As I mentioned in a previous article, Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms, particularly among younger people. So, if they are your target, and you consider that they belong to a financially more powerful group, it is easy to see why you should invest in marketing on this platform. Make sure to read all the way to the end of this article if you still need convincing to invest in Instagram ads.
Unlike, for example, Twitter, this platform focuses on images and, more recently, video content. So, when creating ads, you should focus more on the design of your images and videos and what they represent.
Create user-generated content which is more captivating for your audience.
Instagram users enjoy interacting with their favorite brands in DMs or through Story polls and stickers. And, given that the number of active Instagram users exceeds 1.4 billion, this is very enticing. Therefore, the moment has come for you to switch to an Instagram Business account and access plenty of new special features that will aid your advertising. So, let’s see the potential ad placements available on Instagram.
For Instagram ads, there are five different ad placements that you can choose from, including:
- Instagram Feed;
- Instagram Explore;
- Instagram Shop;
- Instagram Stories;
- Instagram Reels.
And we’ll go over each one of them. But first, I’d like to point out that there are also four different Instagram ad formats: image, video, carousel, and collection ads. And when it comes to file types, you have two options for images: PNG or JPG, while for videos, whether for Instagram Stories, Reels, or the Feed, you have three options: MP4, MOV, or GIF.
Now let’s see the ad placements separately 👇
Instagram Feed
The Instagram Feed is where the magic happens. It’s where you’ll find all of your friends’ and profiles’ posts. And if you create an ad for your business, it will appear alongside organic posts from other users. In addition, you can use images, videos, carousels, or collection ads for Instagram ads that appear in the Feed. Moreover, you can use product tags in your images to direct visitors to your Instagram Shop (which you can learn more about in the following sections).
Let’s go over the guidelines you need to follow in order to create the best Instagram ads.
Image and Video Guidelines:
- Ad Format: Image, Video, Carousel, or Collection
- Aspect Ratio:
- Image and Carousel Ads: 1:1
- Video Ads: 4:5
- Collection Ads: 1.91:1 to 1:1
- Resolution: 1080 x 1080 px
- File Type: JPG, PNG, MP4, MOV, and GIF
However, you should experiment with the way you showcase your products to your audience to see which ones get the best reaction from them.
To establish your brand identity, keep your Instagram profile consistent.
Instagram Explore
Instagram Explore displays posts based on your interests from public profiles that you do not yet follow. To access this section, you’ll need to go to the search option. You can search on Instagram in the same way that you would on Google or Bing, you can use keywords to search for images and videos, accounts, tags, places, and hashtags.
Your Instagram ads may also appear in the Explore section, depending on the users’ interests. You can create ads with either image or video content for this ad placement, and they have different aspect ratios that you should use. The detailed guides are available right below.
Image and Video Guidelines:
- Ad Format: Image or Video
- Aspect Ratio:
- Image Ads: 9:16
- Video Ads: 4:5
- Resolution: 1080 x 1080 px
- File Type: JPG, PNG, MP4, MOV, and GIF
If you choose video for this ad placement, the duration should be between 1 second and 60 minutes.
Instagram Shop
Instagram Shop lets users find new shops and shop directly on Instagram 👜 It’s a great feature that can help make your products easily discoverable. According to one Instagram trends research study, nearly half of those polled use Instagram for weekly shopping. That is a great business opportunity, especially for B2C companies.
Instagram offers a variety of shopping options, from tapping product tags to adding products to wish lists to making direct purchases through checkout. Note that your Instagram Shop is like your storefront; you should put the most appealing products on display. Also, you can use real-time or pre-made content to highlight your products and share them with your target audience. Moreover, you should use Product Tags and highlight products directly in your images and videos to help users learn more about your products.
It is a good idea to include at least two photos of each product so that visitors can see how your products actually look.
Purchasing on a shop’s website may not be available in every country.
Instagram Story
Did you know that over 500 million Instagram accounts use Stories to share their creativity and experiences every day? What’s more, 1 billion Stories are shared daily across all Meta apps.
Instagram Stories work the same way as Facebook Stories, with the exception that Instagram allows you to choose from all four ad formats for Stories. That means you can select images, videos, carousels, or collection ads for promotion on Instagram Stories. In addition, you can use different file types that you can check below.
Image and Video Guidelines:
- Ad Format: Image, Video, Carousel, or Collection
- Aspect Ratio: 9:16
- Recommended Size: 1080 x 1920 px
- File Type: JPG, PNG, MP4, MOV, or GIF
Note that photos last 5 seconds, and videos can last up to 20 seconds.
When creating Instagram Story Ads, you can choose various objectives for the ad, including:
- Brand Awareness;
- Conversions;
- Traffic;
- Reach;
- Video Views;
- App Installs;
- Lead Generation.
Given the number of Stories shared daily, this type of ad has the potential to reach a large number of people on Instagram. Also, you can use Stories to discover what your audience wants by adding polls and stickers.
Instagram Reels
And last but not least, here are the Instagram Reels. Reels are the fastest-growing content format on both Facebook and Instagram.
They are so entertaining that all of us have been hooked on these short but amusing videos many times. So advertising with some fun videos on Instagram Reels can be a massive success for your business.
Video Guidelines:
- Aspect Ratio: 9:16
- Resolution: at least 500 x 888 px
- Video Duration: 3 seconds to 90* seconds
- File Type: MP4 or MOV
*Please keep in mind that this is a relatively new feature, and it may not be available to everyone just yet.
Instagram has extended the length of Reels to 90 seconds in order to give us a little more time to share our experiences and showcase our creativity. Also, Instagram Stories Stickers are coming to Reels. Isn’t that awesome? 🤩 Furthermore you can now add emojis, pools, and quizzes to your Reels, which will help boost engagement. Moreover, you can upload your own audio directly within Instagram Reels.
Wrapping up
And now, some statistics to get you started on your Instagram advertising journey. Almost two out of every three active users say Instagram allows them to form meaningful relationships with brands. In addition, 44 percent of those polled strongly associate Instagram with discovering local/small brands.
So head over to Instagram and create your first ad 💳
