If not Google and Facebook, then what? Advertising on Instagram is becoming more and more popular. However, only a small part of business people know exactly how to start promotional activities in this channel. That's why today I have prepared a step-by-step guide that will help you launch your first advertisement on this website. Let's get started! Let's start by defining what we are actually talking about. What is Instagram advertising? What should be the characteristics of effective advertising on Instagram?
This question only seems stupid. You can run advertising on Instagram in two ways: directly from the application or through the Facebook Ads Manager. Of course, both methods differ in effectiveness and available promotion mechanics.
How to advertise on Instagram? What is the goal of the campaign?
Before we start our adventure with Instagram, we should determine the goal of the campaign, the budget of the advertising campaign implemented by the advertising manager, and determine the group of recipients. Displaying ads on Instagram should bring us tangible benefits so that activities on Instagram using Instagram ADS are effective. Instagram, as a social networking site, gives you great opportunities in terms of displaying ads, targeting, selecting groups of similar recipients - you can freely configure everything depending on what marketing goals you want to achieve.
Advertising on Instagram – how to run it directly in the application
Let's start with the fact that in order to run advertising on Instagram (even from the application level), you must meet one condition - create a business account on Instagram.
Fortunately, I have prepared a separate article on this topic that will guide you step by step through the entire process. Don't worry, it's nothing difficult!
Once you do this, your profile will gain new possibilities - viewing statistics or creating ads.
So how do you run your first Instagram ad? The whole process consists of several steps.
How to advertise on Instagram – step by step instructions
In the entry below, I will describe how to create ads on Instagram, how to reach the right audience, and how to set up ad groups.
First, select the post you want to promote. To do this, go to your profile. When you open a photo/video, you will find a new button under it - "Promote".
Welcome to the ad creation panel! You have access to 3 advertising purposes here. You can:
1. Redirect recipients to your profile (e.g. to encourage them to follow you),
2. Send to your website (to the store, offer, blog entry, landing page specially prepared by you, etc.),
3. Encourage them to send you a private message.
Options 1 and 3 are simple in concept, so let's focus on the most interesting one - linking to the website. Once you select this goal, there are a few more configuration steps ahead of you.
The first is to select the Call To Action button - there is no great philosophy here. Choose what best suits the content of your ad.
The second, much more complicated step is selecting the target group.
Instagram ADS – ad targeting
You have two options here - automatic and manual. I highly encourage you to test the first one first. It is worth using a tool to automatically select the target group, because then the system will look for people similar to your current followers and active users.
As long as you built your profile honestly and without bots, it's a good choice! However, if you have a lot of not entirely real recipients and commentators, I have bad news for you - this group will not have a chance to work for you.
Then it's time for option number two, i.e. manual configuration! It comes down to a few pieces of information:
- location – e.g. city or voivodeship,
- interests - similar to those available on Facebook - from sheep breeding to industrial
- machines. Here you have the greatest scope for creativity!
- age and gender
The next stage is to choose the duration of the campaign and the amount you want to spend on advertising. Try to keep at least USD 10-20 a day.
Of course, you can experiment with larger amounts. However, it is better to do this when, based on several tests, you have selected the target groups that are the most effective from your point of view.
That's all! Just add a payment method, run the promotion and wait for the results.
How to create Instagram ads that will be effective?
Good Instagram ads are a great way to gain more popularity for your business, promote your store or website, and reach new audiences.
Instagram ads, like any other, must first and foremost intrigue users. Ad views alone won't do you much good if potential customers ignore them and don't engage in any interaction. And you have little time to interest them.
In the case of Instagram advertising, however, it is relatively easier - after all, it is based on audiovisual messages. So stand out! Show your brand in an interesting and pleasant way. Give something of yourself so that people can trust you and be sure that you are not just another ardent marketer with clichéd slogans.
Instagram gives us many opportunities to do this. It's good to use them. You can do this by creating ads in formats such as Stories, interesting videos (remember the subtitles!) or creative photos. Carousels are also an extremely interesting option.
Many advertisers on Instagram, due to their greater involvement in audiovisual issues, completely forget about copywriting. This is a mistake.
Ok, maybe on this website it is not such a pressing issue as, for example, in the case of Facebook. Despite this, however, especially in promoted posts, good copy is still very important in the context of gaining and maintaining the attention of potential customers.
What else is worth doing is planning your posts. This definitely makes running an advertising account easier and allows you to plan your content schedule in advance. See how to plan posts on Instagram and how to run a company Instagram.
Finally, it may be a cliché, but it's worth reminding - keep an eye on your campaigns. You cannot passively wait for the results, do not look at the statistics at all, and as a result, you may not even know how much advertising costs. Analyze data on an ongoing basis, draw conclusions and correct errors.
Advertising on Instagram and promoting posts
If you have even the slightest experience with Facebook advertising, you'll probably see the similarities between the mechanics of advertising and boosting posts.
Both forms of advertising can be fantastic, but they also have their limitations.
The basic thing is that you can only advertise content that is already published on your profile. You also have no control over where and how often your ad is displayed. You can't measure conversions.
Generally, although this is a quick and convenient option, in the case of complex campaigns, it is better to approach the topic differently and take advantage of the benefits of Facebook Ads Manager. This is a tool that also allows you to run advertising, but it also gives you access to much more configuration options.
Advertising on Instagram from the Ads Manager
It's a very convenient tool once you get the hang of it. In addition, there is no separate panel for Facebook ads and Instagram ads. Both are configured in exactly the same way - minor differences result only from the availability (or not) of individual options.
You decide whether a given ad should be displayed on Facebook or Instagram in the section called "Placements".
You can then turn off all other places and leave Instagram. In fact, if you have an idea for a dedicated creation, the system also allows you to run separate promotions, e.g. for Instagram Stories alone or the Instagram feed alone.
The most important thing, however, is the ability to create ads that are not visible on the profile itself and those that use advertising formats that are not available from the application itself.
However, I will write about this next time. In the meantime, good luck with your first advertising activities on Instagram and read on!
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