-Instagram and Purchase Conversion-
Through a survey of 276 people and a series of interviews, we set out to investigate the correlation between Instagram usage and app purchases. Our survey focused on consumers between the ages of 18-25.
In our findings, 68% reported being influenced by advertisements regardless of purchase frequency. Of the people surveyed, 21% make purchases at least every six months. 90% of these individuals reported ads were the determining influence in their purchase decision.
In addition to discovering the impact of ads, we identified how ad placement within the app can increase the traffic an ad receives. Through our research, we also determined if practitioners can profit from those who spend more time on Instagram.
How Long Do You Have Instagram Users Attention
How long do consumers stay on Instagram and what is the first thing they see?
According to our survey results, 70% of participants reported spending two hours or less on Instagram. In contrast, only 6% spend 5 or more hours on the app.
At 51%, a little over half of users turn to their Instagram feeds upon opening the app.
We have identified a correlation between a user’s social media usage time and their purchasing behavior. Our findings indicate that individuals who spend more time on Instagram are significantly more likely to make purchases than those who spent less time.
Do Influencers Have Influence
If consumers come across a product promoted by an influencer on their feed, will they be influenced to make a purchase?
We found that influencer marketing is a promising way to increase brand awareness and spark initial interest. Of those surveyed, 47% reported ads, sponsored content, and promotions by influencers caused them to consider making purchases.
While influencers can effectively promote products and generate buzz, they may not always contribute to the legitimacy of the brand. Instagram’s influencer marketing landscape has raised concerns around transparency and credibility, as some influencers have been found to promote products they don’t actually use or don’t even like.
According to a study conducted by research institute MarketingSherpa, 82% of consumers report authenticity concerns have prevented them from making online purchases. This overwhelming majority makes it essential for companies to provide tangible proof that their company and products are trustworthy and legitimate.
It is crucial for practitioners to strike a balance between using influencers to increase initial interest while still portraying the authenticity of the product.
While almost half of surveyed participants reported being influenced by ads and influencers, 62% of respondents say they have not used Instagram to make purchases.
Curious to hear what people actually think about instagram purchasing? Watch this VOX POP Video from the personal interviews we conducted.
What Prevents Instagramers from Making Purchases
In personal interviews conducted by members of our team, we received additional feedback that users were not making purchases. Instagram is an untapped market for practitioners. However, practitioners must be prepared to address authenticity concerns.
Instagram users in our interviews stated authenticity of products was their main concern when making purchases. As online marketing becomes more popular there is an increased need for companies to portray themselves and their products as trustworthy.
“As online marketing becomes more popular there is an increased need for companies to portray themselves and their products as trustworthy.” (Content Marketing Institute, 2019)
How Can Practitioners Address Purchase Hesitancy
“Successful companies work hard to build consistent brand images, but internal efforts can only go so far. Ultimately, a brand’s image comes down to how the customers view the business, not how the business views itself.” Daniel Pink, chief speechwriter for Vice President Al Gore.
● Displaying Company Values.
Making a company’s values visible helps customers see that the company stands for something other than selling its products or services. Values are something easily recognized and respected by customers. It is a simple way to connect to your target audience. Values add an aspect of human connection to a word that often can feel impersonal with the increase in digitization.
● Be Consistent and Uniform
BrandMaster Academy gives this powerful example of the impact of consistency: “Think of an Apple Store. You could visit an Apple store in New York, London, Tokyo or Sydney and expect to see the same furniture, customer service, logo, fonts, displays, products, and overall experience.”
This same principle applies to social media. Being consistent with the frequency of posts gives users something they can count on. The more consistent and uniform a brand is the more recednisible it will become and reliable it will appear.
Practitioners can use repetition to establish familiarity. Examples of what this could look like, having the same trademark saying appear after all video advertisements. Including your company’s logo in the corner of every photo post.
● Treating First Customers Like VIP’s
Wunderman Thompson, a successful marketing company based out of New York reported that 56% of customers feel more loyal to brands that have a deep understanding of their priorities and preferences. One way that Wunderman Thompson
built trust was by treating their first customers like VIP’s. Setting a strong company-consumer relationship early on positively influences a customer’s view of the company in a positive way.
● Timely Customer Communication
Building a relationship with customers through quality products and communication is essential. Timely customer communication shows the value and respect a company has for the people they interact with. Having a quick response time to customer questions or product issues helps customers feel valued and portrays a company’s confidence in the product. Customers’ experiences will speak louder than any marketing campaign ever could.
Un-Tapping The Instagram Market
As more consumers turn to social media to make purchases, having a strong following becomes essential to increase visibility and engagement with products. Gaining a large following increases recognition and brand loyalty.
Our research revealed that ads on Instagram have a higher purchase conversion rate than influencer marketing and Instagram stories. This highlights the importance of companies investing in targeted ads that are strategically placed within users’ feeds.
It is important to note, however, that our survey found that a majority of users spend less than two hours on Instagram per day. This means that practitioners should focus on creating impactful content and ads that can immediately catch users’ attention. This
should involve eye-catching visuals and interactive elements to increase engagement. Practitioner can benefit from focusing on the following strategies:
● Building A Strong Following
Growing a strong following on Instagram is crucial for successful marketing because it directly impacts the reach of a brand’s content. With a larger following, posts appear on more users’ feeds, making engagement with the content more likely.
