{"id":31332,"date":"2024-02-05T05:29:45","date_gmt":"2024-02-05T12:29:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/?p=31332"},"modified":"2026-05-25T01:34:37","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T07:34:37","slug":"instagram-ads","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/instagram-ads","title":{"rendered":"2026 Instagram Ads Guide: How to Create, Types, &#038; Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Instagram has 2.3 billion monthly active users, and over 1.38 billion people use the platform every day. <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can \u2013 and should \u2013 try to build your own following to reach users organically, but you can also use our Instagram ads guide to learn how to:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Create ads following our step-by-step process<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Pay to expand your reach on Instagram<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Utilize tips to improve your ads<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Placing ads on Instagram helps you reach 96% of the platform\u2019s active users, and you can use Meta\u2019s advanced filters and targeting to deliver your ad to your <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">exact<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> target demographic or buyer persona (if you\u2019re a business).<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>How To Create an Instagram Ad? <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">(6 Steps)<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To create an Instagram Ad, you\u2019ll need a Facebook Ad Account. From the Facebook Ads Manager, you\u2019ll be able to create feed and Story ads.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Start by creating a new campaign and follow the steps below:<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><strong>1. Choose Your <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Ad Objective<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you create a new campaign, the first thing you\u2019ll need to do is choose an ad objective. There are three main objectives to choose from:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> <strong>Awareness:<\/strong> Brands awareness or reach<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> <strong>Consideration:<\/strong> Traffic, engagement, video views, app installs, messages or lead generation<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> <strong>Conversion:<\/strong> Conversions, catalog sales or store traffic<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Choose your objective carefully because your ad may be rejected if your objective doesn\u2019t really align with the type of ad you\u2019re creating.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>2. Name Your <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Campaign<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once you choose your objective, you\u2019ll need to create a name for your campaign. <\/span>Naming your campaign will make it easy to track your ads on the ads manager platform.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>3. Choose Special <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Categories and Campaign Details<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Next, you can choose any special categories that may apply to your ads and choose your campaign details.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Your ad will fall under the Special Ad category if it focuses on any of the following:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Employment<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Social issues, politics or elections<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Housing<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Credit opportunities<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These types of ads have special requirements and regulations that must be followed, so you absolutely must choose your appropriate category if your ad covers one of the topics above.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your ad doesn\u2019t fall into the categories above, then you can move on to the next sections, which include:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> A\/B split testing (enable or disable)<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Advantage Campaign Budget (enable or disable)<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Advantage Campaign Budget will automatically distribute your ad budget across your ad sets. You don\u2019t have to choose this option if you don\u2019t want to. Ads Manager allows you to allocate your spending for each ad set manually.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>4. Choose Your <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Ad Design<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now, you can finally start designing your ads. You have two options here:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> You can create your own ads<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> You can use the <strong>Dynamic Creative<\/strong> to allow the ads manager to make the ad for you<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With the <\/span><b>Dynamic creative <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">option, you\u2019ll still need to upload images, ad copy and CTAs. The ads manager will test different designs using the elements you provide.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s up to you which option you choose, but the <\/span><b>Dynamic creative <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">route will allow you to test out different configurations and creatives to see which ones will perform best.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>5. Set Your <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Budget and Optimization<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The next step is to choose how you\u2019ll be charged for the ads you run and to define your budget and schedule.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>You can choose between:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> <strong>Daily Budget,<\/strong> which allows you to run your ads indefinitely while spending your set budget for each day.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> <strong>Lifetime Budget,<\/strong> which allows you to set a specific schedule for your ads. <strong>For example,<\/strong> you can choose to only have your ads shown on weekends or weekdays. You can even choose the exact times and days for your ads.<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can adjust these settings anytime you want if you decide to change your budget and how you run your ads.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>6. Choose Your <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Target Audience, Ad Placement and Ad Format<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With your budget set, it\u2019s time to choose your audience. <\/span><b>Make sure that you choose the right audience for your ads \u2013 the one that\u2019s most relevant.