Instagram is one of the most powerful advertising platforms. With over 2 billion users, you can put your brand or products in the eyes of many customers. Besides, studies indicate that Instagram ads generate more conversions than many social media sites. However, before using them, you must understand different metrics, such as cost per follower for Instagram ads. 

This can help you determine if you are getting returns on your advertising budget. This article will guide you through everything you need to know about Instagram advertising and what you need to get good returns on your ad budget.

How Much Do Instagram Ads Cost?

A common question among brands looking to advertise on Instagram is: How much do Instagram ads cost? According to AdEsspresso, the average cost of an Instagram ad is $0.8. The average cost per click is between $0.7 and $1. However, there are different factors affecting the cost of an Instagram ad. These include:

• Geographical location. The location you are targeting can have a high demand for Instagram ads, resulting in a higher cost for Instagram advertising. Our Instagram marketing tips provide insights on creating great ads.
• Bid amount. The amount you bid will affect your advertising cost. For instance, if you bid $4 and your budget is $1000, this will provide you with 250 clicks. On the other hand, if you set your bid at $2 and your budget is $1000, you can get 500 clicks for the same amount. It is, therefore, essential to optimize your bid to get the most returns on your advertising dollars.
• Ad duration. The period you will be running the ad will also affect the cost.
• Seasonal trends. Holidays and peak seasons can cause an increase in ad costs. If you are running your ad for a more extended period, it may require a bigger budget.
• Score. The ad score determines how relevant an ad is. An ad with a high score means it's highly relevant. Since Instagram focuses on offering great content for its audience, the score determines if people are interested in seeing your ad. If your ad generates more clicks, comments, and shares, your score will increase. In return, Instagram will show the ad to more people.
• Competition level. The cost of an Instagram ad will also depend on the competition level in the niche. No matter the audience you are trying to reach, other people will try to reach the same audience. Since the cost of an Instagram ad uses bidding, the amount you pay for your Instagram ad will also depend on the level of competition in the niche.

Why Invest In Instagram Advertising?

Here are a few reasons why you should consider Instagram advertising. These are:

• More conversion and sales. According to Shopify, the average order value on Facebook is $55. On the other hand, the average order on Instagram is $65. This means you will likely make more sales on Instagram than on Facebook, even though Instagram ads are more cost-effective than Facebook ads. Similarly, by including a call-to-action like shop now or visit our site, you can use these ads to drive traffic to your website.
• Higher engagement. Studies indicate that Instagram ads have a higher engagement than other ads. Some studies show that IG has ten times more engagement than Facebook. That means placing an ad on Instagram makes you more likely to receive likes, comments, and shares than other social media sites.
• A mobile-first experience. Instagram has been created with a mobile-first experience in mind. This is a good illustration of how mobile users use their gadgets today. When you create ads that offer an excellent mobile experience, you can have a good result with your ad.
• Reach a massive audience. With over 2 billion monthly users, the size of the audience you can reach is unmatched with Instagram ads. The audience is diverse in age, sex, interest, and behavior. Therefore, no matter your business, you can find your target customers on Instagram.
• High targeting option. As noted, Instagram has a diverse audience. With this realization, the social media site offers unmatched targeting capabilities. You can create Instagram ads tailored to a specific demographic based on the demographics we discussed in the previous point.
• Cost-effective. If you are a small business wondering if Instagram ads are a good option, these are among the most cost-effective advertising options. Besides, they also allow you to advertise with a minimal budget and keep adjusting as you move forward. You can even set a daily or lifetime limit for your ad so that you don't end up overspending.
• Great tracking capabilities. If you want to get great results on an Instagram ad, you need to track its performance. Then, you can use the data to track future performances. Fortunately, Instagram ads come with a lot of tracking capabilities, allowing you to find the data you need, such as reach, engagement, conversion rates, and clicks.
• Different ad formats. Instagram has a wide range of ad formats, which allows the platform to cater to different user needs. For instance, if you want to showcase multiple products, you can use carousel ads. This ad format can also be a good choice for telling a story. On the other hand, story ads can provide a fully immersive experience with features such as swipe-up links and polls. By trying out the different ad formats, your business can engage with your audience differently.

How to Lower Your Cost Per Follower for Instagram Ads

Here are tips to improve your Instagram marketing and reduce your Instagram cost per follower:

Setting Goals

Having a goal when setting Instagram ads will help you focus on what you want to achieve with your Instagram ad. Some of the goals you can have in mind are:

• Awareness. You can make your target audience more aware of your brand, products, or services.
• Consideration. This goal aims to educate your target audience. When doing so, you need to use persuasive language to make them convert. Some of the goals under this category can be to get more clicks, leads, and views.
• Conversion. You can make your customers buy products, install an app, or use your services. If your goal is conversion, you need a persuasive copy to make them take action.

