QUICK ANSWER: THE BEST INSTAGRAM ADVERTISING AGENCY
- Voy Media
- Viral Nation
- True North Social
- Influencer Marketing Agency (IMA)
- Infinite
You probably don’t want to jump into Instagram advertising on your own. Hiring an agency will almost certainly lead to faster, more effective results. With the right agency in your corner, your brand awareness and conversion rate can get a serious boost. Not sure which agency is the best for your needs? Here are five Instagram agencies with a lot to offer:
Best Instagram Ads Agency
| Rank | Agency | Specialty | Minimum Budget |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Voy Media | Instagram & Facebook Advertising | $5,000 |
| 2 | Viral Nation | Influencer Marketing | $5,000 |
| 3 | True North Social | Social Media Marketing | $5,000 |
| 4 | Influencer Marketing Agency (IMA) | Social Media Marketing | N/A |
| 5 | Infinite | Festival Marketing | N/A |
#1 Voy Media
This is a boutique agency founded in 2015 by Kevin Urrutia and Wilson Lin. They offer the personal touch of a boutique agency but also deliver the data-driven results of a much larger firm. They’re able to develop a complete online marketing campaign involving Instagram, Facebook Advertising, and other popular platforms.
Hiring one agency to coordinate all of your social media is often the most effective and cost-efficient way to advertise online. Voy Media will identify your target audience for each platform and then develop targeted ad campaigns. With Instagram correctly, they’ll use photos and videos to tell a story related to your brand. Data and scientific research back all decisions.
Voy Media offers clients a scaling pricing system based on ads purchased each month. By avoiding a flat fee, you’ll get more return for your marketing investment. For example, if you buy $5,000 worth of ads, Voy Media will only charge you $1000. That’s a pretty good deal for content creation, copywriting, and implementation.
Pros:
- Personal service with a dedicated account manager
- No set-up fees. Costs are a proportion of ad buys.
- Able to conduct simultaneous Instagram and Facebook ad campaigns
- Ad campaigns are both creative and data-driven
- Available to also do Google Ads, Snapchat Ads, Twitter Ads, and Pinterest Ads
Cons:
- Customer reports only available bi-weekly
- A small staff can be busy
#2 Viral Nation
With offices in both Ontario and New York, Viral Nation focuses on visual social media platforms, including Instagram, Vine, YouTube, and Snapchat. Like a traditional advertising agency, they create campaigns for brands interested in generating awareness and buzz.
However, Viral Nation also represents a variety of influential social media stars. This means any company that hires Viral Nation has potential connections to established Instagram influencers, among others. If you’re interested in establishing your brand as an authority in your industry, and you have a product that works well visually, Viral Nation is worth consideration.
Pros:
- Focus on visual social media platforms including Instagram
- Client list includes GoPro, Coca-Cola, and Disney
- Extensive background in creating social media influencers
Cons:
- Smaller clients might not get as much attention as larger ones
- Not heavily focused on Facebook and other non-visual platforms
#3 True North Social
If you’re primarily interested in creating an ad to sell particular products, True North Social has a lot to offer. They’re able to create photos, videos, and Instagram stories as part of a full campaign. Ideal for situations where you want to promote a specific product or service.
True North Social places a lot of emphasis on Instagram marketing. They even offer a full range of professional photography to highlight your products, services, and brand. By using Instagram stories, they’re able to develop a long-term campaign designed to increase brand awareness among new customers.
Pros:
- Heavy focus on Instagram marketing
- Experienced photographers on staff
- Emphasis on increasing brand awareness
Cons:
- Also offers SEO and website, which may not be needed
- Two-person organization
#4 Influencer Marketing Agency (IMA)
Looking for a way to tell your brand’s story on Instagram? IMA is a digital advertising agency known for placing emphasis on beautiful photos and significant events. They’re a go-to agency for sponsored events, product launches, and other large-scale but one-time actions.
Unlike the other agencies we’ve mentioned, IMA is located outside of the U.S. Headquartered in Amsterdam; their extensive client list includes a variety of European-based companies including Diesel, L’Oréal and Farfetch. Overall, IMA is a great choice if you’re looking to increase the cool factor of your brand.
Pros:
- Strong background in image-based social media marketing
- Able to connect real-world events to a brand’s social media channels
- Hip, fashionable mindset well-suited for younger brands
Cons:
- A European-based company can be difficult to reach during U.S. business hours
- Emphasis on fashion and cutting-edge brands
#5 Infinite
Based in Dallas, Infinite Marketing is a bit older than most of the agencies on the list. But older doesn’t mean out-of-touch. Originally an agency that focused on TV and radio ads, they’ve expanded over the years to include a variety of digital marketing, including Instagram.
But they remain true to their roots, and that’s a significant benefit for clients. They’re able to combine Instagram marketing with old-school methods such as live events and traditional ad buys. For instance, they recently completed a massive campaign for Dallas, which combined live events and an Instagram art show.