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You\u2019ll also need to choose the placement of your ad, which, in this case, would be Instagram. Ads Manager will allow you to choose between a few different placements:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Stories and Reels<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Feeds<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> In-stream<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Overlay and post-loop ads on Reels<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, you can choose your ad format (ads, slideshow, video, etc.) and get ready to launch your campaign.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Creating an ad is a multi-step process, and you want to do everything you can to ensure that your ads deliver the results you want.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But before we dive into pricing and tips, you\u2019ll want to consider the types of ads that you can create.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong><span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">What Types<\/span> of Instagram Ads Can You Create?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><b>Instagram has ads in places that you likely overlooked<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. You can quickly <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/boost-post-on-instagram\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">boost a post<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, but selecting the right ad type will help you improve your overall results. When creating ads, you\u2019ll find options for each objective, such as:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Awareness<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> App Promotion<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Engagement<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Leads<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Traffic<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Sales<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And you can adapt your CTA buttons to very specific cases, such as \u201c<strong>Get Offer<\/strong>,\u201d \u201c<strong>Download<\/strong>,\u201d \u201c<strong>Shop<\/strong>,\u201d and many others.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Different types of ads will have their own objectives and call-to-action options available.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Meta offers the following types of ads\ud83d\udc47on Instagram:<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><strong>1. <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Carousel<\/span> Ads<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Carousels are <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">very popular<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span>You can add multiple photos to tell a story, and it\u2019s what many apparel companies use to promote their products<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Why? You can:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Showcase products<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Tell a story<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Share 10 images or videos in one carousel<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When creating these ads, they\u2019ll show up in people\u2019s feeds or Stories, and you can add a CTA for each image. <strong>For example,<\/strong> your first image may include a CTA to:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Shop 6 sizes<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Shop now for 50% off<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Etc.<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can change the color of the CTA to make each offer stand out, and you have the option of changing the text in the carousel description to match the product.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>2. <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Collection<\/span> Ads<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Ecommerce companies tend to prefer collection ads because Instagram allows for direct item purchases right from the ad<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Leads can click on the ad, see more information about the product and make a purchase.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can think of a collection ad as part carousel and part shopping ad.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Items in your store\u2019s catalog can be added directly to an ad, and you can showcase multiple product views underneath the main ad image.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>3. <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Explore<\/span> Ads<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/instagram-explore-page\">Instagram Explore<\/a> is a tab to explore the platform and find new content. <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You&#8217;ll find a lot of great accounts to follow on the tab, based on your own actions on the site, such as accounts similar to those that you:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Follow<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Like<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Engage with<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And you can purchase ads that will be displayed in the Explore tab based on the user\u2019s usage habits. You can show your ads alongside trending content. What\u2019s nice about this type of ad is that you can reuse some of the assets that you\u2019ve used in other ads for the Explore ad. You can use images or videos for your ad.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instagram has a great <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">video<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that shows Explore ads and how to use them in your marketing campaign.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>4. <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Image<\/span> Ads<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>An image ad is a timeless advertisement that uses a single image to promote your<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Brand<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Product<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Service<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You&#8217;ll see these ads on your feed with the word \u201cSponsored\u201d under them. Apparel companies are known to use image ads to promote their most recent collections, and you can choose from numerous CTA buttons, such as <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">contact us, book now, get quote, shop<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and dozens of others.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>5. <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Reels<\/span> Ads<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Reels are insanely popular on Instagram and allow the advertisement to run<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Fullscreen<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Up to 60 seconds<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You&#8217;ll find that while very effective, you\u2019ll need to have a budget to create high-quality Reels that include audio and music. If you go through Reels, you\u2019ll find a lot of brands, such as Redbull, use ads to promote their products with great storytelling.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Users can:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Like Reels<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Share them<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And Reels will loop, allowing your ad to be seen many times in a row.