Where Instagram Advertising Shines
Instagram is, of course, very image and video heavy. As such, sellers of products that are visually appealing or who are able to incorporate visual media into their campaigns tend to perform best on this social media channel.
It is also worth noting that Instagram’s user base skews heavily to the 18-29 range and slightly more toward females and minorities.
If any or all of those characteristics are in alignment with your target audience or buyer persona, than odds are, Instagram will be the best ad choice for your business.
Unlike organic posts, Instagram ads can be made to link directly to a product page or other landing page, allowing for direct engagement with your products.
Instagram Advertising Advanced Tactics
- Focus first on custom audiences. This could be audiences created through pixel tracking, an email list, a followers list or some other method. Lists of users who have engaged with you in the past perform best.
- When you are ready to expand past custom audiences, lookalike audiences should be your next stop. Facebook/Instagram’s algorithm is very good at finding similar audiences that will respond well to your ads.
- Use custom images of real people. Stock photos do NOT work on Instagram.
- Make your offers irresistible. Instagram’s visual nature takes impulse buying to the next level, but you won’t tap into that if you aren’t offering something compelling.
- Take hashtags seriously. They are kind of a joke everywhere else, but Instagram is driven by hashtags, and they are a great way to connect with niche audiences.