What are Instagram Ads?

Instagram is a popular social network that allows users to share images and videos. It is known among social media marketing experts as one of the best platforms for attracting a young audience. For this reason, Instagram is a hugely popular advertising space. Owned by Facebook, it comes with a lot of the same features as the social media behemoth.

Like Facebook, Instagram is a pretty widespread platform. Its reliance on visual content is known to keep users on the app for longer than other social networks. The introduction of Stories a couple of years ago is now one of the most popular features of Instagram – allowing users the chance to share small snippets of their day with their followers.

Pay-per-click (PPC) is a form of advertising where you set a budget in advance. Instagram then shows your ad to audiences and charges you based on interaction. How this works on Instagram is a little bit different from other channels but you can control what kind of interaction you want. It also lets you narrow down your audience by a few key metrics.

Just like most other social networks, Instagram asks its users to agree to terms and conditions that allow it to use the data collected for advertising purposes. It actually uses this data in a number of different ways, but for the purposes of pay-per-click, it is used to help you narrow down your audience. 

Instagram doesn’t offer the best explicit return on investment but it’s a great choice for niche brands. The platform’s tendency to attract younger audiences – as well as its discreet advertising style – means that the clicks you do receive are more valuable than on other platforms. In short, your ad budgets will be spent more meaningfully.

How is pay per click used on Instagram?

Pay-per-click is an incredible tool for social media marketing professionals. As one of the main income streams for Instagram, they have spent many years fine-tuning the service so it works smoothly. Combine this with the wealth of knowledge of parent company Facebook and Instagram PPC is one of the best ways to gain meaningful clicks.

There are a number of ways you can set up an Instagram Ads. One of the most common ways is to build a specific advertisement with your chosen call to action. This can be a link to your website, encouraging followers or instigating engagement. You upload the image (or video) you want for the ad, include the text, and then narrow down the audience.

Audiences are usually narrowed down based on age, location, and gender. You can also narrow these down by interest. Remember when we mentioned how much data Instagram has on everyone? This includes a series of topics the platform thinks they’re interested in. If you want to find out what they think about you, it’s actually possible to find this info in your personal settings.

By narrowing down these audiences you likely won’t reach huge audiences (like Facebook) but you will reach the audiences that matter. Ads are placed on the feed in the same way as regular posts, so they are more likely to be seen by the audience. You are then charged per interaction usually.

The one occasion where this is different is when it comes to Instagram Stories. These are the little clips along the top of the feed where people can share little snippets of their day. Story ads play in the same feed, but you’re actually charged per view for these. This is because users will likely spend more time looking at your ad as they swipe through the feed.

How to become an Instagram PPC Expert?

Before you dive right in, you should learn the fundamentals of social media marketing. Instagram is a popular platform but its usefulness varies by audience and industry. You’ll probably won’t find many jobs that only want you to work with Instagram, so we recommend learning about other major platforms (at the very least Facebook), as well as some marketing basics.

Once you’ve got this nailed down – try it out for yourself! You can set your own profile to either a business or creator account, giving you full access to advertising features. You’ll need a small budget so try to pick something you want to advertise anyway. If, for example, you specialise in travel content you can promote a link to your website using your best holiday snap.

That’s not to say you don’t have other ways of learning but they all involve a little bit of practice. There are some great courses online where you can learn about different Instagram marketing techniques. Remember – you won’t just be working with PPC (though this is your main skill) so it’s a good idea to gain some more holistic knowledge.

And what about finding a job? We’ll get more into this below but social media marketing is one of the best fields for those that want to work online. Look around, don’t be afraid to help out a new business and build on that experience. Ironically, word of mouth is still the best way to pick up social media jobs.

What jobs require knowing Instagram PPC?

Social media marketing is the obvious one but it really depends on the kind of industry you are getting into. Instagram is a useless tool for most B2B (Business to Business) marketing strategies but B2C (Business to Consumer) marketing thrives with it. This is especially true in industries that target younger audiences like travel, events, and fashion.

More broadly, digital marketing and community engagement roles will require some knowledge of Instagram (especially in the industries mentioned above). Digital marketing isn’t just about social media – you’ll also need to know about search engine marketing, content writing, and website management. Community engagement is more focused on building connections than customer bases and paying for ads on Instagram Stories works really well in this line of work.

There are also some adjacent roles where knowing Instagram pay-per-click can be useful. Event management uses it heavily to bring in more attendees whilst sales professionals and creative producers also use it to build audiences. Even receptionists are asked to have a solid understanding of social media these days, as more and more companies opt to combine these roles.

Finally, if you have your own business in any of the industries mentioned above it is absolutely essential that you learn about Instagram PPC. Not only can it help you build your business and find more customers, you can also learn how to connect with them on a more personal level. 

This lets you adapt your products and services to their needs. 

Planning on hiring a social media manager? Understanding Instagram PPC yourself will help you keep an eye on how effective their campaigns are.

Average Instagram Ads salary with different levels of experience?

Most jobs don’t hire you just for Instagram Ads so you’ll need to look into lines of work where it is included. Social media managers earn $48k on average in the United States, which can vary from $27-100k+ from entry level to more experienced positions.

Digital marketing and community engagement professionals command slightly higher salaries – varying from $32-120k+ depending on experience. The midweight salary for this is around $55k in the United States. If you’re a receptionist, understanding how to run pay-per-click campaigns can add an extra $15k+ to your salary.

If you’re a digital nomad, however, you likely work as a remote freelancer. The earnings on these vary massively so you’ll need to consider it on a case-by-case business. As expected, smaller businesses offer far lower rates than more established businesses but are great for building experience. Your hourly fee can range from $25-50/hour with some basic experience up to $120+/hour with a lot of experience.

How common is using pay per click on Instagram amongst digital nomads?

Social media management in general is a common skill among digital nomads, though not everyone knows about pay-per-click. Instagram PPC, in particular, doesn’t have as many people who know how to use it. Many digital nomads assume it is quite straightforward but there’s actually a skill to getting it right every time.

For this reason, we recommend including your knowledge of Instagram PPC on your CV, pitches and job applications. It will help you stand out from the crowd. Businesses will know they can trust you ahead of other candidates.

Instagram pay-per-click is a great way to get your business off the ground – especially if it is in a niche that is popular among young people. Digital nomads can expand their job opportunities by taking the time to learn how to use it properly. You’ll also find that employers are more likely to take you seriously ahead of other candidates. It isn’t that hard to learn but spending just a little bit of time getting to know the ins and outs of Instagram PPC will make you a cut above the rest.