Did you know that over 200 million people visit at least one Instagram business account each day? Did you know that 72% of users have been influenced to make purchases based on content they saw on Instagram?
In other words, consumers are actively using Instagram and they welcome useful business-related content there. That means your business needs to be there as well or you’re missing an opportunity that your competitors will be happy to steal from you.
In a recent infographic published by Headway Capital (scroll to the end of this article to view the infographic), small businesses are given a concise guide to Instagram ads including an introduction to the seven types of ads currently available to promote your products and services to Instagram users along with pro tips to improve your results.
For example, carousel ads include two or more images or videos that Instagram users can scroll through, which provide a great way to give consumers a step-by-step guide to use your content to solve their problems.
The infographic also explains the different campaign objectives that you can choose from when creating your Instagram ads so you get the results you need from your investment. Currently, you can choose from the following objectives:
- Brand Awareness: Use this objective so your ad is seen by people who aren’t aware of your company but are likely to be interested in the types of products or services your company offers.
- Reach: Use this objective when you want more people to see your ad, which is particularly useful for location-based advertising.
- Traffic: This objective is best when you want to drive people to your website, online store, or another web page.
- App Installs: As the name implies, this objective should be used when you want to increase the number of people who download your app.
- Engagement: This objective is used when you want to generate more interaction between consumers and your Instagram account or previous posts. It’s also effective to promote specific offers.
- Video Views: If you want to get more people to watch your online videos, this is the objective to choose when you set up your Instagram ad.
- Conversions: This objective will help you get more people to take the action that you want such as making a purchase.
- Lead Generation: To build your marketing list, you can use the lead generation objective and collect email addresses or other information from people for future promotions.
The infographic also provides an explanation of 12 steps you need to take to create an Instagram Ad in your Facebook Ads Manager (Facebook owns Instagram, so you can create and manage your Instagram ads within your Facebook account).
In addition, here are some tips to make your ads more successful:
- Visuals: Use high quality visuals in your Instagram ads that stand out, not just text.
- Text: Keep text to a minimum (fewer words are better).
- CTA: Use the CTA (call-to-action) button so people are encouraged to take action.
- Orientation: Use vertical (i.e., portrait) videos and images because 94% of people view their mobile devices vertically.
- Hashtags: Include relevant hashtags in the ad.
- Testing: Test different visuals, messages, and posting times to identify the best performers and improve your results.
You can see all of the tips and details in the infographic below.
Susan Gunelius
Susan Gunelius is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Women on Business. She is a 30-year veteran of the marketing field and has authored a dozen books about marketing, branding, and social media, including the highly popular Ultimate Guide to Email Marketing, 30-Minute Social Media Marketing, Content Marketing for Dummies, Blogging All-in-One for Dummies and Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps. Susan’s marketing-related content can be found on Entrepreneur.com, Forbes.com, MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, and more. Susan is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She has worked in corporate marketing roles and through client relationships with AT&T, HSBC, Citibank, Intuit, The New York Times, Cox Communications, and many more large and small companies around the world. Susan also speaks about marketing, branding and social media at events around the world and is frequently interviewed by television, online, radio, and print media organizations about these topics. She holds an MBA in Management and Strategy and a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing and is a Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).
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