Facebook Community Boost is a global program that provides businesses and entrepreneurs with the skills to help them compete in the new mobile economy. On November 13th and 14th at Millbank Tower, Facebook Community Boost hosted a 2 day event which featured workshops and talks including a very special session hosted by Instagram Business.

We brought together an expert panel of independent small business owners to share their individual insights into how they’ve successfully engaged audiences through Instagram and how by being active on the platform they are Getting Business Done.

The panel shared their perspectives on how Instagram has become a globally-recognized source for daily inspiration, bringing people together around what they are passionate about and connecting them with the businesses that speak to their passions:

By being able to reach out to and engage with the communities that thrive on Instagram, these entrepreneurs were inspired to be bold and bring their unique offering to the world with confidence:

The two-way stream of communication that Instagram enables between businesses and their audiences has created an illuminating dialogue that has helped to inform better sales strategies and guide the growth of their businesses:

Since launching in 2016, Instagram Stories has proven itself to be an extremely effective tool for businesses, and these entrepreneurs have seen the effects of inviting their customers to peek behind the curtain and get a glimpse of their business:

Stories create opportunities every day for businesses to embrace spontaneity and provide ephemeral snippets that are highly relevant to the present moment:

Stories on Instagram are not only great at deepening the feeling of connection to the brand, they have also succeeded in driving measurable actions too:

Many businesses on Instagram understand the power of organic community reach and can feel hesitant about making the leap to paid ads. These successful business owners on Instagram have learned that paid ads are the natural next step for any business that wants to grow and has a clearly defined audience:

And almost as soon as these entrepreneurs made the leap to paid ads, the positive effect on their businesses was incredible.

Shopping on Instagram has taken the essential, inspirational qualities of Instagram several steps further by allowing audiences to engage immediately with the products that catch their eye without having to leave the platform:

For these entrepreneurs, Shopping on Instagram has given them the tools to provide a richer and more rewarding experience for their communities:

For the businesses themselves, Shopping on Instagram has given them the tools to develop a deeper and more meaningful understanding of their audiences:

We wrapped up our panel with some reflections on how, for these businesses and many others, Instagram is Getting Business Done:

If you’d like to read about more businesses that are successfully growing on Instagram, you can take a look at our Stand Out Series and explore the Instagram Success Stories.