The Nitrogram 50, a ranking of the top 50 brands on Instagram, names Nike and Starbucks as the No. 1 and No. 2 most engaging brands on the social network.
Nitrogram is a 9-month-old startup that offers Instagram analytics for businesses. The rankings take into account both a brand's number of followers and the number of mentions of the brand through its hashtag, such as #nike. The second measure carries significant weight. For instance, Adidas, ranked No. 4, has fewer than 750,000 followers but nearly three million posts that include its hashtag.
Nike attained its top ranking by posting high-resolution color photographs of athletes along with inspirational slogans. For example, it posted a close-up of tennis superstar Roger Federer's airborne feet at the Wimbledon tournament this week. The caption: "You don't get here by playing it safe. #Federer."
The ranking includes a few surprises. GoPro, the maker of a well-regarded portable video camera, is not a household name but is listed at No. 11. That's far higher than media titan Disney, which comes in at No. 37.
Below is a list of the top 25 brands with corresponding numbers of Instagram followers:
1. Nike: 1,677,064
2. Starbucks: 1,313,459
3. Forever 21: 1,377,048
4. Adidas: 739,792
5. Victoria's Secret: 2,105,199
6. Topshop: 1,081,389
7. Vans: 474,223
8. Red Bull: 774,398
9. Michael Kors: 908,694
10. Converse: 377,799
11. GoPro: 786,016
12. H&M: 826,082
13. MTV: 1,345,352
14. Burberry: 857,202
15. Audi: 456,979
16. Louis Vuitton: 485,711
17. Hollister: 338,544
18. BMW: 339,942
19. Gucci: 663,979
20. Louboutin: 1,377,534
21. Zara: 329,621
22. Sephora: 488,637
23. Marc Jacobs: 733,539
24. Asos: 802,441
25. Playboy: 522,505
