The digital marketing landscape is changing quickly at the moment and Instagram is winning for our clients over other options. In this blog we summarise the history and statistics you should consider when thinking about Instagram advertising followed by some important insights and updates at the end of the blog.
It would be a bit of an understatement to say that Instagram has come a long way since its humble beginnings as a San Francisco startup that had more in common with Foursquare than anything else. Named “Burbn” at the time, these similarities forced the original owners and creators Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger to rethink the platform in an attempt to differentiate themselves. Facebook then purchased it in 2012, and the rest is well-known history. However, user uptake wasn’t the only thing that has risen comfortably since its inception. As with most social platforms, there were some great monetisation opportunities within the platform in the way of advertising, and if you’re not yet up to speed with its potential, then you are most certainly missing out.
While we’re aware that a fair percentage of businesses are starting to come around to the benefits of Instagram advertising, many may be unaware of its astronomical growth and potential. We’re here to sing its praises as the of the fastest growing advertising platform right now. While we can’t share details of client campaigns, our evidence and experience give us reason to suggest you consider advertising on Instagram with the results being achieved by our clients right now. However, you don’t need to take our word for it, the stats speak for themselves.
Consider these statistics when thinking about advertising on Instagram:
80% of users there follow a business:
Unlike Facebook or Twitter, where a small amount of advertising fatigue has started to set in (don’t worry, they’re not going anywhere), users on this particular channel seem to be much more comfortable engaging with businesses. It’s likely due to the nature of the platform being much more visually appealing and straightforward (as well as newer), but it’s not just profile engagement where business interaction can shine. Engagement with Instagram advertising is through the roof at the moment with ad revenue for the platform set to increase to nearly $7 billion in 2018, which is up by about $5 billion over the last two years according to Statistica.
Its advertising increased by 28% in the latter half of 2017:
Sprout Social quote some pretty good statistics on this. The channel is in a boom period and as with most of the larger social platforms, these booms can last for quite some time but never forever, and it’s always best to jump aboard as early as possible. While massive increases in activity might make you wary about jumping into an ever-increasing pool of advertisers, it’s still important to remember that these rises in uptake happen for a reason that’s usually related to the kinds of results that are being achieved there.
The platform is projected to reach 1 BILLION users in 2018:
We don’t need to explain why this should have you keen to utilise this social channel. It’s vast and growing consistently. Of the “core” social avenues, it’s one of the top 5 and will probably crack the top 3 in the near future. It might be a change for your business approach, but if you haven’t adapted to change by now where online marketing is concerned, then you’re probably not having a very good time of it.
32% of Teenagers consider it the most important social platform:
Ok, so this one won’t inspire everyone, but if you care about your future consumers then it pays to see where things are headed at the very least and if this demographic is your target market then the case should be made, especially considering that this info comes via Pew Research. It looks set to be a viable advertising channel for quite a few years to come, so forward-thinking businesses should be exploring it.
200 million users actively visit a business profile daily:
This is according to Instagram’s data, where they also confirm that 25 million businesses currently utilise their app. However, this isn’t just businesses that people follow. They also report that over two-thirds of business profile visits come from users who don’t already follow that business, which speaks for itself. As has been evident for some years already via other advertising platforms, visual advertising regularly outshines simple text-based ads, so it stands to reason that advertising on a purely visual platform would see a large rate of engagement.
57% of users are online every day:
These aren’t Facebook numbers, but the ability to reach more than half your followers and targeted Instagram advertising audience every single day is nothing to be sneezed at, especially when the rate of engagement is so high. People love the platform and still view it with rose coloured glasses due to the creative angle, which is something we’re sure Facebook will hope to continue in light of some of the recent backlash against their advertising activities. It’s operationally separated (meaning it effectively runs as a separate company) enough that it’s not outside the realm of possibility that the boom for this platform could last much longer than others if Facebook learns from its mistakes and works hard to keep it unique.
However, enough raving on about it. The platform is impressive and full of potential for businesses of all shapes and sizes, but at the end of the day, all you need to know is that your bottom line can and will benefit from a presence there. It’s also just more fun to play with because of how it works. Something we can also confirm from personal experience is that getting your staff involved with your business Instagram account is relatively easy and well accepted and you’ll probably find yourself frequently contributing once you dive in. It’s fun, easy and has a high engagement level, so what are you waiting for?
Results ½ the cost per-acquisition of Facebook advertising
With recent changes in facebook algorithms controlling people’s feeds and the ongoing data privacy and management issues they are facing many advertisers have reported increasing costs of Facebook Advertising. We can confirm that with our clients the difference in comparable campaigns we manage on both Facebook and Instagram also show better (and cheaper) results on Instagram right now.
If you’re advertising on Facebook right now and are compelled to try Instagram based on this trend first consider if your advertising creative and message are fit for instagram for best results. Instagram was established with a user base valuing high-quality image sharing so pretty, engaging, emotional and lifestyle advertising creative packs a punch.
Integration with Facebook
The Chances are that you re on Facebook, and if you’ve advertised online you are already or considering Facebook advertising. You can produce, publish and track advertising directly from your Facebook business account. No-one needs to do more work than needed, so if you don’t have one, get a Facebook business manager account and start your Instagram advertising journey!
New Feature / Platform Alert! – Instagram TV IGTV
On the 20th of June 2018 Instagram announced Instagram TV or as they call it IGTV It is available within Instagram or as a standalone app. With Facebook TV and now IGTV, It’s clear that Facebook’s head office are taking off the gloves and wanting to own some of YouTube’s market but in portrait. Yup, that’s right. IGTV is designed to take and share video in portrait. The creators say this is because this is the way people hold their phones and that’s a fair point, but how this plays out with content restrictions and people’s personal preferences for video / streaming tv content remains to be seen.
While YouTube’s dominance in this space is unlikely to be challenged significantly right now, it is a case of watch this space. If you are already sharing or streaming video on Instagram, make sure you’re making use of IGTV too!
As always, if you’d like to explore the above approach or any other form of Social Media Advertising, feel free to contact us and start a conversation!
