Instagram Ads: Running Your Own Ad Campaign

Since Instagram exploded on the social network scene in May 2010, it has made a quantum leap. By the end of June 2018, the trendy site welcomed 1 billion active monthly users. Visitors enjoy the visual landscape that video and photo-sharing provide.

With 1 billion images posted daily, and an enormous stash of billions of photos currently in existence, Instagram captures what’s going on in innovative ways . . . thanks to the dawning of smartphones.

Instagram Ads

It was not surprising when Facebook took over the site back in 2012. This shrewd move launched the beginning of Instagram ads. Sponsored posts on Instagram are set up much like Facebook ads. In fact, brands including Mercedes-Benz, Taco Bell, and Chobani have all run successful campaigns on the popular mobile platform.

Although each of these brands is vastly different, their Instagram ads have a few things in common, and they all perform well. The following are five factors that make for an effect Instagram ad:

• Shape Your Ad Around Your Marketing Structure

  Like all forms of digital advertising, Instagram ads should continue your marketing approach. The ads should align with your brand premise with a CTA that flows naturally with your brand. Use Instagram ads to enhance existing social media campaign objectives.

  Research what your competitors are doing. Look at the kinds of ads they are running and what CTAs they are using. It is also important to note the level of engagement they are achieving. A great way to research is to visit a competitor’s Instagram account and click-through to their mobile site. Also, consider how Instagram ads complement their other social media campaigns

• Make Creative the Highlight of Your Campaign

  The most memorable Instagram ads entice users with a single captivating image. Creative is key to the call-to-action. One extraordinary photo will grab the viewers’ attention more than a collection of images. Experiment with images taken specifically for your Instagram campaigns. Trying using tight product shots, close crops, and interesting angles that impart motion and creative energy. This approach will generate curiosity in viewers and prompt them to click.

• Keywords and Hashtags for Targeting

  Hashtags are the phrases following the # symbol. These isolated keywords help users to sort content by interests.

  Users and advertisers on Instagram add targeted hashtags, so their content shows up in key searches. When a viewer taps a hashtag, the user is directed to a page displaying creative tagged with that hashtag. Therefore, it is important to map out your hashtags carefully. Select keywords relevant to your brand, user interests, and product categories when including hashtags in your content.

• Review Social Media Statistics

  Use social media tracking data to see which posts are performing best. Social media statistics also display the which times, and days your posts receive the most clicks, views, and shares. This tracking data is a useful tool for building an effective Instagram ad campaign.

  These statistics also allow you to examine which offers appeal most to Instagram users. Favorable content on other social media sites is likely to appeal to followers on Instagram as well.

• Use A/B Testing

  There is much to be learned from testing your ads. After your benchmark ad is the establishment, run experimental ads against it and analyze the results. Examine what factors improve the rate, whether it be the timing, offer, creative or the audience, using a basic A/B split test to test one ad against another. Use the data to rejuvenate your ad campaign, repeating the test with new benchmarks until you the response doesn’t budge any higher.

Have Your Instagram Ads Tell a Captivating Story

Human beings love stories, especially visual tales that evoke emotion. That is what makes Instagram feeds so appealing to viewers. Whether you post one image per hour that showcases your product story, or a short video clip or slideshow that shares unique insights, content marketing on Instagram is about storytelling.