Instagram has been on fire the past year and a half. Growing crazy fast and expanding, it’s a strong social media platform and under the tutelage of parent Facebook they’ve now opened up advertising to businesses.
Using Instagram ads to expand a business' social media presence is a great way to grow a brand, and connect with new customers. Creating Instagram ads is a straightforward process. They are created and launched in the Facebook ad platform under Pages, and there are a few tips and tricks we’ll look at today that can help a business increase their conversion rate with this newer ad option.
Before the ad starts to run, it's best to make sure there is already a solid amount of content on the account. This means previously uploaded images and videos. There is a good chance people who see the ad will visit the company's profile, especially if they are interested in becoming a customer. An account with nothing in it may look spammy, but good content that's already been posted will make visitors feel even more inclined to follow, comment, and ultimately make a purchase.
An image that draws a user in is essential since so many people browse through their Instagram feeds quickly on their phone. Making someone stop to actually look at the ad is the most important part of the advertising process. Without that initial interest, a CPM campaign will quickly start showing a negative ROI.
Instagram offers a "Learn More" button and it's helpful to direct viewers to your website. The call to action text, combined with the button seen on every sponsored post, increases the chances that visitors leave Instagram to be completely focused on a company's goods or services. That’s your main goal, engage the viewer and get them to your website.
While the call to action is important, the rest of the text plays a role in converting a visitor as well. Offering a discount for people who purchase from the ad can have a big impact on conversion rates. Everyone loves a sale, and offering a decent discount can go a long way in getting a visitor to make a purchase.
Finding the right audience is crucial for maintaining a positive ROI on an Instagram ad campaign. Marketing managers should have a good idea who the target demographic is already, and when they're most active. One idea is to take a look at what times of the day the most sales are made on your site and schedule your ads to run during those times. Another is to watch your Facebook Page Insights for active time periods and run ads to Instagram in that time period since users are often active on multiple platforms when online.
It may be a good idea to start small at first to see if a campaign will do well, then increase the budget once it shows potential. If a certain creative or audience isn't performing well, don't be afraid to stop that aspect of the ad campaign from running altogether.
Constantly testing to see what works and what doesn't can help companies determine the best way to advertising on Instagram. This includes the picture, target audience, time of day, text, everything about the ad. Figuring out the most successful elements of an ad will allow a business to run their campaigns efficiently and effectively.
Keeping these tips in mind while running Instagram ads can help companies get the most out of their advertising budget.