentiate their needs on brand content, the chances of a sale are high.
3. Transform prospects into customers. A conversion is successful if the prospect decides to take action (purchase, request for quote, etc.) by contacting the company.
4. Loyalize customers (newsletters, intelligent content). The company leads development primarily by providing content likely to interest potential customers. This stage also includes maintaining ongoing contact with customers.

In short, thanks to digital leverage, inbound marketing can transform mere strangers into genuine brand promoters. By following these key inbound marketing steps, you ensure massive prospecting thanks to an optimized customer journey.

Outbound Marketing: Steps to Prospecting on Instagram

Outbound marketing uses traditional marketing levers known since the dawn of time. Unlike inbound marketing, which involves attracting prospects without canvassing them directly, outbound marketing is a strategy that involves creating links with other Instagram users and brands.

The company's role is to use this "outbound marketing" strategy to get closer to its consumers. Connect with similar Instagram accounts-that's where potential prospects are waiting for you. Below, here are some examples of outbound marketing actions you can take to create connections on Instagram and prospect.

• Leave meaningful comments on other posts.
• Engage users in conversation on other posts to define their needs.
• Respond to the comments people leave on your posts (quickly, and with more than three words so the Instagram algorithm smiles at you!)
• Send private messages to subscribers to keep the conversation going.

By combining these examples with all the other interaction tools available on Instagram, you'll build a loyal community interested in your services or products.

Determine your target customer before prospecting effectively on Instagram

Instagram is a platform that brings together a huge number of users'it's so intuitive that it's easy to use. It's so intuitive that many entrepreneurs and freelancers use it to prospect or gain visibility.. However, before choosing this social network, you need to consider your objectives.

Determine your offer and persona

First, you need to understand your role, your offer and who your ideal customer is by asking yourself some essential questions.

• Who is he?
• How old is he?
• Where does he live?
• What is his income level
• Etc.

This indispensable step will enable you to create more relevant content and effectively engage your potential customers. These are the must-haves before you launch. Once you've identified your ideal customer, you can turn your attention to your potential customers and prospect on Instagram.

The different levels of maturity in the buying process

The two terms refer to very different people. It's important to know how to distinguish the different levels of maturity. This will enable you to engage logically with a visitor, potential customer or prospect.

In fact, each of them is at a certain level of maturity in the buying process. Visitors to your profile don't automatically become customers'that's too easy. It's a complete journey: visitors, potential customers, prospects and then buyer.

Visitors

All customers start out as visitors. A person becomes a visitor the moment they land on your Instagram account.

In general, with the inbound marketing technique, you need visitors to convert as many of them as possible into customers. Unlike outbound marketing, you don't have to have a huge number of visitors to prospect directly.

Potential customers

Potential customers are people who have shown interest in your offer. For example, they took part in an in-story survey about your new offer and signed up for your masterclass.

Cold and hot prospects

Prospects are people who match your objectives, and therefore your persona. They are potential customers who have shown interest in your offer. However, there are 2 types of prospects: cold prospects and hot prospects. Consequently, communication with these two contacts is completely different.

Cold prospects

Cold prospects seem attracted by what you have to offer, but don't plan to buy in the short term. In fact, for cold prospects, you need to suggest that they have a problem to solve, and that buying this product or service will fill the gap. It's worth developing a strategy to get them to take action over the medium or long term.

Hot prospects

On the other hand, hot prospects express interest in your offer and are ready to take action immediately. When it comes to hot prospects, it's all about accompanying them through to the act of purchase, letting them know that you're the best fit for their needs.

Do you need a lot of followers to prospect on Instagram?

No. You can very well use a new Instagram account to engage with qualified prospects. The fact is, you need to professionalize your Instagram account, create quality content that sparks interest and engage regularly with Instagram accounts in your niche as well as with your followers. Then, by following our traffic acquisition and prospecting tips, you'll guarantee to monetize your Instagram account.

Focus on Quality Relationships in 2025

Instagram’s evolving algorithms prioritize genuine interactions over follower counts. This means building meaningful relationships with other users is more valuable than increasing your subscriber base.

Tips for Quality Prospecting:

• Engage consistently with users through thoughtful comments and DMs.
• Publish helpful, relevant content that addresses users’ needs.
• Use Boostfluence to automate and organize your prospecting efforts.

Organizing your prospecting strategy

Our Boostfluence tool lets you plan and automate your interaction actions as well as the publication of your Instagram content. It's the best way for you to organize your prospecting strategy professionally.

Inbound marketing: use Boostfluence to plan your posts

To use the "inbound marketing" strategy effectively, make sure you plan your Instagram posts. To do this, create your Instagram content in advance and plan your content marketing weeks in advance. By using Boostfluence, you save considerable time to focus all your attention on indirect prospecting.

Outbound marketing: use Boostfluence to automate your engagement

As you've understood, the "outbound marketing" strategy consists of strategically engaging with qualified Instagram users. Optimize your actions with Boostfluence!Professionalize your direct prospecting strategy by engaging with Instagram users.

Conclusion: Prospecting on Instagram in 2025

To prospect effectively on Instagram in 2025, you need to know:

1. your ideal customer;
2. the key stages of inbound marketing;
3. the effective strategy of outbound marketing;
4. the different levels of maturity in the buying process.

The aim is not for these actions to take up all your time. Work just 2 to 3 days a week to set up your publications. Then, take 15 to 30 minutes a day to devote yourself to marketing your Instagram account.

To do this, create a reminder for yourself in your calendar and add this task to your daily list. All that's left is to professionalize your prospecting strategy with Boostfluence and increase your conversion rate to help as many people as possible.