Top 20 Hacks to Use Instagram Video Ads to Grow Your Business

With a monthly user base of around 1 billion and growing strong, Instagram is indeed a fertile ground for advertisements and reaching out to potential clientele.

It is for this reason that it makes sense to know the various ways and means through which this wonderful platform may be leveraged. You are well aware of this, right? That is why we have researched extensively and have constituted some Instagram growth hacking tool kit.

In our discussions hereunder, we are going to examine the various strategies you might adopt to grow your business via Instagram video ads. Instagram video ads are one of several options available to businesses looking to capture attention on the popular social media platform.

Best Instagram Growth Hacking Tool Kit for Businesses

Here are the top 20 tips to help you drive awareness, increase customers and share your story amongst a highly engaged audience on Instagram with video ads.

#1: Create a comprehensive profile

Your bio is the starting point while interacting with the outside world and more so other Instagram users. You, therefore, have to pay some keen attention to this section.

See to it that you place the most relevant, comprehensive and up-to-date pieces of information here. On the same note, be sure to update the section from time to time to give a true and realistic reflection of the character of your business at any given time.

If you can, make use of the premium or business profiles as they are more likely to boost your visibility considerably.

#2: Post only attention-catching adverts

Most users of Instagram are normally restless and quick. They do not have the luxury to keep focused on a particular advert for far too long. To be able to capture their attention and be sure to push through your advert, post only those adverts which are attention-catching.

To do this, make use of some stunning imagery, flashy colors, attentive sounds, and other actions which are more likely to captivate the attention of an Instagram user. This way, they will more likely stop by and give you a second your video a second thought.

#3: Customize the Ads to be as relevant to the audience as possible

Businesses send out advertisements for different reasons and purposes. Some are informative, others are promotional, others are for brand awareness, yet others are educative as they are intended to explain to the end users how to make use of the product and so on.

It is necessary to customize the ads in line with the purpose they are intended to fulfill. This way, you will definitely avoid confusion and more likely to achieve the intended goal. Avoid the temptation of amalgamating several purposes in one ad for the sake of minimizing confusion.

#4: Mention the company name and character as early as possible

Always be sure to mention the name as well as the character of your business as early in the video as possible. This should ideally happen within the first 5 to 10 seconds. The reason behind this is pretty much the same as the one above.

The attention span of most people is very limited. They lack the patience to follow the ad to the very end to know what is in store for them. By mentioning your business name as early as possible, you let them memorize the ad and make appropriate follow-up even if they do not watch the entire ad.

#5: Provide a solution

You should always structure your ad in such a way as to offer a solution to your viewers. Start off by identifying the problem which the viewer is most likely suffering from. Go ahead to demonstrate to them in the video how your product can help to solve that particular problem.

This way, they will identify how relevant your product is more likely going to be. It is this correlation that will heighten their interest and compel them to try out your product.

#6: Keep the ads as short as realistically can be

As has been stated severally, the attention spans of most people are very short. One study by Microsoft Corporation, as a matter of fact, found out that most people tend to lose focus after only eight seconds. This being the case, try as much as possible to squeeze the information you have in mind within this time-frame.

Use simple and sweet sentences. Highlight the transcripts by way of footnotes and do not neglect using vivid colors as some of the ways and means of making the most of the limited time in your disposal.

#7: Push one message at a time

Chances are that any given time you might have so much information to pass on to a would-be client. You are advised against bundling these messages and then conveying them at a go. This will create unnecessary forgetfulness and may lead to the loss of information.

Instead, push only one message at a time. Create each video with a unique centralized theme. Try to exhaust that particular theme. Proceed thereafter to generate other themes for other kinds of messages you might have in mind, and so on.

#8: Take note of the significance and make use of the thumbnails

Thumbnails are generally very small and concise descriptions which basically summarize the entire length and breadth of your entire message. These thumbnails can make a huge difference whether a user may click or move on to the next advert.

It is therefore in your best interest to consider incorporating them in your videos. Only be sure that they are as relevant to the video as possible. Keep them also as short and eye-catching as can be. You do not want to bore your viewers, do you?

#9: Strike a balance between quality content and creativity

As you make your videos, always see to it that you strike a balance between quality content and creativity. It is only in this way that you will be able to convert your visitors into lifetime customers and buyers of your products.

