12 Best Instagram Ads Examples in 2022 That’ll Inspire You

Instagram ads are an effective way to reach people. They are easy to create, have a wide reach, and are an excellent way to boost awareness and attract customers.

Instagram is a photo-and-video-sharing social network with over 1.21 billion monthly active users as of 2021, according to Statista. Instagram has an expansive user base drawn from all walks of life and several demographics. That means if you're looking for ways to reach your audience or target demographic, Instagram ads are a powerful way to do it.

Instagram is also known to influence the buyer's decision process. According to a study conducted in 2019, 81% of people use the platform to research products and brands, and 80% of people claim that they use Instagram to make final purchasing decisions.

There are different types of ads on Instagram, such as:

• Video ads
• Image ads
• Stories ads
• Carousel ads
• Explore ads
• IGTV ads
• Collection ads
• Reels ads

This affords advertisers a number of options when it comes to choosing the best ad experience. Different ad types work best for achieving different marketing objectives and targeting different market segments.

In this article, we will showcase excellent examples of these ad types, and highlight the best practices to observe when creating Instagram ads.

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Best Instagram Video Ads Examples

Video is the most effective way to reach people. Videos are more engaging than images and allow you to highlight important details about your product or service. As reported by Mention, video ads get 38% more engagement than organic video posts and video ads. You can use video to promote your products, tell your story, or connect with new audiences in a way that no other type of content can do.

Instagram allows in-feed videos to be as long as 60 minutes (for verified accounts) but shorter videos are known to be more effective since they don’t demand a large attention span.

1. Webflo

What Makes This Ad Great?

This video ad was created by the web host and website building platform, Webflow, in conjunction with Shift’s engineering team, and is the second part in an ad series created by Webflow. 

This ad is an excellent example of how to use social proof and empathizes with engineers and other users who may have been on the lookout for a simpler way to manage and maintain website content.

Key Takeaways

Social proof is a tested-and-trusted marketing strategy that can seriously improve your lead generation efforts.

Simple, short videos with a clear message can go a long way in your ad campaigns.

A caption that addresses the target audience's pain points and a CTA that encourages them to learn more

2. AAA Northern California, Nevada, and Utah

What Makes This Ad Great?

AAA Northern California is an automobile association that offers roadside assistance, auto insurance, and other services. In this ten-second video ad, AAA NCNU explains why they are better suited to meet their audience's needs than the competition.

The ad targets former members whose membership has expired and urges them to rejoin the service

Key Takeaways

• The ad uses animated text effects with a consistent red and white color palette to pass its message. 
• The video is quick and to the point.
• The call to action is creative and targeted.

3. Food Revolution Network

What Makes This Ad Great

This ad by Food Revolution Network is a one-minute trailer for the free movie, “The Need to Grow.” It is a clarion call for sustainable farming and echoes a stark rejoinder to harmful farming practices. The video moves along at a quick pace and uses cut footage with voiceover to pass the message.

Key Takeaways

• The video follows a steady progression. It addresses the problem and presents a way forward.
• The CTA button leads to a simple landing page where people can watch the full film.
• The audience gets a good idea of what they are getting into from the ad.

4. Otter.ai

What Makes This Ad Great

Otter is an AI-powered speech-to-text tool that generates transcriptions for online meetings in real-time. This ad is animated and shows consistency with Otter’s blue color theme. It addresses the need to keep up with every little thing in online meetings and shows how Otter.ai can help.

Key Takeaways

• This video has consistent visual themes which make the delivery easier.
• The caption gives a brief description of how Otter.ai works.

Best Instagram Stories Ads Examples

Stories ads are an Instagram ad format that is shown at the top of the feed using Instagram's Stories feature. These ads, just like other stories, disappear in 24 hours and can include both images and videos. Stories ads usually boost engagement due to their interactivity and the larger screen space they occupy.

5. Airbnb

What Makes This Ad Great

Home-sharing platform, AirBnB channels ad creativity, and interactivity in this quiz-themed ad — a series of hints followed by the question and then the answer.

Key Takeaways

• The quiz format encourages viewers to click further and learn more.
• The picture is gradually revealed and then the entire picture is shown on the last slide.
• This ad is engaging and rewards its audience 

6. Deezer

What Makes This Ad Great

Deezer Brazil adapted an existing video ad for this Instagram story ad. The video is simple and introduces Deezer's value proposition in a short message. This ad was part of a campaign that helped Deezer lower customer acquisition costs by 52%.

Key Takeaways

• You can adapt previously used ads to other formats.

7. Audible

What Makes This Ad Great

This Story ad is a single image by the online audiobook platform, Audible, and uses bold lettering and a bright theme to promote an exclusive product on the platform.

Key Takeaways

• The title stresses the product's exclusiveness
• The CTA is simple and fits the service.

Best Instagram Carousel Ad Examples

A carousel ad is a series of images or videos. You can have up to 10 images or videos in a carousel, and it's a great way to promote products or services.

8. Tiwis

What Makes This Ad Great

This ad is simple and gets to the point in a very poignant way. Tiwis encourages their patrons to purchase personalized hats for their fathers on Father's Day.

Key Takeaways

• The product pictures are of excellent quality and show the items clearly — black, customized hats in cute, yellow boxes.
• The caption capitalizes on the emotional appeal (a major driver for sales)
• The CTA leads to the shop's Instagram page where viewers can learn more before making a decision.

9. Weebits

What Makes This Ad Great

New Zealand baby clothing store Weebits showcases some of the products in their lineup in this carousel ad. This ad ran for three days and managed to achieve 4200 impressions in that period.