Use Accurate Targeting

When creating an IG ad, your aim is to reach people interested in your products or services. Accurate targeting will help you reach the right audience. Fortunately, Instagram allows you to target your audience according to behavior, custom audience, demographic, location, and lookalike audience.

Automatic Bidding

Automatic bidding can be helpful for beginners in Instagram bidding. Even if you have some experience in Instagram bidding, it can help you set the correct bid for your campaign. It ensures you don't set a more significant bid than your budget. Therefore, it helps you reduce your overall ad budget.

Use a Relevant Landing Page

A common mistake businesses make is placing Instagram ads to direct traffic to their website homepage. Since the homepage may not be relevant to the ad, they struggle to make their audience convert. A relevant landing page needs to be created to increase the conversion rate. A well-optimized landing page will help improve conversion and provide the best return on your advertising dollar.

Ad Testing

Instead of sticking with one ad, you can create two or more and keep testing to find one that converts best. When you get the better-performing ad, you can focus on using it for your campaign. You will have a better ad spot with a relevant ad copy, thereby reducing costs. 

One of the most effective ways of testing the performance of your ad is through A/B splitting. When you find an effective ad, you can easily lower your advertising cost.

Types of Ads You Can Use on Instagram

Instagram allows you to post different kinds of ads such as:

• Instagram images: One of the most common types of Instagram ads is images. They are easy to create and can offer excellent visibility for your brand. When using images for Instagram ads, you should keep things simple while remaining creative.
• Video Ads. Video ads are another great choice that delivers excellent results. However, they will require you to put more effort into the creation stage than image ads.
• Collection ads. If you have an e-commerce store with a collection of products, consider these forms of ads. While their cost per click is higher, they offer a more immersive experience for the viewer.
• Carousel ads. Carousel ads are an excellent choice if you need to tell a brand story. In other words, they offer a unique and creative way of showing your brand from a new perspective.

What Is the Cost Per Follower for Instagram Ads?

The average cost per follower for Instagram ads is $0.33 for each page ad follower. However, as with other ad options, the cost can vary depending on factors such as the region as explained above.

The cost per follow is a critical metric that will help you determine the effectiveness of your Instagram marketing campaign. It indicates the cost of acquiring each follower through promotion advertising, or other marketing efforts. To get the figure, you need to divide the total cost of your campaign by the number of followers gained.

By looking at your Instagram campaign's cost per follower, you can also tell how efficiently your marketing budget was used. For instance, if your business has an advertising campaign budget of $1000 and brings in $100, your cost per follower is $10. A low CPF is an indicator of a more efficient campaign.

If you want to improve your CPF, you should create a more relevant ad. Such an ad is likely to result in a more efficient ad spend. Other metrics you should look at in combination with CPF are conversion rate, return on investment, and the conversion rate.

What is a Reasonable Budget for Instagram Ads?

Your choice of budget for an Instagram ad spend depends on different factors such as your business and goal. You can set your daily goal, so your ad will not display when you reach your spending limit. So, how much should you spend as your daily minimum limit? Here are some good benchmarks:

• To build awareness, you can set a budget of $1 per day for a cost per impression.
• To increase engagement, such as likes, clicks, and video news, you can set a budget of $5 per day.
• If you want to run ads for lower-frequency events, such as app downloads and special offers, a reasonable budget is $40 per day.

This budget isn’t set in stone and may require regular tweaking after analyzing the results.

What is the Estimated Cost of Monthly Instagram Ads?

According to a study, 53% of advertisers suggested that the monthly cost of advertising on Instagram is between $0.05 and $500 per month. However, about 11% of advertisers confessed to spending over $500 on monthly Instagram advertising. This is why it is essential to go through the Instagram marketing guide.

Instagram Cost Per Click

The average Instagram cost per click on ads is $0.05 and $0.75, according to 59% of Instagram advertisers. However, 29% of advertisers say they spend more than $2 per click. As noted earlier, the cost will differ depending on the ad’s relevance, bid amount, and competition.

Cost to Allocate to Instagram Advertising

How much of your overall budget should go to Instagram advertising? Most firms usually allocate about 20% of their budget to it. However, this will depend on the unique needs of your company. You can also consider the return you have gotten on your Instagram goals in your previous campaigns.

Final Thoughts

The cost per follower for Instagram ads is an important metric that will help you know if you are running efficient campaigns. It will also show if you are getting good returns on your advertising dollars. You can use that information to improve your campaign. Following this guide should make it easy to understand the cost per follower and how to optimize this metric. We also recommend you read our guide on powering your Instagram marketing campaign.