Instagram is more popular than ever today, with a reported 2 billion monthly active users on the platform. Being the fifth most visited website in the world, irrespective of being behind FaceBook and Twitter, Instagram has a huge user base around the world.
If you’re looking for a reliable social media platform to grow your brand today, Instagram is the place for you to be.
In this blog, we are going to discuss Instagram story ads and how to grow your brand through them.
What are Instagram story ads?
If you are a regular Instagram user, you must be familiar with the concept of Instagram stories. Instagram Stories ads work on the same concept as stories and can go up to 15 seconds. These stories ads appear in between the regular stories of your users and give your brand an opportunity to grab attention in a mere 15 seconds. And they can be in the form of photos, videos, or infographics and are in vertical format.
According to Statista, the net advertising revenue of Instagram stories worldwide was expected to amount to $11.43 billion in 2021 and reach $20.03 billion in 2023.
The Benefits of Instagram Stories Ads
Here are a few benefits of leveraging Instagram’s Stories ads:
– Increased brand awareness
– Higher reach
– Potential new customers
– More engagement
– Increased web traffic
20+ Instagram Story Ads ideas (Tips?) for Instagram
There are a number of case studies that prove the success of businesses that use Instagram Stories ads in various avenues. An example of this is a noted 41% increase in product page views for businesses that use the stories ads.
Here is a list of tips that you can pay attention to in order to get the best results and returns from your Instagram Stories Ads:
- Keep your target audience in mind
It may be tempting to create a one-size-fits-all template for your stories ads, but we would recommend not to. Instead, decide who your target audience is and do your best to serve them only. Keep a note of the gender, age group, demography and so on that you wish to target and work with that.
- Keep the spotlight on your product
Yes, we know this sounds pretty basic and obvious. But you’d be surprised to know that a lot of brands actually fail to do this. In creating an appealing story, don’t forget what really matters – your product no matter how appealing your story is, if your product isn’t front and center, you’ve lost.
- Create your ads for stories
Rather than using the same ads, templates, visuals, etc from your website or feed to fit into your story ad, create ads purely for your stories. Creating images and video content, especially for Instagram stories ads will ensure greater authenticity.
- Minimum text
Using minimal text is key when it comes to 15-second ads because come on, do you want your audience getting confused as to what your ad, product, or brand is all about? Absolutely not! You want them to leave with a clear message in mind, and that will only happen once you give out a clear message in the first place. Use minimal text with one or two concepts at max.
- Catchy music
This tip applies to pretty much any video on Instagram these days, but that’s because it works! Using catchy or trending music will not only make your audience stop to watch what your ad is all about, but it might also keep them humming the tune long after they’ve gotten off the app.
- Stickers! Yes, stickers!
We don’t think this one needs any explanation. Maybe the question to ask isn’t why stickers but who doesn’t love stickers?
- Use an interactive element
Making your stories engaging and interactive is a huge boon for your brand. Everyone has heard of the phrase ‘customer is king’. It’s time to put that into action by adding interactive elements in your story ads that will make your customers feel like they’re the main guy.
- Make it creative
Today, the word creative has endless meanings. It could translate to audio, video, stickers, GIFs, memes… the list goes on. Get your creative caps on and get to work! Using a good Instagram video maker is key.
- Make it relatable
Making your stories ads relatable could look different for each brand. Maybe you could partner with another brand that you know your audiences connect with. Or your video script could be created in such a way that it speaks to your target audience.
- Use a single call to action
Rather than creating a passive story, including a call to action is always important if you want people to click through and flood your page or website. However, to prevent your audiences from getting confused, it is important to include a single and clear call to action in one story.
- Include contact information
Including your contact information such as contact numbers, website links or other social media handles will help you track your conversion rates more accurately. Plus, you provide your audience with a chance to contact you to know more about your brand and product, which brings in more transparency.
- Make them participate
Instagram stories ads wherein a viewer can participate are successful. It could be as simple as an interactive poll, a mini quiz, or a ‘say yes or no’, but it will make your viewers feel like they matter and their answer matters too.
- Customized creatives
Customizing your creatives and designs can make a huge difference if done right. If your creatives are designed and targeted right, you will bring in much more returns in the form of conversions and sales.
- Keep it simple
Some of the most successful ads out there aren’t very loud or ‘too much’. They’re simple and they get their message across creatively. That’s it!
- Paint your product as the solution to your customer’s needs
This is one of the older tricks in the book, but ensuring your customers know that you are the best solution to their needs is key. Once you’ve positioned your service or product as the solution, you have also ensured a higher chance of success for your ad campaign.
- Use a theme
If you want to increase brand awareness and recall, you must have continuity in your ads. In order to achieve this, you can pick a theme… and stick to it! Using a theme or a connecting storyline across your ads will help to increase brand recall in many ways.
- Show your products in action
Seeing a product in action is exciting. Showcase what your product can do, how it can be used, and what your viewers can expect if they choose to buy and use it.
- Partner with influencers and creators
When your stories ads have the familiar and popular faces of influencers, creators, or celebrities promoting your products, there is a higher chance that the audience will be more intrigued to know more about them. Familiar faces also help to increase connection with the viewer sitting on the other end of the screen.
- Add incentives like discounts and offer codes
Have you met anyone who doesn’t care about discounts? Well, we have not. By offering a simple incentive, you can get your viewers to take action on your stories. It could be a simple offer code for getting a new person to download the brand app or a discount on their first/next purchase etc.
- Take advantage of the full screen
Instagram Stories ads are posted in the vertical format and typically take over the whole mobile screen. So, take advantage of that! Use the space to show more, add more, or show less in a way that feels like more! Turn to illusto as your official Instagram video editor.
- Design with a clear view of your brand and brand message
Remember that no matter what your story ad is about, your brand needs to stand out. A viewer should instantly know that this is your brand and not any other. Using a list of colors and themes will help in brand recall and make your brand recognizable.
- Hook your audience within the first 2-5 seconds
Consider this: it’s a mere 15-second story and by the time you’ve got the audience’s attention, the story ends and they go on to watch the next one. No! Your goal should always be to hook your audience within the first few seconds of the story ad itself. Using engaging visuals and bold text will help with this.
- Include motion
The human eye is attracted to motion, and Instagram stories are a great place to leverage this to portray your product. You could always use static images, but video content is in a league of its own. Using a reliable video ads maker will help you in your story ads.
- Test, test, and test
When was testing something ever bad? Never, we suppose. Testing your ad campaigns is crucial to understanding what works for your brand and what does not. And also, what works with the ads you’ve already put out, and what you might need to change up for the future?
