Meta ads, previously known as Facebook ads, have been and still are a marketing no-brainer. However, Zuckerberg's recent disclosure that AI-suggested content will make up 30% of Facebook and Instagram feeds by year-end has, IMO, escalated their importance. Because… Essentially, access to your followers' feeds will be reduced by a third, making it more necessary to pay to promote your content.
On platforms like YouTube, by comparison, users customarily search for content. But on Facebook and Instagram, content discovery happens predominately in users' feeds. It’s “scroll” vs. “search,” so to speak. So… Consequently, if 30% of what users see is AI-suggested, your ability to reach followers—who are likely past clients and SOI contacts, for instance—will be greatly diminished. This, in turn, could make your content far less effective at keeping you top-of-mind with these important individuals.
So, what can you do? The simple answer is “pay-to-play.” For example, you could start boosting your content on Facebook and Instagram, but there’s no guarantee your followers—arguably your most critical audience to reach—will see those ads.
Alternatively, you could run Meta ad campaigns whereby you retarget your followers directly. However, the trouble is that even if you retarget your Instagram followers, for instance, the ads you pay for are still unlikely to be distributed on Instagram—which is, I’m guessing, the platform you’re most excited about in terms of building your brand.
And here’s why… It's because Meta ads are programmed to get advertisers the lowest cost per result—which is usually NOT on Instagram. And that’ll be the case no matter what campaign objective you may specify: e.g. engagement, traffic/clicks, reach, or something else.
Generally speaking, it’ll be significantly “cheaper” for Meta to place your ads on platforms like Facebook and Audience Network, which is a collection of random websites/apps where Meta is allowed to distribute ads, similar to the Google Display Network.
Fortunately, there’s a workaround for this issue. By changing the placement settings in your ad campaign, you can force your ad to run on Instagram. Here are the essential steps on how to do it:
1. Log in to your Meta Ads Manager and select the option to create a new ad campaign.
2. Choose your campaign objective, such as engagement, traffic, or messages.
3. Set up your Ad Set level by defining your conversion location, audience targeting, budget, and schedule.
4. When you get to the Placements section, select the "Edit Placements" option.
5. Choose "Manual Placements" and then select ONLY "Instagram" to include it as a placement for your ad campaign.
6. Review your ad campaign settings and then click "Publish" to launch your campaign.
It's important to note that running your ads on Instagram may cost you more than other placements, but if it's the platform you’re looking to build, it’s worth it. Follow the steps above to ensure that your ads are reaching your Instagram followers (and beyond) and getting the required exposure to build your brand.