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Why Use Instagram Ads?
Instagram is one of the most popular social networks in the World and advertising on the social media platform provides brands with an opportunity to reach an audience of millions.
If your objective is to market your business, create value and build a brand — simultaneously. Advertising on Instagram via Facebook, automatically gives your business a number of advantages and a number of paths to take to achieve your overall advertising goals.
Whether it be driving awareness, increasing your customer base or cultivating a brand identity among a highly active audience. Instagram provides businesses with a seamless experience tailored to inspire action.
No matter the size of your budget, advertising on Instagram offers your business an easy way to meet your business goals and get results. Since Instagram is a part of the Facebook ecosystem.
There are three main campaign types:
- Awareness — Increase the number of people who know about your content, product or services (Reach, Reach & Frequency, Brand Awareness & Local Awareness).
- Consideration — Direct people down a path to learn more about your content, product or services (Website clicks, Video Views, Reach & Frequency)
- Conversion — Boost content views/streams, product purchases, even visitors to your online store ( Website conversions, Dynamic ads on Instagram, App Install & Engagements).
In a sense, Instagram has become a stronghold within the Facebook ecosystem. Bolstering 2 million monthly advertisers and over 25 million business accounts.
The platform has become a mainstay for brands, Influencers, photographers and puppy connoisseurs alike.
44% of Instagram’s active users utilize the platform for search and discovery of top brands.
RELATED: Introducing Instagram Ads in Explore Feed
With that being said, visual content DOES matter.
53% of Instagram users follow their favorite brands on the platform. Given the exposure, small businesses have a social media platform to express their creativity and establish a voice locally and globally.
How To Create Instagram Ads With Facebook Ads Manager
Follow these simple steps to create and customize your ads on Instagram.
Step 1
On your Facebook home page, click Create, then choose Ad from the drop down menu to enter Facebook Ads Manager.
Step 2
Click the Create Ad button and choose Guided Creation.
Step 3
Choose an Objective for your ad.
PRO TIP: Each objective will have different options so take the time to explore them to find what’s right for your needs.
Step 4
Choose a Campaign name, then click Set up ad account.
Step 5
Make sure that your details are correct and click Continue.
Step 6
Choose the audience your ad will be aimed at.
PRO TIP: Choose Browse in Detailed Targeting to explore a range of metrics to specify who you want your ad shown to.
Step 7
Under Placements, choose Edit placements and then check the Instagram box.
PRO TIP:You can also run the same Instagram ads on Facebook and Facebook Messenger simultaneously.
Step 8
Set the budget and schedule for your ads and click Continue.
PRO TIP: Select Lifetime budget to set a limit on how much can be spent on the campaign.
Step 9
Select the Facebook and Instagram accounts to link to the campaign.
Step 10
Pick the content format for the ad to be in.
Step 11
Choose the images or media you want to include in your ad, as well as the headline and any text.
Step 12
Click Confirm to enter your payment information and launch your campaign.
The 6 Types of Instagram Ads
There are number of different advertising formats that you can use in Instagram to help you achieve your business objectives.
Photo Ads
Photo ads are a great way to keep your advertisements clean and simple. They consist of one or more images in a landscape or square format.
PRO TIP:Avoid using stock or standalone product imagery straight from a catalog.
Video Ads
Video ads are a great way to ad to add sound, motion and include an added visual aspect to your Instagram advertisement. Videos can be up to 120 seconds long or a GIF — which can contain text and links in the description.
PRO TIP: To get users to follow through, select “Add a website URL” to add a Call To Action button that directs potential customers to your site.
Carousel Ads
Carousel ads are an addition to photo ads on Instagram. This ad format provides a layer of depth for businesses because they can include photos, videos, GIFs and allows customers to scroll through your Instagram post.
PRO TIP: Carousel ads can be used to give customers a step-by-step guide on how to use your product.
Collection Ads
Collection ads on Instagram is a great way to help potential customers discover your products, services or content.
The Instagram ad type allows businesses and brands to craft a message around their story with photos, videos or both.
Collection ads create value by allowing businesses to present a brand story surrounding interests, products and content.
PRO TIP: You can add deep links to enable user tracking through third party application such as Iconosquare and Buzzsumo.
Ads in Explore
Instagram’s Explore advertising is a great way to reach people who are discovery mode and looking for inspiration outside of the core group of accounts they already follow.
Ads in Explore aim to increase reach, brand awareness and grow your follower base into engaged customers. The key is to always add value.
A great example is Kylie Jenner’s Instagram account where she mixes fashion, lifestyle and beauty products to produce a highly active follower base.
PRO TIP:Create a clear action path for user by giving simple steps and describing the results of actions, for example, “Tap the ball to make it bounce”.
Instagram Stories Ads
Instagram Stories Ads is a great way to connect with Instagram’s 500+ million user base already using Instagram Stories daily to grow an audience.
This type of ad format appears in between Instagram Stories in the form of single images or single videos.
PRO TIP:60% of Instagram Stories are viewed with the sound on, so include music or voices to make your Story stick out.
How To Make Your Ad Stand Out
Be strategic to maximize the effectiveness of your Instagram advertisement.
Choose The Best Day And Time To Post
- Instagram user engagement is highest at: Wednesday — 3pm, Thursday — 5am/11am/3–4pm, Friday — 5am
Create Your Own Branded Hashtag To Tie A Campaign Together
- 70% of Instagram hashtags are branded, they provide continuity and make it easy to determine a brand’s popularity.
Test Different Visuals On Your Audience
- The statistics that you can analyze through Instagram Insights allows you to experiment with your advertisements to determine what content your audience likes best.
Include User-Generated Content
- People trust people, especially those they know. So include feedback, testimonials or images from your brand community on Instagram.
Instagram ads are an effective and cheap way to connect with a wider audience.
Use our full Instagram guide to help you create ads that can make a difference for your business.
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