As the battle for mobile ad placements rages on, Instagram’s new ad offering has many mobile marketers itching to see how ads work on the photo shoot social network .
Reading: How to.create an app install on instagram
Instagram has protected its users and been reluctant to open the floodgates — while Instagram started rolling out ad options for big brands in 2013, they didn’t open up Insta Ads to all businesses until September.
Now that all businesses are on an equal footing, we’re here to tell you what it’s all about and how Instagram App Ads can help your app get new customers and more installs.
What are Instagram ads for apps?
Instagram ads for apps are sponsored ads, which appear in a user’s natural Instagram image feed and make advertisers pay to get in front of me nstagrams photo fans.
Instagram ads can be used to promote various offers to increase website visits and, for our discussion, increasing app installs.
What do Instagram ads look like?
Instagram app ads come in two different styles:
- Image ads: Traditional image ad that closely resembles organic Instagram posts.
- Video ads: Video ads can use image, motion, and sound to capture attention, and they can run for up to 30 seconds.
There are also carousel ads that allow users to swipe through multiple images, but this format is not currently available to encourage app installs.
Instagram ads appear alongside organic material in a user’s image stream, making them largely indistinguishable from normal User Content (except for the subtle blue “Sponsored Post” tag in the top-right corner of the post).
Instagram ads allow for several different call-to-action (CTA) options, including “Install Now” that can be used to promote the installation of new apps.
See also: How to Build a Website with Drupal
In addition to the “Install Now” and “Use App” CTAs, apps can also choose from 10 other CTAs, allowing you to choose the perfect wording that resonates with your audience.
Choose from:
- Book now
- Download
- Learn more
- Listen now
- Play game
- Shop Now
- Sign In
- Watch More
- Watch Video
Why Instagram Ads Are So Popular With App installs is
strong>
Instagram ads are a tremendous resource for apps that want to get more users (and who doesn’t?). When it comes to boosting app installs, Instagram has your back with benefits like:
- Unique, focused user attention. Ads from Instagram are native-style, which means paid ads flow and blend naturally into the user’s organic photo stream. Because of Instagram’s unique scrolling layout, it stands to reason that each photo will receive relatively undivided attention – there are no sidebars or competing content. This focused, undivided user attention is extremely valuable for app advertisers as it drives clicks and engagement.
- Excellent CTRs. Early reports have shown that Instagram ads are successful very well. Salesforce reports that Instagram ads get almost twice as many clicks as Facebook ads. Make the most of these remarkable CTRs by beautifying your App Store listing. Optimize for the App Store by writing a compelling description, list key features including app screenshots, etc. Get fully optimized with our App Store Optimization Cheat Sheet.
- Access to Facebook’s Terrific Targeting. Instagram ads can take advantage of Facebook’s extensive ad targeting options to create highly relevant, targeted app ads that are specifically crafted for niche audiences. Facebook is second to none when it comes to audience targeting, so adding these features to Instagram ads makes them even more powerful.
- An engaged audience. One of the most valuable characteristics of Instagram ads is their audience. Instagram users are highly sought after as they are very engaged and active users. In fact, the average Instagram post has an engagement rate of 4.8 – drastically higher than Twitter’s 0.25 and Facebook’s 0.72.
- Boy , mobile-loving app enthusiasts.
strong> Instagram users are also (virtually) guaranteed to be on a mobile device when they see your app promotion, making them more likely to tap the install button. Instagram feeds can be accessed on desktop, but are extremely rare. Instagram user demographics indicate that they are young millennials, with over half of users aged 18-29. These users are mobile-savvy and more likely to try new apps.
Instagram Ads Performance: How are Instagram Ads performing?
Previous studies have shown that Instagram ads perform exceptionally well.
- In a study of over 400 global campaigns, ad recall was 2.8x higher for Instagram-sponsored posts than other online advertising media.
- Snail Games saw a 339% increase in app installs with Instagram promotional videos (as well as 5x higher in app purchase rates).
- Poshmark saw a 37% increase in app installs, along with a 28% drop in advertising costs.
- Target launched a campaign to increase installs of its Cartwheel mobile app, resulting in a Increase in downloads and 4 3% savings per install led to new users.
Case studies have shown that Instagram advertising offers a lot of potential, especially when it comes to attracting more app customers .
How to get more app users with Instagram ads
Are you ready to get new app installs with your awesome Instagram ads? Here are a few tips to help you bring the bacon home.
The value is in the visual. Create Instagram app ads that are highly visual. Ideally, your ad shouldn’t look like an ad at all – it should blend into the organic posts next to you in a user’s image feed.
Quality is key. Instagram users are young and tech-savvy – they don’t react to low-quality or unassuming images.
