Do you want to launch an advertising campaign on Instagram, but you don’t know how to get the most out of it? Well, you’ve come to the right place!
In this article, we’ll show you how to run profitable campaigns on Instagram Ads, giving you practical advice to avoid mistakes and increase the value of your brand.
How Advertising Works on Instagram
Instagram began as a social network exclusively for photography, but since its acquisition by Facebook, it began to expand its content and formats. Now, Instagram is everywhere and still growing, being one of the most used social networks in the world, with about 1 billion users.
According to a study carried out by Instagram, 75% of Instagram users take actions (such as visiting a website, doing searches or purchases, or recommending the company to a friend) after seeing a publication that inspires them.
Not all companies that invest in Instagram Ads manage to make their investment profitable. Far from it… Only those who draw up a strategy and know-how to design their campaigns correctly get results and since Instagram is one of the platforms with the best interactions and advertising profitability, you shouldn’t miss the opportunity to make your business grow too. So, it's a win-win situation. Instagram grows while your business also grows.
What are the benefits of investing on Instagram Ads for Businesses?
Bear in mind that Instagram is a business that makes its income on advertising. And you can piggy-back on that and make money too. So, it is a perfect business opportunity to benefit from. In fact, you can:
- Reach your potential customers in the same environment where they interact with their friends.
- Get an impact on your audience by taking advantage of all the visual possibilities it offers.
- Reach users interested in your products/services.
- Improve your image and transmit the values of your brand.
- Increase your followers and create a community around your brand.
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How can you create Instagram ads that stand out?
Before starting the creative process to get your ad ready, focus on a specific niche and get a specialized brand.
For instance, if your brand is in the fashion industry, it’s better to focus on attracting quality followers already interested in the fashion world. This way you add real value and teach them what they need. If you diversify your ads on several topics, it will take you more time to grow, since the user won't be clear about what you really do.
Now, let’s start. As you already chose your niche and analyze the different advertising formats available on Instagram, we’ll give you 5 tips to get your ads to stand out.
1. Includes smiling faces
Humans feel attraction to other faces, and if they are smiling, much better. If your audience looks at smiling faces who seem to enjoy the moment they will associate happiness with your product or service.
2. Use humor
Humor is one of the ingredients that work really well on social media. If you can use it in your ads, you’ll trigger your interaction and reach more people with your message.
3. Tell stories
People love stories and if you manage to convey emotions related to the consumption of your product/service, they will feel more empathy for your brand. And telling good stories that highlight the needs and dreams of your audience will make you gain more followers and leads than any strategy, no matter how persuasive it is.
4. Stay consistent
Maintaining coherence between your creativity and your product/service is fundamental. All your ads should match the colors of your brand and the feeling you inspire in your audience. This way, they will recognize your brand and identify your business easily.
5. Raise the quality
If you offer content of a higher quality, which really adds value, you’ll get your reader’s attention. As competition increases in social media, you need to stand and offer great quality. There”s no secret. You'll have to give people high-quality material.
What kinds of Instagram ads formats can you use?
Once your ideas are clear and you know how to advertise on Instagram, you’ll have to decide what ad formats will give you the best ROI.
1. Image
A picture is worth a thousand words so it’s no wonder the image format is the most popular format and simple to implement. For using images, include a high-quality image to convey a message with emotions for reinforcing the objective of your campaign.
If you need help shooting your campaign, we’ve got you covered at PUNCHY. We shoot all our own brand photography, and for dozens of our clients. Give us a shout if you would like to chat about how we can level up your brand with the use of custom photography.
But don’t fret, you don't have to hire a professional photographer or buy a professional camera to upload a good image. Depending on the type of smartphone you have, you can get very good results.
In case you do not have a good camera, you can always go to image editing software to improve your images. Also, you can complement your strategy using stock photos, which you can get for free on websites like Pixabay or Pexels. There are so many options available to you!
2. Video
Video is the star format in social networks, this is due to two factors. First, movement attracts more attention than a static image and, on the other hand, you can transmit much more information through a video. And users will appreciate more details and information.
In case you need more information about the available formats, just click this link to the official Facebook and Instagram website.
3. Sequential images
Through sequences, you’ll be able to show several images or videos in your ads. And you can take advantage of this functionality to:
- Highlight different angles of a product
- Show multiple products
- List characteristics of a service
- Create a composition in a mosaic format
- Tell stories
- And so on, and so on...
To get users to take a look at your content on your sequential images, you must include visual marks that indicate that there are more images. Or, in the case of including video, invite the user to swipe to see the next video.