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>6. <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Shopping<\/span> Ads<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Our Instagram ads guide has mentioned a lot of shopping examples, but you can go beyond normal ads for shopping. <\/span>Meta has its own type of shopping ads that allow you to reach up to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/instagramforbusiness\/reel\/CWbLh7wsWxK\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">44%<\/a> of the users who shop on the platform weekly<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Who knew this many users were shopping on the platform?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Instagram allows users to:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Shop on the app<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Buy directly from the app<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You&#8217;ll need to set up your shopping catalog and then add your products to the platform. Instagram does limit this type of ad to businesses that have <\/span><b>Checkout<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> enabled. If you use something like Shopify, it\u2019s easy to begin adding your products to the Shopping catalog and show them as ads.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>7. <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Story<\/span> Ads<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><b>Instagram Stories are engaging and where a lot of users spend their time.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> You&#8217;ll pay more for ads in Stories, but with over half a billion people watching Stories every day, it\u2019s well worth the expense.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can make an image or video into a full-screen Story ad.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>A few perks when choosing Story ads is that they offer:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Carousels, photos and videos<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Call-to-action to swipe up from the ad<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Filters and stickers when creating them<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instagram Story ads are very interactive and have a <a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/instagram-engagement\">very high engagement rate<\/a> compared to other advertisement types on the platform.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>8. <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Video<\/span> Ads<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Video advertisements are another great way for brands to showcase their products<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Instagram users see a lot of ads every time they look through their feeds, so you may prefer video because it helps your advertisement stand out from the competition.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Imagine a local landscaping company purchasing a video ad that shows:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> A \u201cbefore\u201d video of an overgrown property<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> How the team cleaned up the property<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> An \u201cafter\u201d video with a customer in awe at their new landscaping<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you want to showcase items or concepts, Instagram video ads allow you to show that story in one of the most engaging formats possible. You can add a CTA to the bottom of the advert and direct users to your site or store.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>How Much Do Instagram <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Ads Cost?\ud83d\udcb5<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>If you want to know exactly <a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/instagram-ads-cost\">how much your ads will cost<\/a>, no Instagram ads guide can tell you<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. You&#8217;ll want to have a <strong>minimum budget of $5 (USD) per day<\/strong> to run ads, according to Meta, which is a good starting point for brands purchasing ads.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your total ad spend can be controlled with great precision, including the ability to limit ads to:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Daily budget<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Lifetime budget<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>For example,<\/strong> if you may want to spend $20,000 advertising a new product, you can set the lifetime spend at $20,000, and the ad will stop being displayed on the platform.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you want to spend $200 a day on ads, you can also set this threshold.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Costs for your ads will vary drastically based on multiple factors, such as:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Audience<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Industry<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Time of year<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Placement<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you plan to begin advertising televisions on Black Friday to a U.S. audience, you can expect to spend dramatically more than if you promoted this same product in April.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bidding on ads is how the platform works, so the \u201chighest bid wins.\u201d Instagram can set the bid for you, but it requires that you give up some of your control over your ads and profit margins.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>What we recommend is:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Start with a low maximum bid<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Increase the bid over time<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Use your internal data to set your bid over time<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You&#8217;ll gain insights into how the ad performs over time, allowing you to understand the exact maximum ad spend for your industry and product.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instagram does provide you with a daily results estimator that will forecast how your ad will perform during a campaign.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even if you just start with $5 per day, you can make a nice ROI with the right ad.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong><span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">4 Tips\ud83d\udca1<\/span>for Creating High-Performing Ads<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">No Instagram ads guide is complete without helpful tips on how to maximize ad performance. <\/span><b>While every Instagram account and audience is unique, these four tips will help most users maximize the performance of their ads.<\/b><\/p>\n<h3><strong>1. Use <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Videos<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instagram may have started as a photo-based social network, but today, videos are king on this platform.