These users want to be wowed and carried away, impress them with them high-quality images and creative designs.
Understand your context. Think about your target audience and explore what their natural Instagram feed looks like, try the style and the substance to match what your audience expects. Instagram users don’t want to know they’re being advertised. Design your ads instead Be subtle and charming, and fit them into the context your users expect.
Join the convo. Make sure you engage with users step by replying to their comments and encouraging them Dialog – don’t just set it and forget it!
Express yourself. Use captions and comment dialogs to showcase your brand personality. Instagram is a great place to chat with users, so go ahead and be yourself! Users want to interact with an app brand that’s personable, human, and friendly, so ditch the corporate jargon.
The Cost of Instagram Ads: What to Consider When Pricing
The costs you can expect to pay for ads on Instagram apps will vary by targeting.
See also: How to Make a Data Flow Diagram
Broadly speaking, CPMs (cost per thousand views) are around However, Instagram ads average around $3.00, and with Facebook’s suite of deep targeting options, you get very valuable, targeted audiences at a reasonable price.
If you opt for video ads, you’ll find Instagram ads even cheaper, with video ads for just 2 cents per view (Instagram categorizes a video view as a video watched for at least three seconds – just like Facebook) .
The rate of 2 cents per call is pretty good h on a par with competitors like Snapchat. However, this plan is much cheaper than YouTube, which sells pre-roll ads for around 10 cents per view.
How to create Instagram app ads
Instagram app ads are easy to create. You can create these bad guys in Facebook’s Ad Builder or Power Editor.
If you’ve created Facebook ads before, Instagram Ads will make you a real pro!
- Set up a Business Manager account on Facebook. You don’t technically need a Business Manager account to create ads, but you do need one if you want to reply to comments on your Instagram ad, so we recommend setting it up.
- Create and/or connect your Instagram account. If you don’t already have an Instagram account, you should create one. Then you need to connect your Instagram account to your Facebook Business Manager account.
- Register your app on Facebook. What you need to do Register your App on Facebook to promote your app.
- Create your campaigns and ad groups. Select the app you want to promote , choose your demographics and audience targeting (with all the great features Facebook has to offer) and set your budget. You can also choose your placements, with the option to advertise on Instagram, Facebook’s Mobile News Feed, or Facebook’s Audience Network partners. You can even choose to show your ad on some mobile devices instead of others.
- Design creative ads. Get to work and create your snazzy Check out Instagram ads, choose your image, design and call to action!
A complete guide to creating Instagram app ads visit the Facebook Advertiser Help Center.
Bonus Tips for Creating Instagram Ads
Consider visual tips and tricks when creating your Instagram Ads .
- Cropping. Creative cropping can be a great way to transform an ordinary image into something powerful.
- Consistent imagery . The images you use for your Instagram ads should match your app’s brand identity and convey a consistent message.
- Topics. How do you want users to feel when they see your image ads? What emotions do you want to evoke? What personality traits would you use to define your brand? Ask yourself these questions as you develop your ad’s theme.
Color. Color is an important element that affects the mood and feel of your image – consider whether you want bright bright colors, more subtle shades, grayscale, etc.
In the example here, Shutterfly uses a sepia tone, which is a nostalgic vibe adds to the image, conjuring up the look of a traditional, faded old photograph that someone might stumble across in a family photo album.
- Brand elements. Think how you can do Subtly incorporate your brand’s logo, symbol or branding colors into your image.
- High-resolution images. Use e High resolution photos and Use good lighting.
Take your picture with the composition in mind as excessive zooming and cropping after taking the picture can affect the picture quality. Instagram recommends using images that are 1080×1080 pixels in size (although the minimum resolution is 600×600).
- Aspect ratio. Instagram ads are available in square ( 1:1 ratio) and landscape (1:9:1). Feel free to try either, although we recommend going with the square theme, which is the default theme and offers more visual space.
- Rule of thirds. The rule of thirds is a compositional guideline that suggests placing visual elements along specific lines and at their intersections to create a strong image.
c/o Wikimedia Commons
20% text rule. Facebook requires ads (both on Facebook and Instagram) Less than 20% of the image contains pixels of the ad intended for text.
Inserting words into your image can be a smart way to get your message across e – hold Just follow the 20% rule and emphasize the visuals, because that’s what Instagram users are all about.
- Captions. Experiment with different text lengths and word choices to see which phrases resonate with your audience come across best.
Instagram recommends using captions of around 125 characters (although you can use a maximum of 300 characters).
See also: How To Start a Blog: A Beginners Guide to Blogging
- Hashtags in the Within reason. Experiment with hashtags to help new followers find you, but don’t make them obnoxious. Best practice dictates that up to three hashtags are good.
.
