Cantor Fitzgerald: Instagram More Popular Than Ever Among Marketers

In an industry-wide Internet and media note on Tuesday, Youssef Squali of Cantor Fitzgerald explained why Instagram is now more important to markets than ever before. When Facebook Inc FB acquired Instagram for $1 billion, some analysts and investors questioned the price tag Facebook paid. Nearly two years later, Facebook's investment in the photo-sharing site may be showing its true value. Simply Measured, a social media analytic firm gauged Instagram at 200 million plus active users, 60 million daily photos and 1.6 billion interactions per day. Squali notes that based on his research, 86 percent of top brands use Instagram as part of their marketing strategy, marking a 15 percent year-over-year increase. "Brands who posted at least once a day have doubled since 2012, while 73% of brands post at least one photo or video per week, the researcher found," Squali quoted Simply Measured. The analyst also states that according to Simply Measured, there is a clear correlation between brands that maintain an active presence on Instagram and increased user engagement." Cantor Fitzgerald rates Facebook as Buy rated, noting that the company has "untapped" monetization potential for Instagram.