The cost of Instagram ads can vary widely depending on several factors. These factors include your target audience, ad objectives, ad volume, and competition. In general, the overarching average in the UK is around £0.80 per click; however, we can’t guarantee this price for your future Instagram ads. This is simply a rough estimate, and yours may be higher or lower depending on the factors listed above.

It’s crucial when running Instagram ads to set a budget that aligns with your goals and to test different strategies to pinpoint what works best for you and your campaign.

How successful Instagram ads will be for your business depends on your goals, target audience and how effectively the campaigns are managed. Our team of Instagram paid social experts has tried-and-tested strategies you can implement in future campaigns to help you reach your ideal customers and promote your brand effectively.

There is a range of factors we will consider before determining if Instagram ads are right for you. The main ones are:

• Target Audience
• Ad Quality
• Ad Objectives
• Budget & ROI ( return on investment)
• Targeting & Optimisation
• Competition
• Long-Term Strategy

When it comes down to it, whether or not Instagram ads are “worth it” is completely subjective and depends on your unique business’s circumstances. Many brands we’ve partnered with have found great success with Instagram ads by approaching them strategically and monitoring performance to ensure they align with goals and budgets.

When it comes to Instagram ads, our team of experts work through a complex and customisable process to ensure the success of your Instagram ad campaign. Here’s an overview of the process we go through for your Instagram ads.

Ad Creation – We will start by creating the ad within Meta Ads Manager, choosing the format, setting your budget, defining the target audience and establishing the objectives.

Targeting – Instagram allows for precise targeting based on demographics, behaviours, interests and more. We can reach the specific audience most likely to engage with your ads.

Auction System – Instagram uses an auction process to determine which ads to display to users. When someone matches your target audience criteria, they will become eligible to see the ad.

Bidding – We will then set a bid strategy for your Instagram ads, which indicates how much you are willing to pay for the action your audience takes. This could be clicks, impressions, conversions, etc. Instagram will consider your bid, ad quality, and relevance to determine whether your ad is displayed.

Placement – The ad will appear on Instagram and all other Meta platforms (Facebook, Audience Network & Messenger). We can select specific placements or choose to let the platform optimise the campaign for the best results.

Delivery – Instagram’s algorithm then decides when and where to show your ads to maximise their performance. Your ad quality, bid amount, and engagement will influence ad delivery.

Ad Auction – During the auction, your ad competes with others for the same audience, and Instagram determines which ad is shown to which users.

Engagement – Users who see your ad can engage with it by clicking, liking, sharing and taking action.

Measuring & Optimising – With Instagram’s extensive analytics for performance tracking, we can analyse metrics such as click-through rate, conversion rate, and return on ad spend. Using these insights, we can better optimise your ads over time.

Budget Control – As a business, you will have control over your ad spending. With the help of our paid social experts, you can set daily or lifetime budgets to ensure you stay within your financial limits.

Success with Instagram ads often involves trial and error, optimisation and ongoing monitoring to achieve your advertising goals.

Meta’s ad platform uses machine learning to decide who sees your ads. Tools like Advantage+ shopping campaigns automate much of the targeting and optimisation process, while Meta’s generative AI features can automatically create ad variations and test copy.

When done well, AI-powered campaigns can improve return on ad spend and reach audiences you’d never reach manually. Done without guidance in creative, tracking, or strategy, or with the wrong campaign structure, the AI simply optimises towards the wrong outcomes.

We sure can! Not only do we have a dedicated team of content marketing experts, but we also have talented content creators who can plan, brief, capture, and edit creative content to run alongside the campaign our paid social experts have set up for you.

We create eye-catching imagery, including scroll-stopping photos and videos, to make your ads stand out from the competition. Your Instagram ads are handled every step of the way.

The timeframe for Instagram ad setup will vary depending on the complexity of your ad campaigns. Here is a generalised timeline for the setup process. (This may not be an accurate representation of your specific ads; this is something we can discuss on a call.)

Account setup – If you do not already have a Meta Business Manager account, the setup is quick, taking anywhere from a few minutes to half an hour.

Configuration – We then add the tracking codes to your website to track the conversions we want to see. This can take anywhere from 5 minutes to an hour, depending on the platform. Tracking any custom event can take 15 to 20 minutes per event.

Strategy – Planning your campaigns, including target audience, objectives, creatives, and budget, could take only a few hours; however, a detailed approach may last a few days, depending on the complexity.

Shooting content – After your strategy is outlined, our team get to work on creating the content for your ads. Shoot timeframes are dependent on how complex the strategy is. They may require a half-day, full-day, or multi-day shoot. Editing will then depend on how many creatives are on your account. Your dedicated account manager will outline these timeframes for you in greater detail during the content-shooting process.

Creation – The ad itself, including visuals, copy, and formatting, usually takes a few hours or up to a day.

Targeting – Setting up precise audience targeting can take some time, especially if you need to research and refine the parameters. This step could take a few hours to 1 or 2 days.

Budgets & scheduling – This process can be completed relatively quickly, usually within minutes.

Reviews & approvals – Submitting ads and waiting for Instagram’s approval can take up to 24 hours.

Monitoring & optimising – Now that your ads are live, ongoing monitoring and optimisation are essential. This will take as long as you are willing to invest to achieve the best results.

Instagram has a two-week learning phase during which optimisations aren’t recommended, as the ad is still learning its effectiveness. Following these two weeks, we can then start optimising. It’s important to note that making big changes puts the ad back into the learning phase, where changes aren’t recommended.

Overall, the initial setup can be completed within hours, depending on your project scope and goals. Your dedicated account manager will discuss your timelines in more detail; however, it is important to allocate additional time for planning, research, and ongoing management to achieve the most effective Instagram advertising.

Our team are transparent, flexible and passionate. We see ourselves as an extension of your team, so your success is our success. We won’t rest on our laurels when performance is good; we consistently look for ways to optimise your Instagram advertising campaign for better results.

Additionally, we monitor campaigns closely to ensure areas of improvement are actioned as quickly as possible. This means you always know where your money is being spent and how we are working to level up your Instagram strategy.

Whether Instagram advertising is the right choice for your business depends on various factors, including your target audience, goals and budget. Instagram ads can be a great approach for businesses looking to:

• Reach a broader audience
• Target specific demographics
• Increase brand awareness
• Drive website traffic
• Generate leads or sales
• Create a community for better engagement

We do recommend testing which platform works best for you and your business, as every industry and brand is different. It’s best for us to test the platform to see if it works for your business, rather than risk missing a possible opportunity.

If you want to find out more about how Instagram advertising can benefit your business, book a call with our team. We can discuss the logistics, budgets, creation, and optimisation to set you up for success.

For many businesses, yes, but it’s not mandatory. Advantage+ campaigns use Meta’s AI to automate audience targeting, creative delivery and budget allocation, and they can outperform manually built campaigns, particularly for ecommerce brands with solid conversion volume.

However, Advantage+ needs enough conversion data to learn from, a strong variety of creatives to test, and careful monitoring to ensure it’s scaling the right products and audiences. In some cases, a hybrid or manual structure still wins.

As part of our Instagram ad management, we test AI-automated and manually structured campaigns side by side, then scale whichever delivers the best return for your business. If you’d like to know which approach suits you best, book a call, and we’ll talk it through.