4. Stories
Stories are one of the strengths of Instagram, reaching the point that more than 500 million people use them every day. Stories have many advantages… They are a totally immersive experience, in which you’ll have the user’s full attention and can convince them to perform the target action. In addition, you can use multiple images or videos to expand the creative possibilities and the message you convey.
5. Collections
In Instagram, you’ll be able to show users a collection of products in a very visual catalog to increase your sales and, if you install Facebook Pixel on your website and synchronize the catalog of your online store, you’ll be able to display the products to your potential customers in a more personalized way.
How to discover your competitor’s advertising strategy on Instagram
Before going out to play the game, you have to know your competitors. That is …research their strategy for advertisement. Let’s see how you can research your competitors, following these simple steps:
- Enter your competitors' Instagram profiles
- Display the side navigation menu
- Click on ”about this account”
- Enter the “ads” tab
- And that’s it!
You’ll check your competitor’s advertising strategy. This is an Instagram ads policy to make their business as safe and transparent as possible.
Now, that you already know how advertising works on Instagram, the available formats and some tricks to get ads that connect with your audience.
At PUNCHY, we’re going to teach you how to create your first advertising campaign on Instagram, step-by-step, contact us today!
1. Link your Facebook page with your Instagram profile
No big deal. You just have to link your Instagram account with your Facebook page.
2. Enter the Facebook Ads business manager
The next step is going to the Facebook Ads business manager and creating an advertising account. This advertising account will work for your Facebook and Instagram pages.
You should know that you’ll be able to create and manage an infinite number of personal or client advertising accounts. And then, create a Facebook Pixel. Here, Facebook explains how to do it.
In case you don’t know, the Facebook Pixel is a code that, when inserted on your website, stores the behavior of your visitors in the Facebook Ads business manager. And through this data you can create campaigns of remarketing on Facebook, for example, to get users who have visited your website and left without completing their purchase. Simple, but extremely effective for your business.
3. Create a campaign and select your objective
After having your advertising account fully functional, it’s time to create your first campaign.
What goals should you set for your campaign? Make 3 simple campaign objectives that represent the purchasing decision process of your target audience.
Your first objective is to get Recognition. These objectives focus on impacting users who don’t know you (cold traffic) and getting them to discover your brand and the product/service you offer. So, here you’re generating brand recognition.
Your second objective is to Get users to consider your offer. Once you achieve recognition, you must move on to get them to identify (or consider) you as a solution to their problem. And when they trust you, you can ask them to do something, such as visiting your website, downloading a PDF, filling out a form, etc. This way you’ll get:
- Traffic
- Interaction
- Video reproductions
- Lead Generation
- Messages
- And more.
Finally, the next step is Conversion. You’ll get users to make their purchases after they show their interest in your product/service. This is where the remarketing campaigns end and you’ll get:
- Conversions
- Business traffic.
4. Segment your audience
After knowing the stage you are in and establishing the objective of your campaign, you have to create a set of ads and segment the audience you’re going to target. That is, selecting, for instance, the locations where the ads will appear on Instagram (stories or feed).
5. Create your ads on Instagram
At last, you can create the ads for Instagram, adapting both the images/videos and text to your potential customer’s needs.
Tips to increase Instagram Ads Effectiveness
To help you in this process, we’re going to give you 4 tips that you must follow to optimize your campaigns.
1. Define your buyer persona
Your buyer persona is the representation of your ideal client. You have to give it identity, personality and motivations, as well as all the data that is relevant to help you understand their buying behavior. You cannot limit yourself to creating a single buyer persona and you should create a different buyer persona for all your clients’ needs and preferences or demographics.
2. Use copywriting techniques
There are hundreds of persuasive writing techniques for connecting with the emotions or needs of readers. These techniques will help you convey your message and get them to take action. Here, you have a famous copywriting method to get people’s attention
- AIDA model (Awareness, interest, desire and action).
Those are the feelings you need to awake in your potential customers and with these steps you’ll have a classical but powerful tool to get your reader’s attention.
3. Adapt your messages to the type of ads
It’s tempting to take advantage of the same design to show it everywhere… But don’t do it. You waste your money because if you don't adapt your ad to your target and you won't be able to convey the message effectively.
4. Don't take anything for granted: take A / B tests
Perform A / B tests to find the key points and optimize, little by little, your ads and achieve maximum profitability.
However, here we have to warn you… To draw conclusions from your A / B tests, there can't be big differences between both versions of your ads, or you won't know what works and what doesn’t work.
Now, you are ready to use Instagram Ads and see pay-offs!
The potential of advertising on Instagram is enormous and you have no excuses and in case you have any questions or you want to share your experience investing in Instagram Ads, Contact Us.
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