How to advertise on Instagram
When you joined Instagram, you probably did not imagine that you would use it for your professional activity, but the fact is that the photo social network is becoming a “companion” of work more and more present in your working life. So much so that posting content for other users of the community is not enough anymore and so you would like to go to the next “level”, advertising, but you have not yet understood how to advertise on Instagram and you’re wondering if I can help you in this regard. Well, of course I can!
In the next paragraphs, I will explain how you can advertise a content on Instagram using the native functions of the app and I’ll talk about some tools made available to advertisers, thanks to which you can conduct real advertising campaigns on the famous social photo network. I assure you that everything will be much simpler than what you imagine.
Just a small clarification before starting: to sponsor your content on Instagram, you must necessarily have a company account. If you do not yet have an account of this type, immediately remedy the situation and transform your standard corporate account: find all the information you need in my tutorial dedicated to the topic.
Index
- How to advertise on Instagram – How advertising on Instagram works
- How to advertise on Instagram – How to create a promotion on Instagram
- How to advertise on Instagram – How to manage your listings on Instagram
- How to advertise on Instagram – What to do in case of problems or doubts
How to advertise on Instagram – How advertising on Instagram works
How to advertise on Instagram
On Instagram you can sponsor content using multiple tools and numerous types of listings. As far as tools are concerned, the photographic social network offers the possibility to create adverts both through its official app and through some advanced tools that allow to conduct real advertising campaigns. Among these I point out Manage Ads and Power Editor, which I have already talked about in the tutorial where I explain how to advertise on Facebook and I’ll talk a little ‘more in detail in the chapter dedicated to the management of listings, again in this post.
Moreover, Instagram offers various types of adverts, one more interesting than the other for those who need to promote their business.
- Listings with photos – this is the simplest type of insertion that can be adopted on Instagram, but also one of the most effective. Using photo insertions, you can use both horizontal and square images.
- Video insertions – if a picture is worth a thousand words, a video is worth even more. The adverts with video, in fact, combine images, sounds and movements that create a strong visual impact in the users who watch them. On Instagram you can create adverts with video in horizontal or square format with a maximum duration of 60 seconds.
- Carousel adverts – this type of advertisement allows you to insert multiple photos and videos in a single ad. To view them all, the user does not have to do is scroll through the contents with a simple swipe.
- Listings in stories – inserting insertions into Instagram stories is a very smart strategy, as millions of users create and display this particular type of content every day. To insert an advertisement within a story, however, you must comply with specific guidelines regarding the size of the files used, the format, the maximum duration of the video and so on (click here for more info on the specifications to be respected ).
As you mentioned in opening the post, to sponsor content on Instagram you need to have a Facebook page and use a corporate Instagram profile (if you do not know how to create a Facebook page or create a corporate Instagram profile, do not hesitate to read the guides that I have dedicated both topics).
After completing these two preliminary operations, you must configure your listing, define its budget and finally publish it. How? I’ll explain it right away: find all the information you need to create your first listing right below.
How to advertise on Instagram – How to create a promotion on Instagram
How to advertise on Instagram
Promoting a post on Instagram is very simple: all you have to do is choose the post you want to advertise and press the Promote button below it. Now I’ll explain how to proceed, but know that the operation is currently only feasible in the official app for Android and iOS, not in the Instagram app for Windows 10 or in the Web version of the service.
That said, start the Instagram app on your Android or iOS device, log in to your account (if necessary), press the symbol of the little man to view the posts you’ve posted on your profile, tap on the preview of the post you want to advertise and presses the Promote button, located at the bottom right.
Now, select the goal you want to achieve with the promotion you are starting (eg Get more profile and website visits, Get more visits to the website or Reach people near an address) and, in the screen that opens , complete your listing indicating the destination (eg the website of your company). Then choose a call to action button to invite users to the action, select your audience, define the budget you have available, and finally specify the duration of the promotion.
At this point, if you have not yet added a payment method, presses the link Add a new payment method and follow the wizard to set it. On Instagram you can use various payment methods, such as credit and debit cards and the PayPal account. Finally, presses the blue button Create promotion and you’re done. The content you just decided to promote will be shown to a larger number of users and will present the “Sponsored” label.
How to advertise on Instagram
Ah … I almost forgot! The Instagram staff, before actually promoting the post you have decided to sponsor, will verify that the latter complies with its advertising policies. Generally, the analysis process lasts no more than 24 hours (except for some rare exceptions), but you must still have a bit of patience.
How to advertise on Instagram – How to manage your listings on Instagram
How to advertise on Instagram
As I told you earlier, Instagram (or rather, Facebook, which as you well know will own the property of Instagram) has made available to advertisers some tools that allow you to better manage their advertising campaigns.
The tools in question are designed especially for Web agencies and professionals who need to conduct some advertising campaigns rather important, so it is unlikely that you will be able to use them if you sponsor a post from time to time or if you are approaching now to the world of advertising. Be that as it may, I urge you to read the next lines anyway and thus acquire general knowledge about the characteristics of these useful tools.
- List management – this tool allows you to use the same advertising tools that you can use on Facebook. Thanks to Ads Management, you can analyze the results of your advertising campaigns, make changes to your listings, change their settings and quickly and easily duplicate them. List management can be used both from the computer and from a startphone and tablet (via the app available for Android and iOS). If you want to have some more details, read the support page on Facebook.
- Power Editor – thanks to this tool it is possible to precisely control advertisements, groups of adverts and even entire advertising campaigns: an indispensable function for those who invest huge resources in advertising on social media. Unlike the management tool inserts I told you earlier, Power Editor is only usable by PC. If you want to have some more details about its operation, read also the support page on Facebook.
How to advertise on Instagram – What to do in case of problems or doubts
How to advertise on Instagram
Should problems or doubts arise regarding the content you sponsor on Instagram, do not hesitate to visit the Service Center of the photo social network and, above all, the Help Center for insertions containing detailed information on the use of the tools that can be used to conduct advertising campaigns on Instagram.
If the information contained in the help pages that I have just linked you do not help, try to expose your problem in the help forum on Facebook or, alternatively, contact the social network for further support.
How to advertise on Instagram