In a time when paid social advertising is receiving an increasing slice of marketing budgets, it’s no wonder that Instagram advertising has been so highly anticipated. For 18 months, savvy marketers have waited for a conclusion from Instagram’s careful testing with hand-picked businesses. Finally, Instagram has announced it is launching its advertising platform to the masses. Can we get a heck yeah?!
Now, if you’re eager to get in on the Instagram ad game, you should be aware of what you’re getting into. We’re here to help with the scoop on the biggest things you need to know.
7 Things To Know Before Diving into Instagram Advertising
1. Goals
OK, so we’re starting off with something less about Instagram and more about you and your business. Like any successful advertising campaign, you need to have a goal before starting. Maybe you want to introduce a new product or raise awareness about your latest deals to some of Instagram’s 300 million monthly users. Whatever it is, ideally you’ll be able to match your goal with one of Instagram’s objectives.
2. Audience
We’d be remiss to discuss Instagram ads without pointing out the obvious: Instagram’s audience. It is younger and more affluent than Facebook’s huge pool of people. The audience is also much more likely to engage with brands (good for you, good for us). Of course these are general stats and there will be outliers. If you’re not sure if your audience is using it, do some research.
3. Ad objectives to help you reach your goals
Rejoice, for direct response buttons are here! If you’ve ever cringed at the thought of posting an un-clickable link in an Instagram caption or hoped people would take heed and visit your bio to learn more, your day has finally arrived.
Instagram’s advertising supports the following objectives:
Goal: Send people to your website
- Ad Objective: Clicks to Website
- Available Formats: Image, Video, Carousel
Goal: Get people to download your mobile app
- Ad Objective: Mobile App Installs
- Available Formats: Image, Video
Goal: Convey a message using video
- Ad Objective: Video Views
- Available Formats: Video
Goal: Impressions, placement at the top of Instagram’s feed
- Ad Objective: Mass Awareness
- Available Formats: Image, Video, Carousel
Note: this has limited availability. Contact Instagram for more information.
4. Several formats to choose from, depending on your objective
Instagram’s formats are very similar to what you’ll find on other social networks. With any of these formats, keep in mind that Instagram, at its core, is all about beautiful imagery. Repeat: all about it. We’ve already seen backlash on less-than-stellar photos used in Instagram ads. This community is used to high-quality content and isn’t afraid to let you know if yours is below par! So make it appealing.
Image Ads
The most straightforward of them all, the image ad, is presented in the original Instagram format with the option to include call-to-action (CTA) buttons.
- CTA options for web clicks: Book Now, Contact Us, Download, Learn More, Shop Now, Sign Up, Watch More
- CTA options for mobile app installs: Install Now, Use App, Book Now, Download, Learn More, Listen Now, Play Game, Shop Now, Sign Up, Watch More, Watch Video
Carousel Ads
Carousel ads allow you to showcase 3-5 images within a single ad unit and link to your website. Carousel ads are great because they present a lot of additional creative opportunities and are wonderful for storytelling or sequencing.
Note: currently in limited availability.
Video Ads
Beginning Sept. 30, Instagram will allow advertisers to run video ads up to 30 seconds in length for richer storytelling (doubling the length of Instagram’s native 15-second cap).
5. Well-crafted content always wins
Yes, we’re back to the same point in number 3 because it’s THAT important. If you want to win on Instagram, you must produce high-quality creative. This doesn’t mean you have to spend zillions producing the perfect photo, but it should be well shot and interesting to look at.
Your Instagram ads should also be in line with the rest of your branding. There are many ways to approach this, be it color palette, composition, focus etc.
While you’re focusing on those images, don’t overlook your copy. Look to your best-performing content as a starting point and to get some insight into what works well for your target audience. Different lengths and styles of copy can work, but it all comes down to what your audience likes.
Hashtags can also be incorporated into your ads, but keep it light. Instagram doesn’t recommend using more than three hashtags in an ad. Also keep in mind that you may want your audience clicking on your CTA button rather than a hashtag.
6. Facebook Power Editor
If you’re familiar with using Facebook’s Power Editor you’re one step closer to success, as Instagram is using the same self-serve portal for its ad management. If you’re not familiar with it, now is the time to brush up.
Sure, there’s a learning curve using Power Editor. That being said, there’s a huge payoff in more useful features versus regular Facebook Ad Manager. It also comes with Facebook’s incredible interest targeting features to push way beyond boring old demographic targeting. And on top of that, Instagram is getting the Facebook analytics treatment so you’ll be armed with important measurement tools to show if you’re providing real ROI.
7. Community Management
Most know they must comment and engage with their organic community, but many businesses are guilty about neglecting the comments on ads. The comments on ads provides a huge customer service opportunity. Monitor them and respond as you would with any other post!
Not sure where to start? Drop us a line, we’d be happy to discuss ways to assist you in reaching your goals.