Instagram Advertising in 2020

Instagram is crushing it these days. It boasts over 500 million monthly active users and commands one of the highest audience engagement rates on the planet. The engagement rates sit well above the competition, at 58% higher than Facebook and 2,000% higher than Twitter.

While Facebook may seem like the undisputed king of social media, Instagram still remains the company’s hottest acquisition. That’s right, the conglomerate owns a lot of other social platforms, including Instagram, so you know that social advertising is on point.

This is What Makes Instagram so Great

As everyone is well aware, Instagram is very image laden and video friendly. That means, the more visually appealing your brand and product is, the easier it will be to garner engagement on the platform.

Users intentionally peruse the site to look at pretty pictures. Unlike other platforms, where people tend to argue and it breeds discourse, Instagram seems to sit above the fray. Sellers of products that are aesthetically appealing or those who are able to incorporate visual media into their marketing campaigns, are typically the most successful on the Instagram platform.

It should also be noted that Instagram’s user base skews heavily to a younger crowd. The average age range is 18-29 years old. The site is also preferred by women and minorities.

If these characteristics or demographics are in alignment with your target audience and buyer persona, advertising on Instagram is a great move to make. Unlike organic posts, Insta ads can be created to link directly to a product or other landing page. This allows for more direct engagement with your products and/or service.

The Cost of Advertising on Instagram

Since Instagram is owned by Facebook, the cost to advertise on the site is virtually the same. The average cost to advertise on the platform is $5 for every 1,000 impressions (CPM).

Although the pricing structures are similar, Instagram gets much more engagement on their ads and posts than Facebook does. You will get more bang for your buck when posting visual content on the platform.

In fact, Victoria Secrets saw an average of 2,1078 likes per post on Facebook versus 283,030 on Instagram. Similar differences have been found with big brands like McDonalds, Mercedes Benz, and Playstation.

However, if most of what you sell requires text and deeper explanation, you may want to stick to Facebook. Posting a boring or text-laden ad on Instagram will drive your traffic way down and you may lose followers. People are looking for vibrant visuals that they can engage with and remember down the road. If they are compelled to share it, even better!

Setting up an Instagram Advertising Campaign

Since the Instagram platform is owned by Facebook, setting up an ad is quite similar. If you need some assistance, you can easily Google a step-by-step guide to advertising on Instagram and come up with a hundred returns.

The Best Strategies for Advertising on Instagram

Although Instagram advertising is pretty intuitive, there are still some things you can do to place you above the competition. Here are some quick tips and tricks for posting ads on Insta:

• Focus on a custom audience/s. These can be created in a variety of ways, like an email list, pixel tracking, a followers list, and more, A list of users who have engaged with your brand in the past will always perform best.
• Use custom images of real people. Stock photos will never work on Instagram. People deem it inauthentic.
• Create a few lookalike audiences to expand your reach. The Facebook/Instagram algorithm is very adept at finding similar audiences that will respond to your ads the same way your current ones do.
• Make offers irresistible. Instagram can be a place for impulse buying due to the volume of visuals. Take advantage of that by offering something compelling.
• Always take hashtags seriously. Instagram is driven by hashtag marketing. It’s a way to expand your message into multiple channels and connect with niche audiences.

Instagram is a great place to advertise if you know what you are doing and have visually stimulating content. All it takes is a few dollars behind a few ads and a little elbow grease. Pay attention to what draws your audience in and follow that path.