The Science of Building Instagram Ads
If you are building a brand on Instagram, paid advertising is an avenue that you should definitely consider.
However, it’s not as simple as picking a post to promote. In 2019, Instagram is emerging as the premier social media platform for brands of all sizes looking to advertise.
You need to be extremely strategic and calculated to ensure that you are getting a return on investment that is justifiable.
And when you are talking about paid advertising, the name of the game is conversion.
Today, we will be talking about what goes into a successful ad and outlining some tips and tricks that you can use to make your own ads soar.
· Writing persuasive copy for your ads
When you’re thinking about writing the copy for your Instagram ads, you need to keep in mind that your audience will only see a very small amount of your total text – the first 10 to 15 words.
So, you have to make the most of this first sentence. It needs to outline the benefit or solution the audience will get immediately, so that people are encouraged to click the action button on the ad. In the expanded version of the caption, you can have up to 2,000 characters.
If you’re creating video ads, you should add captions or subtitles because most people are browsing Instagram with their sound turned off. You can either add some .SRT files or add in the words to the video itself.
Internal research from Facebook shows that videos and ads with less than 20% text generally perform better than their counterparts. If you have more text, your ads could end up not being shown or be charged more by Facebook and Instagram.
· Creating videos out of still images for Stories
You can turn a single image into an effective video ad by using tools available on your phone and Instagram Stories features.
For example, if you are promoting a webinar, you can start by taking a screenshot of your landing page (which includes the main takeaway headline for the webinar) and then load it up into Instagram Stories.
Then, you can add a caption that goes something like “Learn how to get more leads into your agency in 5-15 minutes a day. Swipe up to check it out!”
After this, you can turn the image into a video by adding GIFs, motion graphics or stickers which will allow you to export the image as a video and then use it as a video ad.
· Using screenshots to highlight testimonials on video
You can use the same process outlined above to highlight testimonials customers wrote in to you or actual interview snippets from people who used and loved your products.
You can also request small video testimonials from existing customers. These don’t need to fancy or exquisitely produced – in fact the more natural they appear the better. Once you have these testimonials, you can edit them into 15 second video ads that capture the essence of your brand and give people reasons to do business with you.
· Pause before the call-to-action on your Stories ads
For Stories ads you should look to keep things as simple as possible. Tell your audience exactly what they need to do after watching – subscribe to your newsletter, visit the landing page etc.
After your call to action, take a significant pause. This is because if someone is watching your 15 second ad and you wait till the 14thsecond to mention that they need to swipe up, Instagram will automatically roll to the next story before they have a chance to take the action.
Although people can tap back and revisit your ad, it is a good idea to give them a few seconds to process your words and take action.
· Using the right tools
The Instagram app itself offers a robust ad creation suite, but to take your ads to the next level you will need to use a few external applications.
One good tool to have in your arsenal is a free app called Spark Camera. This app allows you to stitch together multiple short videos and creates a post or an ad. You can start and stop recording as you change locations, scenery etc. The finished video will just look like you’ve done some fancy jump cut editing.
Another great tool to create effective videos is called Clipomatic. Clipomatic is an app that allows you to record vertical videos and, more importantly, automatically caption your videos.
As you start recording, Clipomatic turns whatever you speak into live captions that are embedded into your video. This is a much less painful process than using SRT files or having to go back and edit your footage to include subtitles.
Clipomatic allows you to choose different subtitle types and even features multiple languages.
Creating effective ads on Instagram is a skill that you need to take very seriously if you are a brand or business owner in 2019. As more people than ever flock to the platform, Instagram is where all of the engaged, buying audience is.
With more advertisers there is obviously going to be more competition, but with our guides by your side you will be able to quickly and effectively stand apart from the crowd.