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Generally, Instagram video ads get more engagement and clicks than static image ads.<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> If you don\u2019t want to create video ads, carousels are a great alternative because they encourage viewers to interact with your ad.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>2. Use Your <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Current Audience and Content<\/span> as a Guide<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Creating Instagram ads can be intimidating. There are so many possibilities when it comes to creatives and audience targeting. Where do you even begin?<\/span><\/p>\n<p>If you want to maximize the performance of your ads, use your audience and your current content as a guide.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Use your <a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/instagram-insights\">Instagram Insights dashboard<\/a> to analyze your content. Ask yourself:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-34804\" src=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Instagram-Analytics-900x405.jpg\" alt=\"Can I Use Instagram Analytics\" width=\"800\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Instagram-Analytics-900x405.jpg 900w, https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Instagram-Analytics-600x270.jpg 600w, https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Instagram-Analytics-768x345.jpg 768w, https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Instagram-Analytics-1536x691.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Instagram-Analytics-2048x921.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Which images and videos get the most engagement?<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> What do these images and videos have in common aesthetically and topic-wise?<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once you analyze your content, you can use your findings to start creating ads with visuals that will catch your audience\u2019s eye.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>If you\u2019re still struggling, we recommend starting out with promoted, or Boosted, posts before you create unique Instagram ads. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Why? Because these are posts that will already have likes and comments. You know that your audience finds them interesting, so it\u2019s highly likely that the people who see your ads will also find these posts interesting. You\u2019ll be more likely to get engagement and clicks as a result.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>3. Try the <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Audience Lookalike Targeting Feature<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>To create Instagram ads, you\u2019ll need to use Facebook\u2019s advertising platform, and this platform has a feature that can help you create high-performing ads: lookalike audience targeting.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lookalike audience targeting features allow you to target users who behave like the ones who already engage with your content.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In other words, Instagram will show your ads to users who are just like your followers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>To set up a lookalike audience:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Open <strong>Facebook Ads Manager.<\/strong><div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Choose <strong>Create Audience<\/strong> on the <strong>Audiences page.<\/strong><div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Select <strong>Lookalike Audience.<\/strong><div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Next, choose <strong>Engagement Custom Audience<\/strong> as the source.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Specify your audience\u2019s location and audience size.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Click <strong>Create Audience.<\/strong><\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now, you can use your lookalike audience setting, which will allow your ads to reach new people who are likely interested in your content.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>4. Use the Best Practices for <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Ad Design<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>If you\u2019re going to create unique ads for Instagram, make sure that you\u2019re following the best practices for this platform.<\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\"  style=\"border-color:#e5ddce;border-radius:14px;-moz-border-radius:14px;-webkit-border-radius:14px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#fff7e8;border-color:#ffffff;color:#000000;border-radius:14px;-moz-border-radius:14px;-webkit-border-radius:14px;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>For example,<\/strong> if you want to run Stories ads, then you need to make sure the content is optimized for Stories. Creatives designed for feed ads won\u2019t work.<\/div><\/div><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Here are a few tips:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Feed ads should be on the larger end of the size requirements (maximum aspect ratio of 191X100).<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Stories ads should have an <a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/instagram-story-size\">aspect ratio of 9:16<\/a>.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Focus on quality always. Your video and image ads should look professional if you want to maximize their performance.<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you follow the best design practices for your ads, you\u2019ll maximize their performance and get more engagement overall.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Are Instagram Ads <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Worth It?<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now that you know what type of ads you can create, how much they cost and how to maximize performance, you may be wondering: Is it worth it?<\/span><\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re trying to grow your brand, increase your following, get more visitors to your website or increase sales, Instagram ads will likely be worth the investment for you.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instagram has a <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">huge <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">audience, and ads will help expand your reach significantly. Because you don\u2019t need a huge budget to use Instagram Ads, it\u2019s worth experimenting with this tool to see if it helps you reach your goals.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Reaching 2+ billion people on social media is possible. How? With Instagram ads, you can reach 96% of active users.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":16309,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[76],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-instagram"],"acf":[],"modified_by":"John","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31332"}],"version-history":[{"count":31,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31332\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38218,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31332\/revisions\/38218"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}