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We run an influencer marketing platform and’ve seen our fair share of Instagram ads.
We can safely say that picking the wrong Instagram ad formats can considerably set your campaign back.
However, you’re on the right page to avoid this issue.
We’ll discuss:
Let’s dive in.
Ad Formats Based on Content Style:
Ad Formats Based on Instagram Sections:
Choosing the Best Ad Format:
Scaling Up Campaigns:
Instagram Ad Formats are diverse ways brands can showcase their ads on the platform to engage with their audience.
These formats are broadly categorized into two types.
The first type is based on the specific content presentation style, such as videos, images, or carousels, focusing on the media format.
The second type depends on the specific sections of Instagram where the ads appear, like Stories, Feeds, or the Explore page, leveraging the unique characteristics of each section for targeted reach.
That’s what we’ll explore below.
The first thing you want to think of is how you’ll package your content – that’s the content style presentation.
We have five types of ad formats here.
Photo Ads on Instagram are a cost-effective and highly visual way to reach your audience.
These ads showcase a single image and are ideal for creating a strong visual impact.
The simplicity of this format lies in its focus on a high-quality single photo, so they can convey your message or showcase your product directly.
Strategic use: Use Photo Ads to highlight a specific product, service, or brand message with clarity and impact.
This format is especially effective when you have a striking visual or a powerful image that can speak for itself.
It’s suitable for campaigns where the visual content is the primary focus and can make an impression.
One of our sister company’s clients, Hurom, is doing a great job on Instagram:
Format details:
Instagram Carousel Ads allow you to feature multiple images or videos in a single ad, each with its link.
This format is great for telling a story, showcasing different aspects of a product, or explaining a process step-by-step.
Viewers can swipe through the carousel cards, making this an interactive and engaging ad format.
Strategic uses:
Some companies even use Instagram Carousells for hiring ads:
Format Details:
Collection Ads on Instagram uniquely display multiple images or videos in a unified, single-view layout.
Unlike Carousel Ads, where users swipe through images, Collection Ads simultaneously present a cohesive collection of photos or videos.
This format effectively showcases a group of related products, services, or features, allowing viewers to see a variety of offerings in a single glance.
Strategic use: Collection Ads are ideal in scenarios where you want to present multiple items together to give a comprehensive overview, such as:
Format Details:
Video Ads on Instagram offer a dynamic and engaging way to connect with your audience.
Basically, you’ll use video content to convey your message, showcase your product or service, or tell a story more effectively and captivatingly.
Creating videos up to 60 seconds offers ample time to deliver a compelling pitch or narrative.
Strategic uses:
Here are two awesome video examples:
Our sister agency, inBeat, helped Nielsen IQ partner with influencers worldwide to generate these content assets.
As a result, they skyrocketed their paid media customer acquisition strategy in 15 countries.
Format Details:
Instagram Shopping Ads integrate seamlessly with the platform’s shopping features, allowing businesses to promote and directly sell products or services.
These ads use product tags in images or videos, which link directly to your product page on your website.
Integrating the shopping functionality within the ad provides a streamlined and convenient shopping experience for users.
Strategic uses:
Format Details:
Next, you’ll have to think about where you’ll publish your ads on Instagram. You now have four more formats to consider.
Instagram Story Ads are full-screen vertical ads between users’ Instagram stories. They offer a highly immersive and engaging format, taking advantage of the full screen to capture the audience’s attention.
As such, they’re highly effective for storytelling, brand awareness, and driving specific actions like website visits or conversions.
These ads can include images or videos and are designed to blend seamlessly with organic Story content, making them a natural part of the user’s browsing experience.
Strategic use:
Format Details:
Instagram Explore Ads appear within the Explore section, a space where users go to discover new content aligned with their interests.
These ads blend into the organic content, allowing brands to reach users actively looking to expand their horizons and engage with new content, accounts, and products.
As such, this ad format is best for awareness, visibility, and product discovery.
Emirates Group does a great job of advertising the amazing-looking life of a cabin crew member with posh Instagram Explore Ads like the one below:
Strategic uses:
Format Details:
Instagram Reels Ads are an exciting format that appears between individual Reels, which are short, entertaining videos.
This format leverages the popularity and engaging nature of Instagram Reels to deliver your message in a dynamic, full-screen environment.
Reel ads are well-suited for brands aiming to connect with audiences through creative, trendy, and highly engaging video content.
The best content strategy is to offer value to your readers so you can build more trust.
That’s what Ancestral Supplements does in its Reels.
Strategic uses:
Format Details:
Feed Ads on Instagram are integrated into the user’s regular scrolling experience in their home feed.
These ads blend in with organic posts but are marked as sponsored content.
They can be in image ads, videos, or carousels and offer a straightforward way for brands to reach their audience in a familiar and frequently visited environment.
Strategic uses:
Format Details:
Selecting the right Instagram ad format is crucial for the success of your marketing campaign.
Below are three of the most lucrative strategies our sister company, influencer marketing agency inBeat, uses.
It’s what helped them produce over 200 high-performing content assets for brands like Native:
So, go ahead and steal a page of its playbook – we won’t tell.
Start by experimenting with various ad formats.
Each format offers unique benefits and may work differently depending on your product, service, and target audience.
Implement A/B testing to compare the performance of different formats.
This will help you understand which format resonates best with your audience and achieves your campaign goals.
Insider tip: inBeat’s Ad Generator is a free resource to help you create various ad formats.
Our clients use it, our sibling agency inBeat uses it, and so do we.
This tool can assist in visualizing different ad styles and formats, making it easier to decide which one might be the most effective for your campaign.
Here’s how simple it is to use it:
Choose the ad type, such as portrait, Story, or square format. Then, upload your profile picture, image, and call to action.
You can easily create multiple such ads and download them as PNGs.
Dive into your Instagram Insights or analytics tool to understand your audience’s preferences.
Look at which types of posts (images, videos, carousels, etc.) receive the most engagement.
Use this data to tailor your ad format choice to what your potential customers respond to most positively.
Pro tip: Keep learning. Instagram continuously evolves, introducing new features and trends. Stay updated with these changes and consider how new ad formats or features might benefit your campaign.
Observe what types of ad formats your competitors or similar brands are using.
Note what seems to be working for them and consider how to apply similar strategies or improve them.
Pro tip: Don’t just copy their strategies; ensure they align with your advertising goals.
Remember that different ad formats serve different purposes.
For instance, Stories Ads might be better for brand awareness due to their full-screen, immersive nature, while Shopping Ads could be more effective for direct sales.
You may think your goal is to create a successful Instagram ad campaign.
That’s wrong.
Your job isn’t over after your campaign starts bringing results – your job is just beginning.
You have to zero in on the best-performing content assets and replicate them to reduce CPAs even more.
At least, that’s what inBeat Agency is doing.
So, regularly tracking key metrics like Cost Per Mille (CPM), Click-Through Rate (CTR), and overall budget is vital for them.
However, they leverage our free toolkit – like most of our clients.
Our free CPM, CPA, CTR, and ROAS calculators can simplify the entire process, ensuring you get the most out of your investment.
Here’s how easy it is to use the ROAS calculator – and the others work as seamlessly:
Insider tip: Incorporating influencer marketing is a powerful way to enhance your advertising campaign.
It can significantly reduce Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) and combat ad fatigue.
We’re not bragging, but we have a comprehensive database of influencers, so you can find the right match for your brand more easily.
Regardless of your creative strategy, go ahead and test our toolkit – all the tools we’ve shown you above are free, fast, and flexible.
And they’re all in one place.
