Instagram Ads Background
As a small business owner, figuring out the best way to use Instagram ads has been a constant guessing game since I opened my boutique. Posts I thought would perform well, would tank. Others that I wasn’t as excited about would exceed my expectations. I was having a hard time figuring out how to get an ad to perform well, consistently.
If you’re new here, my name is Amy! I own Lilac&Lemon Boutique, and I’m currently studying Marketing at Washington State University. In my English 402 class, I was given the chance to create my own research project. I knew right away that I wanted to look into how to create the best performing Instagram ads for small businesses. I started with a survey that was given to some current, and potential customers of mine. Based on their responses, I came up with several suggestions for perfecting your Instagram ads.
Enticing Captions are not Equal
One part of an Instagram ad that is extremely important is the caption. This is where you can really get your potential customer’s attention. Offer them a quick pitch of why they should shop with you. Of the possibilities included in the survey, an offering of a discount code performed best (58.5%), with free shipping (51%), and a timed flash sale (48%) following behind. These results make sense to me, who doesn’t love a discount or a sale?
This is helpful to keep in mind when creating your add. No matter what, you should be offering your customers a discount code in the caption. You may even consider combining two, or even all three, for a little extra motivation.
Content Options – What Stands Out?
One thing we know about Instagram ads is that user generated content, or ads that resemble a post from a friend tend to do very well on the platform. One of my survey participants had a great quote when asked what stands out to them about specific ads they’ve seen. They said “the best ads don’t stand out as ads”. This is something to keep in mind when choosing the type of photo to use, i.e. avoid classic advertisement shots, and steer towards everyday type photography.
In the survey, I asked participants what type of content they were most likely to respond to. My participants were less enthused about flat lay photos (items, typically laid on the ground or another surface in a creative, aesthetically pleasing way) than they were about photos including models (48% compared to 61.5%). Participants were also more likely to click on an ad that featured a video (64%), then just a photo (58%).
Round Up
Overall, this survey gave me some great insight into the crazy world of Instagram ads. You can bet, my next advertisement will include a model showing off our clothing, in a natural setting, offering a discount code and free shipping. Oh, and in video format. Whew. I’ve got my work cut out for me!
Thanks for reading, and good luck out there to all of my fellow small business owners!