Key Takeaways

• The product pictures were taken in good lighting and are set against appropriate backgrounds.
• The images are a strict product showcase and have no text around them.
• The caption is short and still succeeds at highlighting the brands’ strengths

10. Evolve Vinyl Flooring

What Makes This Ad Great

Singaporean flooring company Evolve showcases its past work in this carousel ad. The caption talks more about the service and the company’s speed and work efficiency.

Key Takeaways

• The pictures are well-lit and high-quality.

• There is no text on the images to distract from the craftsmanship.

Best Instagram Photo Ad Examples

Photo ads are a great way to showcase your products, services, and brand. They'll let you tell your story visually through imagery that's captivating and engaging for your target audience.

Here are some tips for creating great photo ads:

• Use high-quality images that reflect what makes your business unique.
• Make sure to use less text or your images or simply use a smaller font.
• Your call to action should draw attention and inspire viewers to take the desired action.

Image ads work best for passing short messages to people who may not have a lot of time or are just scrolling through.

11. KFC Botswana

What Makes This Ad Great

The main message is displayed in bold lettering, complete with KFC’s unique branding. The ad offers free delivery for the entirety of that day at all KFC outlets in Botswana. The picture is a simple paper bag, with the signature Colonel Sanders portrait, on a red background. 

Key Takeaways

• Everybody likes free delivery
• This ad takes advantage of the company’s established brand
• It gets the message across simply and clearly.

12. Buffalo Wild Wings

What Makes This Ad Great?

Buffalo Wild Wings released this tantalizing photo ad to promote their new special, Bird Dawgs. The image is intended to titillate and induce customers to learn more about the meal.

Key Takeaways

• The object of attraction is centered in the ad.
• The caption is written to be alluring, with a comedic twist.

How to Get the Best of your Instagram Ads

• Audience Research: You need to have a good grasp of your audience, their size, their needs, their interests, and why they should consider your product or service. There are several tools and services available to advertisers such as Instagram Insights that will help you analyze your audience.

• Instagram Hashtags: Using hashtags the right way will help to attract your target audience and boost ad engagement. Repeating the same hashtags in every post or using banned hashtags might lead to Instagram placing penalties on your posts or account. Hashtags are a great way to establish your brand and build a community. Feel free to play around with Instagram hashtags until you find out what works best for your business.

Perform Your Instagram Ads Audience Insight Research With AdTargeting Tool 

Adtargeting.io is an online tool that allows advertisers on Facebook and Google to perform audience research and keyword analysis. Since Instagram uses the same advertising system as Facebook, you can use AdTargeting’s Interest Targeting features to find targetable interests with a high ROI. 

Interest targeting allows you to show your ads to only people that will be interested in your offer. You can further explore interests by country, language, audience size, search volume, and paid difficulty. 

Instagram Ads Best Practices

There are certain best practices to observe when creating ads on Instagram that will ensure that your ads achieve the desired reach, visibility, and placement.

• Always Test Different Ad Formats: The various ad formats offer different results when used for different industries, or targeting certain demographics. It is important to experiment and see what works for your product or service. Then, observe the proper guidelines for that ad format to maximize your results.

• Adhere to Instagram Ad Specs: Instagram has specifications for each ad format that you need to observe when using them. Following these recommended specs will help your ads get the desired results.

Single Image Ads Specs

• Image format: .jpg or .png
• Maximum file size: 30Mb
• Caption: up to 125 characters
• Recommended Resolution: 1080p 1080p

Carousel Ads Specs

• Minimum number of cards: 2
• Maximum number of cards: 10
• Media type: Image or Video
• Image file format: .jpg or .png
• Recommended video format: .mp4
• Image ratio: 1:1
• Video aspect ratio: 1:1
• Minimum video length: 3 seconds
• Maximum video length: 60 seconds

Video Ads Specs

• Minimum resolution: 600 × 600 pixels
• Maximum resolution: 1080 × 1080 pixels
• Minimum aspect ratio: 4:5
• Recommended file formats: .mp4 and .mov
• Maximum file size: 30GB
• Max video length for all formats: 120 seconds 

Stories Ads Specs

• Recommended aspect ratio: 9:16
• Video format: .mp4 or .mov
• Image format: .jpg or .png
• Max. image size: 30MB
• Max. video size: 4GB
• Max. video length: 15 seconds

• Write Great Copy: Apart from selecting the best ad format for your campaign and following Instagram's recommended specs, you need to write great ad copy. Using high-quality pictures alone won't help your products sell. 

You need excellent copy that communicates your product's value, resonates with your customers and urges them to take action. Feel free to unleash your creativity when writing copy. However, a good copy doesn't have to be complicated. It only needs to empathize with your customers and offer a solution to their pain points.

• Apply Visual Consistency: Visual consistency refers to your brand identity, appeal, and the overall story you're trying to tell. It is important to maintain visual consistency with all your ads, regardless of format. This will help to establish your brand and give your customers something to refer to. Visual consistency may relate to your ads' use of color, typography, filters, or your branding in general.

• Make It Look Less Like an Ad: Your ads don't have to like ads to be effective. Some users turn away as soon as they realize they're looking at an ad. You can avoid this by setting your ad to be placed as naturally as possible in the feed. You can even go as far as not including a CTA button as long as it fits your ad objectives.

• Optimize Your Landing Page for Mobile: A considerable amount of Instagram users use the mobile app to access the social media platform daily. You would be ignoring a chunk of your ad audience by not optimizing your ads for mobile users. 

Apart from ensuring that your ads display correctly on mobile, you should also make your landing pages responsive and adaptable to different devices such as desktops, tablets, and mobile phones.

Final Thoughts

There's a lot you can achieve with Instagram ads, from awareness to customer retention. Your ads should be simple, have a clear message, and should meet your audience where they are at. 

What are your best practices for Instagram ads?