There’s no doubt that Instagram is one of the best social media platforms to market and promote a health and nutrition business. But, with more than 500 million active users scrolling through their feeds every day, standing out on this platform can be a challenge, especially for small health and wellness businesses.
And this is where Instagram advertising comes in. With Instagram ads, you will be able to cut through the noise, stand out from the crowds and reach your target audience. In this guide, we will take you through some tips and best practices to help you get the most out of your Instagram ads.
Create Mobile-First Ads
Studies show that approximately 83% of social media usage comes from mobile devices compared to only 15% from laptops and desktops. And this applies across all social media platforms, including Instagram.
So, when you are designing your Instagram ads, you should optimize them for mobile viewing or mobile users, instead of desktop. You may be probably asking yourself how you can design mobile-first Instagram ads. Well, here are some tips to guide you.
First, if you are shooting videos for your ads, ensure you capture the footage in vertical or portrait mode. This way, you will have an easier time trimming the footage to 4×5 compared to landscape format.
Second, keep the text in your ads to a minimum. And if you have to use text, ensure you select large-sized fonts, which are easy to read on mobile devices. Also, ensure your CTA buttons are clear and bold.
Showcase Your Offer within the First Three Seconds
Social media users in general have short attention spans. So, whether you decide to use video ads, carousel ads, or reel ads, ensure you showcase your offer or brand within the first three seconds. Doing so will help you to quickly capture your target audience’s attention.
If you leave your offer towards the end of the ad, there’s a high chance that the majority of viewers won’t stick around until then. Consequently, your ad conversion rates will be poor. So, show them your offer right away and they will stick around to engage more with your ad.
Focus on One Selling Point
As we’ve pointed out above, your audience has limited attention spans. So, apart from showcasing your offer within the first three seconds, it’s also advisable to focus on a single selling point.
You simply don’t have the time or opportunity to focus on all your services’ or product’s benefits. Instead, focus on the main benefit. By doing so, you will significantly increase the chances of a conversion.
Use High-Quality Visuals
Instagram is a highly visual platform. So, regardless of the ad format that you decide to use, ensure you use high-quality, stunning visual content. With this visually appealing content, you will easily grab your target audience’s attention while encouraging them to purchase what you are offering.
On the other hand, if your ads have poor-quality photos and images or they are downright bland, then no one will bother interacting with them.
We should point out that you don’t need to be a professional graphics designer to come up with high-quality visuals for your ads. Platforms like Canva have hundreds of professionally-designed templates, which you can use to create visually-stunning Instagram ads effortlessly. You can also get a ready made healthy nutrition bundle from ContentBASE, in order to help you get started more quickly.
Include Closed Captions in Your Videos
Videos autoplay on mute on Instagram when users are scrolling their feeds. So, if you are using video ads to market or promote your health and nutrition business on this platform, then you need to make sure you include closed captions. By including closed captions, you will still be able to grab the viewer’s attention despite the video’s muted autoplay.
In addition, your target audience will still be able to watch your videos even in public settings. Also, a section of your audience may have hearing challenges. Again, including closed captions in your video ads will ensure your content is accessible to this segment of your audience and you will have a bigger reach.
Experiment with Different Ad Formats
Instagram offers a wide range of ad formats to explore. They include story ads, video ads, photo ads, IGTV ads, carousel ads, and collection ads, just to name a few. It will be highly advisable to experiment with the different ad formats on this platform and then choose the combination that delivers the best results.
Wrapping It Up
Advertising on Instagram and getting the results you are looking for doesn’t have to be rocket science. With the tips and best practices we’ve shared here, you should be able to create and launch effective Instagram ads that will deliver sales for your wellness business.