Pros:
- Experienced agency comfortable with both digital and traditional advertising campaigns
- Able to involve real-world events
- Highly original, creative campaigns
Cons:
- Live events only possible in the Dallas area
- Traditional marketing might not be necessary for your brand
Digital marketing plays a vital role in brand awareness and customer engagement for all types of businesses. Unfortunately, too often, the idea of “digital marketing” is used to mean “Facebook marketing.” While Facebook is an essential part of any marketing campaign, it’s not the only social media game in town.
Instagram can be a powerful marketing tool, capable of creating worldwide brand awareness and reaching an entirely new audience of potential customers. But promoting your company on Instagram is a process filled with many unique challenges. You’ll get the best results by hiring an agency explicitly dedicated to Instagram marketing.
Not sure how to find the best Instagram advertising agency? We’re here to help. Our complete guide covers the benefits of Instagram advertising and what factors to consider when researching different agencies. Plus, we’ve created five mini-reviews for Instagram agencies we think you’ll love:
Choosing an Instagram Advertising Agency
What Type of Advertising Campaign Are You Interested In?
There’s no one Instagram advertising agency, which is the clear best choice for everyone. Instead, you’ll want to find an agency which specializes in the type of advertising best suited for your situation.
Generally, Instagram ads have two separate purposes. First, you can create a massive campaign to promote your brand. This means you’re not pushing any specific products. Instead, your Instagram presence is designed to increase brand awareness. Instagram Stories use a series of pictures and videos to create a more extensive ad campaign.
The other type of advertising is more traditional. Here the ad agency will create ads designed to promote specific products or services. Because Instagram is primarily an image-based platform, ads will typically focus on photos and illustrations with relatively minimal text.
Not sure which type of Instagram advertising is best for your brand? A consultation with an agency will help you figure out the best course of action. Just make sure the agency you choose has experience with the type of campaign you want to be conducted.
Does Agency Location Matter?
Because Instagram is available worldwide, you’re not limited to an agency located in the same city. While the ability to meet face-to-face can be helpful, there aren’t any particular benefits in the long run. Instead, make sure the agency you choose is easy to reach by phone and email.
You’ll have a lot more options available when agency location isn’t a priority. This lets you focus instead on finding an agency with the specialized skills you need. As long as the agency maintains consistent communication, you shouldn’t have any problems, even if their office is located halfway around the world.
Watch Out for Red Flags
All agencies will promote their benefits, experience, and general positive attributes. After all, they’re experts in advertising. But you want to look beyond the hype and consider any negative qualities.
Consider this the “glass half empty” approach. Instead of focusing on the benefits of an agency, consider all the potential negatives. By avoiding agencies with multiple red flags, you’ll be left with only quality agencies to find.
So, what issues should set off alarm bells? Generally, avoid agencies that promise guaranteed results. Marketing and advertising are often an inexact science. It’s impossible to predict how effective any individual campaign will be, so avoid any agency which promises a specific outcome.
Also, avoid “one size fits all” marketing packages. These pre-made plans seldom consider the specifics of your brand. Instead, choose an agency that develops a custom plan based on your needs.
How Much Should Instagram Advertising Cost?
There’s no set answer here. Costs will vary based on the number of ads, their quality, their frequency, and more. However, just because prices will vary doesn’t mean they should be a surprise.
Before any work begins, you should ask for a quote and a prospectus. All prices should be easy to understand. Many agencies offer the option of starting with a small campaign and then expanding it over time. This allows you to control costs and only pay for more work after the previous marketing efforts have shown some results.
Instagram Advertising 101
When Instagram first launched in 2010, many social media experts were slow to see its potential. The general idea was that this new service was too similar to Facebook. But Instagram’s image-heavy platform quickly grew in popularity among users, even if marketing pros were slow to notice.
Today, Instagram has over 800 million users, with over 500 active daily users. And the Instagram audience is significantly different than the people on Facebook. Teens have cut back on their Facebook use meaningfully, leaving Instagram as one of the most popular platforms for people under the age of 30.
Plus, Instagram often seems more “real” to users. Celebrities, brands, and other influencers can use Instagram to connect with an audience in ways that feel authentic. This is why Instagram is often effective at generating buzz and awareness for a brand.
Why Choose an Instagram Ad Agency?
Instagram’s authenticity is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, a brand that appears authentic can attract a lot of positive attention. But Instagram users are also rapid to turn on a brand that comes across as insincere.
This is why an Instagram Agency is usually so helpful. They know how to create a message which Instagram users will respond to. Plus, an agency can draw on in-house data to make impactful decisions.
