This is a fantastic piece on making the most of Instagram adverts by Heather Robinson from Skitti.sh – our go to support when our clients need a little extra help with SEO and digital marketing strategy.
If you’re already running Facebook Ads, you’ll know that your ads will automatically show on Instagram unless you untick a few boxes in your placement settings. However, when was the last time you set up specific ads just for Instagram?
According to Hootsuite, 50% of users become more interested in a brand after seeing an ad on Instagram, so if you have a product to sell, it makes sense to consider Instagram ads as an effective way to get your brand in front of more potential customers. Here’s our 14 top tips for Instagram Advertising.
Tip #1: Instagram is a mobile platform, so our first tip is to make sure your website gives users the best mobile experience before you even consider advertising on Instagram.
Choose your Instagram Ad format(s)
Photo Ads – great for businesses starting out as they’re quick and simple to set up.
Tip #2: Make sure you have some amazing, scroll-stopping photography that will get users’ attention and encourage them to click through to purchase.
Video Ads – these can be up to 120 seconds which gives you more time to get your message across to your audience. Videos tend to generate more engagement than a static photo, so if it’s comments and engagement you’re after, consider video ads.
Tip #3: Don’t rely on sound – assume people have their sound off. Subtitles/captions are vital for videos with people speaking.
Tip #4: Make sure your captions can be read easily when they’re overlaid over your video and make sure they don’t obscure any key information you’re displaying.
Stories Ads – these appear in and amongst your friends’ stories and give you the opportunity to get your products in front of the 500 million Instagram accounts who access stories daily.
Tip #5: These need to be in portrait mode so make sure you have images, video and graphics that fit this format.
Tip #6: Be sure to use the “Swipe Up” call-to-action on your Stories ads.
Carousel Ads – if you have multiple products to sell or want to tell a story through multiple images, carousels are another option. Instagram can automatically feature your most popular photo or product as the first image users see when scrolling through their feed to further optimise your engagement.
Collections Ads – these are similar to carousels in that you can feature multiple images (and videos) but collections are tailored more to selling products through your product catalogue, so definitely more for retail/ecommerce businesses.
Explore Ads – the Explore tab in Instagram is where users can find new content and new accounts to follow. Advertising here means you could be exposed to the 200 million accounts that access the Explore tab daily. The great thing about advertising here is that users are in ‘discover mode’; they’re actively looking for new products and relevant content, so as long as you get your targeting right, you should see a good interaction rate from your ads.
Get creative with your Instagram Ads
Tip #7: Grabbing the user’s attention with, not only an awesome visual, but text that shows a key benefit can make all the difference. Don’t rely on the text description to sell your benefits as not all users read the description below and Instagram has a habit of hiding long descriptions behind a “see more” link.
Tip #8: Resize your ads to fit the format you choose and make sure your text is still readable. Check out Facebook’s ad specifications for the recommended size and ratio of each Instagram ad placement.
Tip #9: Ads that don’t look like ads can work better. So think about ditching the corporate video and opt for more lifestyle, informal visuals that fit seamlessly with other content people are likely to be viewing in their feed.
Tip #10: Testimonials and featuring customers/clients are great ways to showcase your products without trying to sell the benefits yourself. Think about using quotes from product reviews from your website or clients talking about their experiences to camera.
Get focused on your Instagram advertising strategy
Tip #11: Respond to comments on your ad to answer any questions potential customers may have. Showcasing your first class customer service here could result in more sales.
Tip #12: Track everything in Facebook Ads Manager! Make sure your campaigns meet the objective you set at the outset and tweak your ads to further improve engagement at regular intervals.
Tips #13: Be clear on your targeting and make sure you set up appropriate audiences to show ads to people who are likely to be interested in your products.
Tip #14: Don’t forget to utilise custom audiences and remarketing to maximise your conversion rates.
Although Instagram Ads run through Facebook Ads Manager, don’t forget that it’s a separate platform with a different audience and a different format. Users are often looking for something a little different from the posts they see in their feed, so try using the top tips for Instagram advertising we’ve discussed here on your next ad campaign and start getting better results!