Thanks to targeting technology and user-friendly platforms, businesses of just about any size and budget can now effectively advertise online. There are many types of online advertising, from search engines to app stores to social media platforms. Instagram is one such social media platform that supports online advertising. As it continues to roll out new features to standard business accounts, Instagram advertising is becoming more and more worth the investment. Read on to learn about the how Instagram advertising works, how much it costs, and the various options you have to choose from.
Why Advertise on Instagram?
Promoting your business on Instagram using free methods can help you make a dent in your marketing, but that doesn’t mean that you should neglect paid advertising on the platform. There are many benefits to Instagram advertising that contribute the high ROI you can achieve if you do it right. They include:
Reach the Right People
Instagram advertising utilizes comprehensive demographic, geographic, and psychographic data to help your ads reach the right people and succeed as much as possible.
Get More Clicks on Your Ads
People are 2.5 times more likely to click (tap) on an Instagram ad than any other social media ad. (Source: Fortune)
Create a Positive User Experience
Advertising on Instagram is a way of getting in front of your target audience on the mobile devices they prefer to use today. The ads within the feeds are also less intrusive or distracting than, say, display ads so they create a positive experience with your brand.
How to Create an Instagram Ad
Instagram advertising operates through the same system as Facebook ads. Here’s how it works:
Setting Up an Instagram Advertising Account
If you’ve never run an advertising campaign on Instagram before, you have some housekeeping work to do before you can get started. Don’t let the number of steps intimidate you—everything can be done with just a few clicks and several minutes.
- Since Instagram uses Facebook’s advertising platform, you’ll have to connect your Instagram account to your Facebook page.
- From there, you’ll need to hook up your Facebook page to Facebook’s Business Manager.
- Then you need to add your Instagram account to Business Manager by entering your Instagram username and password.
Setting Up Your Instagram Ad Campaign
Once everything is set up, you’ll have to pick from these objectives:
• Website Clicks
• Website Conversions
• Video Views
• App Installs
You will also need to determine what format of ad you want:
• Photo
• Video
• Carousel (a gallery of photos)
After you click the Create button, you will be redirected to your campaign in the Power Editor page. There you will set up your:
• Campaign spending limit
• Target audience
Instagram Ad Captions
Your Instagram ads can contain a caption just like with typical posts. Maximum character length is 2,200 characters, and while you can include a URL in your captions, they are not clickable so this practice is discouraged. Instagram ads come with a call to action button of your choice, so stick to this method (Source: Facebook).
Types of Instagram Ads
There are three main types of Instagram ads that can help you to showcase products or services, introduce new ones, or promote events or sales, or special offers.
Photo Ads
Instagram photo ads are simple and easy. You can use square, landscape, or vertical formats (resolution will vary for each format). Videos are engaging, but you can pack a powerful punch if you use the right image and caption.
Check out our post on Examples of Instagram Ads to get some ideas, inspiration, and tips for your photo ads.
Video Ads
Your Instagram ad video can be up to 60 seconds in length. All videos on Instagram automatically play without audio (users have to tap on the video in order to activate the sound), so it should not be totally dependent on audio.
Check out these Examples of Instagram Video Ads to learn more.
Carousel Ads
Instagram Carousel ads enable you to include multiple pictures or a mix of picture and video in one ad post. Just as with a typical multiple-picture post, users have to swipe left to see the other images in the ad( Source: Facebook). Note that some video ads may look like carousel ads, as they might shift through images in a slideshow format. If you do not want the user to have to swipe through the images themselves, don’t use the carousel ad format—stick with video.
Stories Ads
Instagram Stories help to tell an engaging story about your business and captivate your audience. As with video ads, the key to getting results out of a Instagram Stories Ad is in making your point clearly and quickly, as your viewers cannot rewind back.
How Instagram Advertising Helps Your Business
The Instagram advertising objectives mentioned above can help to facilitate various marketing goals and initiatives, such as:
• Expand your reach and tap into new markets
• Educate users on your products or services
• Express your brand voice and build brand awareness
• Attract local customers and build a local community
• Drive traffic to your website or landing pages and increase conversions
• Generate more leads and sales
• Get more visitors to your store
Check out Instagram’s advertising page for more goals and objectives to consider.
Instagram Advertising Cost
Ah, now the real talk. How much does Instagram advertising cost? Instagram advertising is now open to small and medium-sized businesses, but is it conducive to small and medium-business-sized wallets?
Now that Facebook is attuned to Facebook’s advertising framework, it is much easier for small businesses to get bang for their buck. Facebook’s budget manager allows you to set a budget you’re comfortable with. You can select a daily, monthly, or lifetime budget. The best way to see if Instagram advertising will work for you is to test it out. Run a test ad and see how it performs, how much engagement it garners, and whether the results are worth the cost per click.
Use this basic Instagram advertising information to get a big picture of how it works and whether it makes sense for your business. It will require some trial and error, but the reporting and analytics will help you to make informed decisions along the way.