Agencies track a variety of data across their entire client roster. This helps them identify various trends and techniques which effectively reach potential customers. The bigger the agency, the more data is available to help achieve your brand’s specific needs. Of course, large agencies can sometimes feel more impersonal than smaller ones, so you want to find an agency with an appropriate balance.
If you knew of a marketing platform that had 1 billion guaranteed users every month, and that generated a high ROI every time you used it, would you jump on board? If you wanted your business to grow and thrive, the answer to this question would be a resounding “yes.” Well, there is a marketing platform that offers this exact scenario, and that platform is Instagram.
What started as a fun place for people to post photos without all of the clutter of other social media platforms has quickly grown into a marketer’s dream. With the right strategies in place, you can use Instagram to skyrocket your business’s success, but you may need a little help. Here is a closer look at Instagram marketing and how an Instagram marketing agency may be the tool you need in your tool belt to make sense of this complex marketing platform.
Understanding the Power of Instagram
Instagram has an estimated 1 billion users every month, and that is a large number of people to potentially draw from as you seek to grow your business. Of that 1 billion, over 500 million use that every single day. This is huge growth, as in 2013, the platform only had 130 million active monthly users, and statistics seem to indicate the growth will continue. Instagram is now the second most engaged network after Facebook, and that number increases in the 35-and-under audience.
Not only is the Instagram audience broad, but it’s also diverse. The interest in Instagram spans most generations, with the 18-44 age bracket being the most active. It’s a popular platform across the globe. After the United States, Brazil, India, and Indonesia have the most significant number of users.
Instagram is a powerful marketing tool not just because of the number of people who use the platform, but also because of how active they are. To harness that power, 71 percent of businesses in the United States are now using Instagram as part of their marketing efforts, and they see success as a result.
Of the leading social media platforms, Instagram has the most substantial influence on shopping habits. Around 80 percent of the people on Instagram indicates they discover new products or services on the platform, and 72 percent of Instagram users note they had made recent purchase decisions based on something they saw on the platform.
Using Instagram to Promote Your Product
If you are ready to harness the power of Instagram, then it’s time to start learning how to market using the platform. Instagram offers a few different ways to promote a brand or product. One is to create a brand account and post on it. Follow accounts in your industry, and learn to use hashtags to help with the search. Use Instagram Stories, which are quite effective at drawing views. Make sure your posts include both images and videos.
Creating and running an Instagram account is an organic way to draw people to your company. However, it is hard to control how many people see your posts. A second option is to use paid advertisements for marketing your product or service. You can run ads on Instagram by connecting Instagram to your brand’s Facebook Ads Manager. Input your targeting and demographic information, then optimize the ad to fit Instagram’s platform. Then, test the ads repeatedly until you find what works to drive sales.
Finally, one of the best ways to advertise on Instagram is to get the help of promoters. People with large followings and a significant amount of audience trust are known as “influencers.” When influencers promote a brand, the results are highly effective.
Influencer marketing is not a small thing, either. What was once a tiny piece of the marketing tactic has grown into an industry worth between $5 and $10 billion. As many as 17 percents of brands are spending over half of their marketing budgets in influencers, and 89 percent report an excellent return on investment from that money. While influencers work across all social media channels, Instagram is quickly becoming one of the most important, and 89 percent of brands indicate it to be the preferred channel for their influencer marketing campaigns.
How to Get Influencers to Work as Promoters on Instagram
Influencer marketing, particularly on Instagram, is a highly useful tool for the modern brand, yet many are unsure how they can use it effectively. Exactly how can you go about getting people with more significant followings to promote your brand on Instagram? This can be tricky, but these steps can help:
- Find the right ones – First, you will need to find influencers in your niche. The best promoter is someone who your target audience trusts. Search hashtags and keywords to identify these people.
- Build a relationship – Follow the influencer you want to partner with. Share and like their content, join in conversations, and ask questions. Get on their radar.
- Have a pitch – Once the influencer knows who you are, you need to offer them something that will make them promote you. Providing a sample, giving them content they can post, or offering to update their outdated content can all be a high pitch.
- Be patient – Good influencers have hundreds of people every day that want their promotions. Be patient, build those relationships, and you will likely find some that are willing to promote your brand.
How to Plan Instagram Content
For influencers to promote your Instagram page and your business, your page must have relevant, current content that they want to help. Planning and implementing content is a massive part of the overall Instagram marketing strategy.
To plan content, you must first know your audience. Take time to research what it is your audience wants from your brand, and offer content that delivers. Whether it is entertainment, education, or something else, tailor your content to the needs of the people who will buy from you.
Instagram is an image and video-driven platform, so your content must have appealing photos or videos, but you will also need to craft words to go with those images. What kind of content works? Here are some ideas:
- Pictures of your company, with behind-the-scenes being particularly popular
- Portraits of your staff, with content introducing them.