Make use of the visuals to catch the attention of the viewers after which you are to proceed to showcase the finer details of the product or service.

#10: Add some captions to the videos

Other than merely using the thumbnails, you should also see to it that you add some captions to the videos. This is because Instagram videos have their audios muted by default. A viewer will most likely elicit some interest if he sees the caption underneath the video.

If possible, accompany these captions with some dynamic texts effects for the sake of emphasizing your point and possibly reinforcing your marketing message. Keep the caption to the absolute minimum though. You might clutter the screen to the extent of concealing the visuals.

#11: Incorporate some humor

Many studies have deduced that ads which contain some humor or which elicit emotions such as laughter and happiness are more likely to receive more impressions than those which do not. They are also more likely to be ‘liked’ and shared with other online users.

You should, therefore, try as much as possible to incorporate some humor in your message. Only be sure that it is relevant enough to the targeted audience as it might normally water down the seriousness of the message when wrongfully applied.

#12: Optimize the ads for the mobile interfaces

Do bear in mind that Instagram is primarily a mobile app. With regards to this, you should see to it that your ad is optimized for mobile screens and interfaces. You should, therefore, maintain your ads in the vertical format. If possible, make it expandable to cover the full screen.

This will minimize the time that would be wasted by a viewer to obtain the best views. Moreover, it will also cut down any distortions which the image might undergo while being viewed.

#13: Maintain a fair degree of consistency at all times

Be sure to maintain a fair degree of consistency throughout your advertising. This simply means that the taglines, color schemes, background audio, and font should be the same throughout. Indeed, a user should spot the same appearances when he visits your site, views the same advert via YouTube, on your landing page or television.

This way, he will easily grasp the video and make an appropriate correlation. The end result of this is a comparatively higher conversion rate.

#14: Keep your ads short, sweet, and direct to the point

Generally speaking, Instagram’s adverts are designed to be short and to the point. The typical advert takes no more than 60 seconds. This coupled with the limited attention span of most viewers means that you have to keep your adverts as short as can be.

#15: Don’t overdo it

Yes, you do not want to settle for the cheap, unprofessional and low-quality videos, on the other hand, engaging the over-the-top production values and expertise is simply getting overboard. Strike a compromise between the two extremes for the best way forward.

#16: Make it interactive

Try and make the advert as engaging as can be. Invite the viewer to post a comment, share an experience, rate the advert or suggest any improvements. This will not only make the end user feel valued and appreciated, but also give you the opportunity to get the views and comments of the clients which you might use later to improve the product.

#17: Utilize the Hashtags

Hashtags are words or phrases which are used to bundle up messages and posts that have a common theme. They are designated using the hash sign (#). Try as much as possible to make use of these signs if possible.

The use of this sign makes it possible for users to take note of your campaign much more easily than they would under normal circumstances. On the whole, you are advised to make use of between 3 to five hashtags per video advert.

#18: Try Instagram Stories

Instagram stories come in the format of a slideshow. They are only live for a duration of 24 hours and may even be saved to be accessed at a later date. These stories are mainly great for conveying longer pieces of information at any given time.

#19: Test every video ad before posting

Always remember to create a couple of closely related video ads at any given time and test them before deployment. Pick the one which in your opinion stands to engage your audience best. Make an effort to follow up and review the impressions generated and make appropriate adjustments when necessary.

#20: Include a Call-to-action

Lastly, do not forget to include a call-for-action. These should include statements like ‘Book Now,’ ‘Download,’ ‘Sign Up,’ ‘Watch Now,’ ‘Apply Now,’ ‘Learn More,’ ‘Try It,’ ‘Contact Us,’ and ‘Shop Now.’ This, of course, is to make them access the resource you are popularizing with ease.

It also eliminates the tedious process of having to close the page and open your site separately. The end result of this is a higher conversion rate.

Conclusion

As you may well have noted from the growth hacking tool kit above, making your advert stand out amongst other Instagram videos is not a walk in the park. It is an undertaking that requires a great deal of focus, attention and strategy on your part. But, it is also a necessary undertaking that'll help your business keep growing.

Best of luck in your next Instagram advert!