instagram reels

Instagram Carousel Ads: Why They’re a Must

Is Instagram important for your social media strategy?

There are several data-driven reasons Instagram carousels are a must in 2024.

1. Carousels have a higher than average engagement rate

This is especially true for profiles under 10,000 followers or over 100,000.

But carousels stay more engaging than image posts for all profile sizes.

2. You get more engagement per impression when using carousels

And this is for all profile sizes, from under 5,000 followers to over 100,000 followers.

3. Comments!

One of the best engagements are comments.

Comments on carousels are also above average.

Here though, it’s worth mentioning that videos seem to be the most engaging across the board.

On the other hand, images lag behind the bigger the profile gets.

4. Users save carousels more often than average

Again, profile size does make a bit of a difference here.

Images are saved the most for profiles over 100,000 followers.

But for anything less than that, carousels are leading the way when it comes to generating saves.

5. Increased reach rate

If you want to reach your followers (which is hard enough already organically), carousels have the highest reach rate across all profile sizes.

So, they improve your chances of being in front of your followers.

While carousels have positive signs from this data, just posting carousels won’t get you results.

Keep in mind that Instagram is doubling-down on video and trying to make Reels a serious TikTok competitor.

Which images get the most engagement on Instagram?

A group of researchers at North Carolina State University analyzed 147,963 Instagram images with the help of a private Instagram viewer software to understand which type of images gets more engagement.

The research wasn’t about whether a cat or Dan Bilzerian gets more engagement.

Nope…

Researchers wanted to find the visual qualities in a photo that generate more engagement. And this isn’t just about your brands’ organic posts.

It’s also about your ads… Engagement is always useful here…

Let’s check the result for the six specific qualities analyzed:

Color complexity

Less is more here. The fewer colors your image has, the more likes it will get.

Luminance entropy

This is about the intensity of the light in the image.

And, contrary to color’s richness, the more the merrier.

Unique objects

Aim for fewer objects in the frame.

Edge density

This refers to the ratio of edges to non-edges.

The ideal image has a balance between the two.

This means that a photo of a giant flag in front of a windowed building won’t get many likes.

Irregularity of object arrangement

The less regular the visual, the more likes it gets.

Think about a wall of bricks versus a wall of graffiti.

Asymmetry of objects arrangement

This is the trait to get more like, meaning, how much symmetry, both vertical and horizontal, an image contains.

The finds aren’t that easy to execute on, but according to researchers, optimizng features and design complexity of a photo, can improve engagement by 19%.

Now that you are in the know, go, and engage with the world… Or let the world engage with you!

 


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