Is getting into Instagram advertising one of your business goals for 2020? Check our guide and learn five types of ads you can use in the platform.
Instagram is one of the fastest-growing social networks on the internet, with over a billion monthly users in 2018. That’s a massive portion of the 3.2 billion active social media users in total!
This makes Instagram a great platform for your business to grow its revenue – either by reaching out to new customers or engaging people who are already familiar with your brand.
Fortunately, Instagram offers a whole suite of tools that you can use to craft your social media ad campaign. Read on for a complete overview of the several types of ads you can run on Instagram!
Photo Ads
Photo ads are the most common type of ad that you can choose on Instagram. Basically, you sponsor a specific post of yours to show up in other people’s newsfeed, just like a real post.
This is a great way to promote deals, new products, or other announcements that you can boil down into a single-caption summary. You can include a link to your shop or website, depending on what you are advertising.
You can change your photo ads into carousel ads, letting people scroll through a few different photos. Carousel ads will, of course, cost more than if you just bought a single photo ad.
Story And Video Ads
Story ads are another one of the most common types of Instagram ads you can choose from. These are animated or video ads that show up as people watch their friends’ stories.
Alternatively, you can choose to upload your ad as a video ad. The content can be exactly the same – the only difference is that a video ad will appear in people’s feeds like regular posts instead of between stories.
Like photo ads, you can include a link to your website or store page. Story ads are a great way to increase engagement with your products, especially if you are advertising an experience or lifestyle product instead of a specific good.
Guided Ads
This type of Instagram ad has not been used by too many brands just yet, but it allows users to navigate through a network of posts. For example, you can customize an outfit by hitting different tagged colours or pieces, ending up with a complete outfit at the end that is totally different from what other people could have chosen.
As an advertiser, this means that you will have to upload a whole batch of different combinations and photos, but it’s a great way to highlight all the options available to your customers. Keep in mind that guided ads may come in at a higher price point than photo ads, depending on what other ad parameters you decide on.
The Best Approach Is To Use Several Types Of Ads
The best Instagram ad campaigns are not the ones that use only the ad format that is best suited to their products. Instead, the most effective way to break through the noise and get through to your audience is to use several, if not all, the types of ads available to you.
For more information about social media advertising, get in touch with our team today!
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Tony Cowan is a 30 year graphic design veteran who has a vast array of experience in print, web and illustration. His knowledge has extended into digital marketing and strategy in recent years and utilises these skills to deliver successful outcomes for his clients.