With 1 billion people using Instagram every month, it has become the second most popular social media platform after Facebook. The visual platform produces four times more online interactions that what Facebook does, so it’s no wonder why more than 8 million business accounts are on the growing platform. 50% of Instagram users follow at least one brand and 80% of surveyed users report that Instagram has helped them decide whether to purchase a product or service. Here at Fuse Agency, we have some tips and tricks to make sure your Instagram advertising stands out.

Setting Goals

The first thing that needs to be done for any advertising campaign is to set a goal. You need to decide what you want to achieve. Is it to spread awareness of a limited time offer or a new promotion? Or are you releasing a new product, service or brand? This goal should be clear and simple to your organisation and your audience, as this objective is the infrastructure of your Instagram advertising campaign.

Know Your Audience

The next step to mastering your Instagram advertising is to know your audience. Who are they, where do they live, what are their societal demographics? What do they like? What don’t they like? You might want to reach a lot of people with this campaign, but you need to research your demographics, so you can understand your audience and refine your strategy. 

Visual Content 

Visual content is the most important feature in terms of what your audience views. The content that is produced for your advertising campaign should fit within the aesthetic of your brand and previously established social media guidelines. The imagery and/or video content should also be of high quality, as Instagram consumers scroll straight past content that is not visually appealing. If the purpose of the Instagram advertising campaign is to promote an offer, you can put this offer into the image or video, but ensure that it does not take away the overall quality of the image. A good rule to abide by (and which is enforced by Facebook) is that your ad should only be 20% copy. 

Copy 

When writing the copy for your Instagram advertising campaign, make sure that the most important information is written at the beginning, as only the first couple lines are visible before consumers have to click the ‘see more’ button. Again, refer to your social media guidelines and stick to your brand voice. Ensure your copy is free of errors and typos, so you present yourself in a polished and professional way. When using hashtags, confirm that the hashtags are relevant to the content that is being posted and to your brand.

Urgency 

Nearly every objective for an Instagram advertising campaign includes driving traffic towards your website or a landing page. Utilise this urgency in your campaigns and add a call to action (CTA) button to your advertised posts to drive clicks. To boost engagement and add further urgency to the content, consider using Instagram stories. 500 million Instagram users use stories every day, and posting a story concurrently with an ad or post can boost engagement. You are also able to create an Instagram Story ad, as well!

With the rise of Instagram for business, hopefully, these tips will help you become a more confident Instagram ad creator. If you’re still unsure on ads or creating effective content, we’re always here to help.