- Images or videos of your product in use
- Posts highlighting awards you have earned
- Charts and infographics relevant to your audience
- Recorded events
- Live streams from your place of business
- Interactive polls and questions for your audience
- Links to your company blog with pertinent blog posts you have written
With each of these types of content, you will need an attractive image or video that will grab attention visually, because that is what Instagram users are looking for when they log on to the platform.
What Is an Instagram Marketing Agency?
Does all of this sound overwhelming? Successfully marketing via social media, and Instagram specifically, is complex. It is also time-consuming. Many brands will choose to partner with a team that can help. An Instagram marketing agency provides that help.
An Instagram marketing agency is an advertising agency that comes alongside a brand to build and manage their Instagram marketing efforts. They understand the platform’s intricacies and marketing methods, how to reach influencers, and how to help brands get seen. By working with an Instagram marketing agency, your brand will enjoy:
- Working with marketers experienced in Instagram
- Save time when learning to use Instagram ads
- Proven testing that shows the success of your ads
- Increased effectiveness of Instagram marketing efforts
- Improve sales through the power of Instagram marketing
Unless you are already well-versed in marketing through Instagram, and even if you are but need help managing your campaigns to save yourself some time, working with an Instagram marketing agency is a must.
How much do the services of a social media marketing agency cost? On average, successful companies spend $4,000 to $7,000 per month on their social media management, including the cost of the ads they put online. The agency itself will charge a percentage of that. It’s not uncommon for an Instagram marketing agency to charge around 20 percent of the company’s ad budget.
How to Get Started as a Social Media Marketing Agency
You may be thinking that it seems foolish to pay an Instagram marketing agency a large percent of your total ad budget. You may feel that you would be better off keeping that money and learning how to do the work yourself. Why can social media marketing firms charge a premium price? Consider what it takes to get started as a social media marketing agency.
First, to market someone else’s product or service well on a social media platform, you must understand the platforms and their marketing techniques. This means studying the platforms, learning how to target audience demographics, and learning how to optimize profiles to get the most significant reach. You also must learn their advertising venues and how to test campaigns for effectiveness. This takes a considerable amount of time and effort to master. Often, social media marketers get their training by working for a firm, then branch out on their own once they have the right skill set.
Next, you will need to develop a portfolio of successful campaigns you have run in the past. If you get your training through another marketing company, you can start building this portfolio. Otherwise, you will need to find some companies that are willing to trust you so you can make that portfolio.
Once you have a portfolio, you will need to start finding companies to hire you. Then, you will need to spend time daily managing their campaigns, putting to work all you have learned. It can be time-consuming because social media marketing requires constant tweaking and adjusting to ensure endless reach and business growth.
This process is not an easy one, which is why social media marketing is an investment for businesses.
How to Get Started as an Instagram Marketing Agency
What if all you want to do is work with Instagram? Would the steps get started as an Instagram marketing agency be a little easier?
While focusing on just one marketing platform may be a little easier, Instagram and its nuances take time and effort to understand honestly. Also, you have to learn Facebook’s ad platform because Instagram ads run through Facebook. You must also learn how to define and target audiences, perform A/B testing, and track conversions. Finally, you must become adept at taking your audience through a story as you weave them through the marketing funnel and to the desired purchase point.
Why You Need Professional Help for Instagram Marketing
Unless you are planning to become a social media marketing agency, if you want to make headway in your Instagram campaigns, you need professional help. Trying to launch an Instagram campaign without the right support is like trying to file a lawsuit without a lawyer. It’s incredibly painful and will create a high level of stress. For most brands, working with an Instagram marketing agency is more cost and time-effective than trying to learn Instagram advertising by trial and error.
Partner with the Top Advertising Agency to Fuel Your Success
Marketing through social media and Instagram is explicitly quite complicated. It takes the right knowledge and training to do well, and also requires an investment of time into the account regularly. For brands that need to find success on Instagram quickly, partnering with a top advertising agency with Instagram, know-how is the best solution.
Voy Media is the best Instagram marketing company available. This Instagram advertising agency doesn’t just run your Instagram and Facebook ads. Still, they also take the time to learn about your brand so we can optimize every dollar you spend on advertising. Voy Media uses creative strategies that think outside the marketing box to get you the best returns on your advertising campaigns. They know what it takes to make Instagram work for your business, driving customers through the conversion funnel to a successful purchase point. Their team will take the time to set you up for success. If you are looking for an Instagram advertising agency to partner with, reach out to Voy Media to learn more today.
Conclusion
Instagram is often easily dismissed by marketing pros, but with the right agency in your corner, this image-based platform can be instrumental in building your brand. However, Instagram can be tricky to navigate, which is why you want experienced marketing professionals in your corner.
The best Instagram agency understands how to reach and connect with Instagram users, who are different than the users of all other social media platforms. Fortunately, the five companies above offer high-quality Instagram advertising services at affordable rates.
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