This strategy opens up opportunities for collaboration with other brands and influencers. The Instagram app itself features brands with large followings on its Explore Page, further increasing the chances of gaining a larger reach.
● Produce Quality Content
Producing quality content is essential for social media strategists because it helps to build brand identity and relationship with the audience. Quality content can set a brand apart from competitors, establish credibility and expertise, and ultimately help to drive sales. Social media users are constantly seeing new content on a daily basis, so in order to capture their attention and maintain their interest, content must be visually appealing, informative, engaging and consistent.
High-quality content will increase interest. Social media algorithms prioritize content that receives high engagement, so posts that receive a high level of engagement are more likely to be shown to a wider audience, which can lead to increased brand awareness and follower growth.
● Target Heavy Instagram Users
While most surveyed individuals spent less than two hours daily on Instagram, there is potential for a correlation between purchases and ads being seen through users’ feeds. Social media strategists can target heavy Instagram users who spend more time on the app to maximize their ad exposure and increase the likelihood of conversion.
● Build A Solid Company Page
Social media strategists should focus on building a strong company page since having a large following is crucial for having products seen on Instagram. This can be achieved through various tactics such as regularly posting high-quality content, interacting with followers, and using relevant hashtags to increase engagement.
Implementing these strategies can provide social media practitioners with a clear direction to drive their marketing efforts and leverage the power of Instagram. Ultimately, these advertising strategies work hand-in-hand by contributing to a successful social media marketing campaign. By combining these strategies and tailoring them to a brand’s specific needs and goals, social media practitioners can achieve greater brand awareness, drive sales, and ultimately achieve their marketing objectives.
● Investing In Targeted Ads
According to the survey results, ads on Instagram had a higher purchase conversion rate compared to influencers or Instagram stories. Targeted ads are useful because they allow for a more precise and effective way of reaching a desired audience.
Therefore, social media strategists should consider investing in Instagram ads as a way to reach their target audience and drive sales.
● Ad Placement
Our study shows that ad placement plays a crucial role in the success of a campaign. Much like targeted ads, ad placement helps advertisements be seen. Targeted ads ensure an ad is seen by the right audience, while ad placement helps to ensure that the ad is seen in the right context and at the right time. For example, placing ads in the user’s feed has a higher chance of being seen and clicked on than ads placed in stories or the explore page.
By having a better understanding of this, strategists can design an effective advertising strategy that ensures their ads are visible to their target audience at the right time. For
instance, an ad for a restaurant can be placed in the Instagram feed of users located near the restaurant to increase the likelihood of the user visiting the restaurant.
In addition to ad placement, social media strategists can also use other targeting options such as demographics, interests, behaviors, and custom audiences. These targeting options allow strategists to show their ads to users who are most likely to be interested in their products or services, also allowing the effectiveness of the ads to go up, and minimizing the budget and time spent on irrelevant audiences.
By combining all of these strategies, social media strategists can more effectively boost their brand awareness, drive sales, and achieve their marketing goals on Instagram.
How to Move Forward
Our research sheds light on where users go when they first open the app and the amount of time they spend scrolling. The majority of the users we surveyed spend less than three hours per day on Instagram, and over half of them go to their feed before stories, reels, or explore page.
We have researched the impact of ad placement within the instagram app and its potential to increase traffic an ad receives. Findings suggested that practitioners can optimize their ad placement within Instagram to reach a larger audience and increase their chances of conversion.
We discovered a positive correlation between the amount of time users spend on Instagram and the probability they will make purchases through the app, as they are more likely to engage with and purchase products advertised on Instagram.
It is important to note, however, that there are still changes to overcome when it comes to advertising on Instagram. It is important for practitioners to provide clear and transparent information about their products and the brand themselves to establish trust with their target audience.
Overall, our study has highlighted the potential of Instagram as a powerful advertising platform, with the strategies we suggested, practitioners can address purchase hesitancy more effectively to drive engagement and sales.
With further research and experimentation, practitioners can continue to unlock the full potential of Instagram advertising and capitalize on the platform’s large and engaged user base.
Works Cited
Agius, Aaron. “How to Build Brand Trust in 7 Steps.” Content Marketing Institute, 8 Mar. 2019, https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/articles/steps-brand-trust/.
“Brand Image: How to Create a Positive Brand Image – 2023.” MasterClass, Masterclass, 26 Jan. 2022,
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/brand-image-explained.
“The Rise of Instagram-Evolution, Statistics, Advantages and Disadvantages.” Https://Www.ulbsibiu.ro/En/, Universitatea Lucian Blaga Din Sibiu, 3 Feb. 2020, http://economice.ulbsibiu.ro/revista.economica/archive/71404fuciu.pdf.
Cruz-Eusebio, Jairene. “5 Benefits of Instagram Ads You Should Know Right Now.” Brax, 17 Jan. 2022,
https://www.brax.io/blog/5-benefits-of-instagram-ads-you-should-know-right-now.
Mendenhall, Nathan. “The Importance of Ad Placement on Social Media.” Sprout Social, Sprout Social Inc., 24 Feb. 2020,
sproutsocial.com/insights/social-media-ad-placement/.
“7 Best Ways to Build Brand Trust and Customer Loyalty.” Brand Master Academy, 9 Jan. 2023, https://brandmasteracademy.com/brand-trust/.
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