How to Create Instagram Stories Ads That Convert

Digital marketing is always changing and evolving, and one of the most recent strategies is using ads within Instagram Stories. Instagram launched its own version of Stories, or disappearing photos/videos, in 2016 after Facebook (Instagram's parent company) was unsuccessful in acquiring the original stories app Snapchat. They've grown in popularity to double Snapchat's daily active users, and there's no end in sight.

After watching Stories grow, Facebook and Instagram made the smart decision to add placement options for ads within Stories. Instagram users will be shown these ads in between different user Stories or at the end of a user's Story.

This is a game changer in digital marketing because it's an incredibly unique ad format. Whereas most ads in digital marketing are both content and visual heavy, Stories ads are completely visual. These can be either photo or video, so it's almost like creating a vertical video commercial or vertical photo or graphic advertisement.

To learn more about how to create Instagram Stories ads that convert viewers into leads and customers, take a look at a few best practices.

1. Create native Stories ads.

When you begin to create an ad for Instagram Stories, you do everything inside of Facebook ads manager. Facebook and Instagram both offer a number of different placement areas, including the news feed (both Facebook and Instagram), Facebook sidebar, display ads within articles, and more.

Each one of these ad types requires its own creative to be as successful as possible. However, Facebook does allow you to choose multiple ad placements for the same ad. This means you could create a basic Facebook ad that's meant to be seen within the news feed, but also choose to have the ad shown within a Story.

The result is an awkwardly formatted and visually unappealing Instagram Stories ad that likely won't generate much buzz for your business.

Instead, you want to create native Stories ads or photos/videos that are the correct dimensions and type of ad for an Instagram Story. These ad types will look like they belong within a Story, they will be engaging, and they will see a greater success and conversion rate than the former.

2. Use the correct ad specs.

Each Facebook and Instagram ad type has its own optimal sizing and specs for success, and it's important to pay attention to these to get the best results for your ads. Because Instagram Stories ads are so unique, their ad specs are vastly different from all other ad types.

Instagram Stories ad specs are as follows as dictated by Facebook Business:

Image

• Aspect ratios: 9:16 and 4:5 to 1.91:1
• Recommended resolution: 1,080 x 1,920 pixels
• Minimum resolution: 600 x 1067 pixels
• Maximum duration: 5 secs
• Maximum file size: 30 MB
• Supported image types: .jpg, .png

Video

• Aspect ratios: 9:16 and 4:5 to 1.91:1
• Recommended resolution: 1,080 x 1,920 pixels
• Minimum resolution: 600 x 1067 pixels
• Maximum duration: 15 secs
• Maximum file size: 4 GB
• Minimum video width: 500px
• Supported video types: .mp4, .mov
• Video quality: H.264 compression, square pixels, fixed frame rate, progressive scan
• Audio quality: Stereo AAC audio compression at 128kbps+
• Sound: Optional
• Captions: Not available; subtitles or captions must be part of video file

You also want to be sure you keep in mind any areas that will be covered. The top of your ad will have your business name and the bottom will include a Swipe Up link, so you want to be sure that you don't hide any pertinent information behind those areas. Keeping all of the main information in the center of your ad is ideal.

3. Keep it short and to the point.

As denoted in the specs, images only last up to five seconds and videos can last up to 15 seconds. That's not a long time to capture someone's attention enough to evoke action. There's no time for buildup. You need to immediately cut to the chase and let viewers know why they want to buy from your business.

Choose a background graphic, photo, or color to fill up the screen and use minimal copy. These guidelines will help you to create a winning Stories ad every time.

4. Stay true to your branding.

Be sure to continue using your brand colors and fonts to strengthen your brand and help with brand awareness and recognition. You also want to stick to a similar theme as you have in your Instagram feed. Whether it's a color scheme, a filter, etc., you want to make sure that your Stories ads have a similar look and feel as the rest of your Instagram. 

That way, if a user taps to your profile from your Stories ad, they're going to have a cohesive experience with your brand, rather than see a feed that is completely different from the ad they were just shown.

5. Use a strong call to action.

Because you don't have a lot of time to convince someone to take action on your Stories ad, you need to come up with a strong call to action that will immediately entice someone to swipe up on your ad or tap to your profile. Words like "limited deal" or "exclusive offer" can be great calls to action for your Stories ads as they create a sense of urgency for the viewer.

Think of other ways you can quickly generate interest and get your Stories ad viewers to follow along with your business and make a purchase or service inquiry. A strong call to action is a must when it comes to this ad type.

Are you ready to get started promoting your business with Instagram Stories ads? To learn more about how we can help with your ad creation and implementation, contact us today!