As we kick off a new decade, it’s difficult to envision life before Instagram. With more than 1 billion individuals using the platform, it’s evident that Instagram is here to stay.
While I could bombard you with statistics about Instagram’s importance for businesses, it’s likely you already know your business needs to be on it (in fact, I’m betting most of you are already advertising there). If you haven’t jumped on the Instagram advertising train yet, take a look at The Complete Guide to Advertising on Instagram for helpful starting points. Today, I want to focus on one of my personal favorites: Instagram carousel ads!
This guide will cover what Instagram carousel ads are, the rules you need to follow when creating them, and six tactics to make your viewers click:
- Tailor your approach to each specific audience
- Give your copy the same attention you give your visuals
- Don’t feel obligated to use all 10 image slots
- Grab attention with enticing deals!
- Select your CTA thoughtfully
- Don’t shy away from video content Ready to begin? Let’s go.
Demystifying Instagram Carousel Ads
Instagram carousel ads are essentially slideshows in ad form, letting users swipe through various images or videos within a single post. These ads also allow advertisers to incorporate clickable calls to action, tailor the text under each image, and link to different web pages. They’re perfect for any business with visually appealing content that wants to showcase different facets or several related products in one ad.
What makes Instagram carousel ads so great?
“With more creative room within an ad, you can highlight different products, showcase specific details about a single product, service or promotion, or tell a story about your brand that unfolds across each carousel card,” explains Instagram’s parent company, Facebook.
Instagram Carousel Ad Rules
Now that you understand the basics, it’s crucial to be aware of the rules surrounding these ads. This ensures they won’t be rejected by the platform.
Before you start designing, keep these technical and design requirements in mind.
- Maximum photos/videos: 10
- Minimum photos/videos: 2
- Image file types: jpg and png
- Maximum video size/length: 4GB for up to 60 seconds
- Text within images: 20% or less of the image
- Text under images: ≤2,200 characters in up to 2 lines of text
- Maximum hashtags in text: 30
- Supported objectives: Reach, Conversions, Traffic, Lead Generation, Brand Awareness, Catalog Sales, Store Traffic, App Installs, Messages
- Supported CTA buttons: Shop Now, Book Now, Learn More, Get Showtimes, Sign Up, Download, Watch More, Contact Us, Apply Now, Donate Now, Get Quote, Request Time, See Menu, Send Message, Listen Now, Get Offer, Subscribe, Book Test Drive, Check Availability
- Ad Placement Options: Instagram Stories, Instagram Feed
6 Tips for Creating Amazing Instagram Carousel Ads
Meeting those requirements will get your ads approved, but as an advertiser, you know that’s just the first step. Let’s dive into the strategies that will make your Instagram carousel ads successful! Here are six tips to help you create captivating Instagram carousel ads.
1. Target Each Segment of Your Audience Strategically
Anyone who has advertised on Facebook and Instagram knows just how powerful their targeting capabilities are. Whether you’re trying to reach a busy parent in Maine who loves fiction and seafood or a teenager in Texas passionate about online furniture shopping, you can connect with your desired audience. You can get incredibly specific, but the key is to avoid getting lazy.
Use Instagram’s robust targeting options to segment your audiences and target them with carousel ads that cater to their unique desires, requirements, and position in your sales funnel. Separating each distinct audience for your different campaigns will make sure you’re using your budget as effectively as possible. Given the sheer number of people on Instagram, this tip is especially vital for carousel ads—since they require time and money to create, ensuring they’re seen by the right people at the right time is crucial.
2. Give Your Copy the Same Importance as Your Visuals
It’s true that Instagram is all about visuals. However, when creating carousel ads, dedicating just as much effort to your copy is essential. You’re investing money to achieve a specific objective, so you need to utilize all the persuasive tools at your disposal.
Without context accompanying your imagery, effectively communicating with your audience becomes challenging. Take the time to craft engaging and persuasive ad copy for the space below your images. Your Instagram captions should be clear, actionable, and compelling.
Let’s look at this excellent example from Budget Bytes. Imagine seeing just the food images and a CTA that simply says “Learn More.” You’d likely be confused, wondering, Learn more about what?
Thankfully, they provide context to the food images in their carousel ad. What’s great about their copy is the use of different fonts to emphasize specific parts. They also use checkbox emojis to clearly highlight what’s included in the offer. Additionally, they minimize barriers to entry by offering a free meal plan and promoting it within both the ad’s CTA and the link at the end of the text.
3. Don’t Feel Obligated to Utilize All 10 Image Slots
Remember, sometimes simplicity is key. Consider the amount of content already flooding Instagram. Do you genuinely believe every single person who comes across your ad will have the attention span to view all 10 images? Maybe they will if you craft a truly compelling story, but if you can convey your message with just a few high-quality images, why not go for it?
Take this fantastic example from LL Bean. Instead of showcasing their entire new line for 2020, they make their point loud and clear with one striking image and some concise, relevant text.
Then, the second image clearly shows their store location to entice viewers to visit.
Sometimes, a straightforward and direct carousel ad is the most impactful approach.
4. Entice Viewers with Deals!
Let’s be honest: You need a strong incentive to draw Instagrammers away from Instagram! It’s a captivating platform that can easily lead to late nights scrolling through the feed. To break through that and convince users to leave Instagram, you need to offer them something worthwhile…
What better incentive than a limited-time deal? Whether it’s free shipping, a percentage discount, or a BOGO offer, carousel ads are excellent for promoting these types of specials. This format allows you to showcase multiple deals in a single ad. Take this example from the clothing brand, joie. They use the carousel format to display several discounted items as part of their winter sale.
5. Select Your CTA Strategically
With numerous CTA options available for carousel ads, it might be tempting to just pick the first one that seems somewhat relevant. However, this isn’t the most effective strategy. Instead, take the time to carefully consider your offer and choose a CTA that aligns perfectly. There’s nothing worse than clicking on a CTA only to be misled by a different offer (like wanting to buy a product but landing on an ebook page, or vice versa).
The Food Network’s ad below exemplifies a well-chosen CTA. They use “Download” because the carousel displays mouthwatering recipes from their app. This CTA perfectly aligns with the offer to download the app and sign up, which is further reinforced by the text below.
6. Don’t Be Afraid to Incorporate Video Content
We all know how effective video ads can be, but creating a video carousel ad might sound incredibly time-consuming and difficult. But it doesn’t have to be!
Today’s smartphones can capture high-quality videos, so don’t feel pressured to hire a professional video production crew just to incorporate engaging videos into your carousel ads. Fitness influencer Kayla Itsines excels at creating simple, quick, and low-production workout videos that she turns into Instagram carousel ads.
As you can see, you can create high-quality ads without obsessing over flawless video production.
Start Creating Your Own Effective Instagram Carousel Ads
Now you have all the tools and information needed to start creating compelling and effective Instagram carousel ads for your marketing strategy! Don’t wait—get started today!