To showcase one’s work, Instagram is one of the most important and influential platforms currently available. It’s perfect for paid advertising and content promotion, while also being useful for interpersonal communication and managing customer relationships. For an advertiser, brand, or organisation, it can inspire unprecedented loyalty and generate profits far beyond the norm.
Since its initial launch eight years ago, Instagram has continued to evolve. In June, the Facebook-owned photo and video-sharing service hit a milestone with 1 billion active monthly users.
When it comes to advertising, this is a remarkable figure. It means you’re getting in front of a massive audience all over the world and, at the same time, thanks to the current trend on this channel, a dedicated and connected group of viewers.
More than 4 billion likes are given out every day on Instagram, and on average, Instagram photos receive 23% more likes than their Facebook counterparts.
Therefore, we need to keep up with the latest Instagram features and, of course, the trends that govern it. Accordingly, in this piece, I’ll provide some background on the most common tendencies needed to manage Instagram advertising in 2019.
I also questioned some friends about this topic and was fortunate enough to receive a series of responses from advertisers and industry experts about their expectations for the coming year.
This year, IGTV is going to blow up.
The new mobile-only video platform IGTV was announced and released in June. Unlike YouTube and other video streaming platforms, IGTV is solely dedicated to vertical video playback, making it ideal for advertisers and content creators who are targeting a mobile-only audience.
Soar to find out why the vertical is preferable. Instagram needs to encourage users to make videos, but only on mobile devices for the time being. Because people will inevitably hold their phones vertically, this is the type of video that we’ve created.
Can we see brands on IGTV right now? Chipotle was among the first companies to create and share an Instagram video.
“If you’re not already using IGTV, now is the time to get on board,” says Vlad Callus of planning app Plannable. I believe IGTV and Instagram Stories will be at the top of the list when it comes to future Instagram advertising trends. In the next three to five years, IGTV will overtake YouTube as the go-to video platform, so jump on board now to ride the massive wave.
Additionally, IGTV hosts content from other major brands. A standard digital broadcast is being produced and disseminated by SocialChain. Most of its scenes are also being filmed and will eventually be released on IGTV as vertical content. This is a fantastic example of a company that is responsive to and proactive in shaping the newest norms of online culture.
Though short-form videos were already accessible on Instagram, the new IGTV channel gives users and brands the option of selecting long-form content that may prove more useful to their strategies in the long run.
The spotlight will be dominated by smaller brands.
Looking at how Instagram has changed over time and how it is changing now reveals something distinctive about the service. For all its popularity, Instagram remains a genuine social channel, and as such, we’ve seen a huge uptick in the number of small businesses and brands using the platform.
Instagram stands apart from other news-oriented online social networking platforms because of its emphasis on conversation and storytelling. Because of this, it has become tremendously superior to other substance distribution channels for lesser-known brands.
When combined, “I think this mass of smaller-scale brands with greatly proficient promoting are, in total, having a lot greater effect than anybody might suspect,” Scott Belsky wrote. With the help of targeted marketing, last-minute planning, and online networking, these companies can reach out to their target audience no matter where they may be.
MVMT, a crowdfunded fashion watch planner, is one of the best small scale brands that had the opportunity to develop practically medium-term because of Instagram. With a commitment rate twice as high as other platforms and brand awareness and review scores 75 percent higher, Instagram was a no-brainer.
Moreover, many businesses and brands act like media outlets in their promotional materials. They have built and maintained massive fan bases, which they use to spread the word about their accomplishments and successes.
Advertising in Instagram Stories: Yet Another Vertical Format Since its release, Stories has become an integral part of the platform. It’s fantastic for regular customers and perfect for event promoters who want to get emotional with their audience. By purchasing ads within Stories, you can effectively insert your standards between the slides of other users’ profiles, as this premium option supports full-screen pennants.
