6 Best Practices for Instagram

You’ve done research, crunched the numbers, allocated funds, and your Instagram budget is set. Now, the hard part of your Instagram advertising strategy is over, right? Not quite.

Your Instagram business account might provide you with insights to track important KPIs such as impressions, as well as engagement and follower demographics, but what lies ahead is the task of determining what to spend on and how. If your goal is to reach as much of your target audience as possible, your Instagram advertising strategy has to focus on campaign optimization and healthy ROAS (return on ad spend), which includes allocating your budget to the relevant areas at the right times.

To crush your goals and build a strategy that returns again and again, check out these best practices for Instagram ads. 

1. Remember the 70:30 Rule

When determining how much to spend on Instagram ads, it's important to be flexible in your approach. Consider dividing your digital media spend by using the 70/30 rule. 70% goes into your set Instagram advertising cost, and the other 30% is set aside for fluid spending, such as reactive Instagram ads. If any portion of the 30% is not needed, it can always be added back into the main spending pot.

2. Choose Your Days Wisely

According to Instagram, more than 80% of users follow at least one business. 75% of users reportedly visited a website or purchased after seeing an Instagram ad. To capture this audience, it’s crucial to determine when is the best time to reach these users? Different sectors do better at different times, so as part of your Instagram campaign strategy, do your research and plan carefully to get the most out of your ad spend.

Overall, the best day to post ads is Thursday. Tuesday and Wednesday have the highest cost-per-click (CPC). Want a sure-fire response to your ad? 3 p.m. on Wednesday is the way to go. There are exceptions: consumer goods experience a boom on the platform between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Saturdays, with a distinct drop-off noticed on Mondays when people are too busy at work to shop.

3. Connect With Your Audience

Segmentation is the key to connecting with your audience and is crucial to a healthy Instagram campaign strategy. For example, you can serve general awareness ads to new customers and offer discounts to your loyal ones. Then, you can further segment with dynamic ads, delivering specific messaging to customers based on the products they’ve viewed in carousel posts or IG Stories. This way, your targets don’t get tired of seeing the same ads and have a greater potential for conversion thanks to a more personalized experience.

4. Be Instagram Smart

Little tricks are available to help you make the most of your ads – like the placement of your adverts. Currently, ads between IG Stories are less expensive than those that roll out in the main Instagram feed. If you’re targeting a group that interacts well with the Stories feature, then selecting that type of ad would be a natural choice and can help to decrease your Instagram advertising cost.

There are other quick wins too. Maybe you’ve noticed an organic post is doing particularly well and you want to make it more visible? No problem: you can turn it into an ad by tapping the “Promote” button below the post’s image. Follow the instructions to complete the details - whom you want to reach (audience), how much you want to spend (budget), and the length of the promotion (duration). Once you’ve tapped ‘Promote’ to finish, Instagram will review your ad within 60 minutes. Job done.

5. Follow Through

It sounds like common sense, but only 1 in 10 brands respond to potential customers when they receive a message from them. 71% of people are likely to buy a product after a good experience on social, so be the brand that listens to its audience by responding to messages and comments.

A huge draw for many customers is knowing that a business is there to help assist them if needed. The more of a community approach you take to your social platforms, the more successful they’ll be.

6. Get Help From AdRoll

Instagram continues to gain followers every year, and trying to connect with them can seem daunting. Start off on the right foot by implementing these Instagram advertising tips, and learn more about what AdRoll can do for your strategy. AdRoll offers simple solutions to get you going. We believe programmatic advertising offers more value for your money. By using prospecting and retargeting to help your customers move along the sales funnel, we'll help you get a better return on your Instagram marketing spend. 

Whether you’re an Instagram novice or a social media pro, we'll help you discover how to use the AdRoll Instagram advertising platform to catapult your business to the next level.

Instagram Advertising FAQ

How much does it cost to advertise on Instagram?

There is no one answer to how much it costs to advertise on Instagram. Your spend will depend on your budget and strategy. However, there is an average cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-mille (CPM) that you can use to plan your budget. Click here to see the average CPC and CPM for Instagram ads, and other social ad platforms too. 

How effective is Instagram advertising?

Instagram advertising can be highly effective for many brands. The image and video based platform is well known for its high organic and paid engagement rates. The effectiveness of the platform depends on your industry, audience demographics, and your dedication to creating content specifically for the app.

Learn more about how to build up your organic + paid presence on social here.

How to get started advertising on Instagram?

Ready to launch your Instagram advertising campaign? Download our guide for step-by-step instructions on setting up your first Instagram ad campaign and more!

Last updated on April 18th, 2023.