Running Pay-Per-Click campaigns on Instagram

Social media marketing is an essential part of many businesses’ marketing strategy. Whilst Facebook continues to be the market leader for socialPay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns, Instagram advertising is growing rapidly and could help your business target a different audience.

Facebook vs Instagram ad spends

Instagram’s ad revenues rose from $28.08billion in 2020 to $42.18billion in 2021 and $43.28billion in 2022. By comparison, whilst Facebook’s ad revenue grew from $56.09billion in 2020 to $72.75billion in 2021, it then dropped to $69.41billion in 2022. Ongoing predictions by Segment suggest that Instagram ad revenues will continue to grow at a faster rate than Facebook’s through 2023 and 2024.

Has Facebook Advertising become saturated?

Facebook advertising still has a phenomenal reach. According to Hootsuite, Facebook ads are capable of reaching one-third of the world’s population over the age of 13! Despite this, some marketers such as Cassie Oumedian , suggest that Facebook is becoming saturated with advertisements in some markets . By contrast, Instagram is a PPC channel that allows businesses to tap in to a different demographic and operate in a less competitive market.

Instagram user statistics

According to Instagram , they have over 500 million daily active users and over 200 million of those visit at least one business profile every day. Businesses also account for a third of the most viewed Instagram ‘stories’.

Instagram audiences

Knowing the demographics of social media channels is vital to understanding how to run successful PPC campaigns. Instagram has a strong age skew in its demographics, with with 62.2% of users falling in the 18-34 age bracket. 

Targeting a younger demographic

Instagram’s younger user-demographic means that PPC ads on the social media platform are well-placed to engage millennial and Generation Z audiences. Research by Omnicore reports that 25% of US teenagers say Instagram is their preferred social media site. Furthermore, 73 % of US teens say that Instagram is the best way for brands to reach them about new products or promotions.

Targeting PPC ads on Instagram

Many establishedFacebook advertisers like the high-degree of targeting available on the social media site. Because Instagram uses the same advertising platform as Facebook(the parent company of Instagram since its purchase in 2012 ), Instagram ads offer the same scope for niche targeting. There’s also the potential to run the same campaign across the two platforms.

The effectiveness of PPC campaigns on Instagram

Instagram is very good at engaging audiences. Writing for Forbes , Jayson DeMers puts the success of Instagram down to its mobile functionality, visual nature and its unique functionality in the crowded social media market. The result of this is a social media channel that’s highly effective for business use and paid ads. A 2017 article from Business Insider UK suggests that brands experience nearly four times more user engagement onInstagram compared toFacebook.

What type of content works for Instagram PPC campaigns?

Instagram is a visual medium – users post images and ‘stories’. Stories are consolidated images and videos from across a 24-hour period with overlays of stickers and filters. Where Instagram has been so successful is integrating filters, so businesses can create attractive content to share easily.  This means that it is well placed for boosting brand awareness and promoting engagement with visuals, whereas Facebook can be the better bet for website clicks and written content.

Influencer marketing on Instagram

Instagram is the preferred social media channel for influencer marketing. This is where brands pay well known figures and those with a large (and engaged) follower count to promote their products. According to Omnicore, marketers can expect an average ROI of $5.20 for every $1 invested in influencer marketing. For more on how influencer marketing on Instagram, check out From reels to influencers: 2020’s top Instagram marketing strategies.

Seeing results from PPC campaigns on Instagram

American PPC firm and Google Partner Wordstream reports that in March 2017, over 120 million Instagram users either visited a company’s website or contacted them by phone or email after seeing anInstagram ad. The high engagement rates for Instagram PPC ads can also mean a lower cost per engagement. PPC Hero reports an 18% lower cost per result on Instagram compared to Facebook . It’s also worth noting that one-third of Instagram users have bought something from the platform. This means that your ads are placed in front of users with high-intent to purchase.

Support to run PPC campaigns in Devon

We're a web design and digital marketing agency in Exeter. We help companies across Devon and Exeter to run successful PPC campaigns on social media. If you need support with running an ad on Instagram, Facebook or another social media platform contact us in Exeter today to find out how we could help.