It’s not recent news that social media has found all the possible ways to offer companies with different techniques to target consumers with advertising. Facebook has done it, Google, and Twitter as well, however, now Instagram is soon to join the team.
Who would have thought that Instagram was going to grow so fast since it first launched on October 6, 2010. It was the #1 downloaded app in the App Store within 24 hours of launched, and as March 2012, it had more than 25 million users, according to the School of Information Studies.
Instagram announced three weeks ago that ads will be now a part of the social media. However, we will start seeing the first ads little by little starting next week. The Instagram Blog explains the details behind what to expect from the upcoming ads. The mission that the company faces now is to select the most engaging pictures to use in the ads that will flow smoothly with the theme that already exists on Instagram. The first companies to use this service will be Adidas, Ben & Jerry’s, Buberry, General Motors, Lexus, Levi’s, Macy’s, Michael Kors, PayPal and Starwood.
The company released an example of how the ads will look like, and set a frame of reference. They will have a blue arrow in the right top conner to identify them as sponsored. Also, users will have the option to hide ads that they don’t want to see by clicking on the “…” in the bottom right cornet.The images released by Instagram are the following:
In general Ads bring the risk of losing users by reducing their interest as a result of the ad bombarding. I might also create the possibility of losing its secret charm, specially in this social media. For this reason, the company should be careful not to become a platform dedicated only for ads in a way that it stops being a personal space.
To users like myself, the release of these ads will be a hard adjustment, at least at the beginning. However, I believe that if Instagram and companies do a good job selecting the pictures, and being loyal to the “perfect world” inside this social media, then it could have positive feedback.
Users are able to edit their personal pictures using the filters, in a attempt to make t
hem more creative, more professional-looking, and create a more perfect image of reality. More over, the Instagram community looks to connect with others, and to get inspired by the perfection that pictures portrait. For this reason, if ads are able to accomplish this characteristics, then it could become one of the most important social media marketing tools. The advantage for companies? that they are able to express emotions, attitudes, and lifestyles using pictures that they could never do using words. Which better place to do this than the number one picture-sharing platform.
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- Instagram Shares the Look of Its New Ad Products (adweek.com)
Advertising Power 
I think this can be even more successful than the way Facebook advertises. Instagram will sort of blend the ads within the whole platform therefore I don’t see it being as distracting as the ads on Facebook. A great idea for Instagram.
I think it’s interesting how, as opposed to relegating ads to the corners of websites or hiding them away on the sides, social media sites like Instagram are integrating ads completely into their layouts, displaying them like regular posts, but with a “sponsored” label. The advantage for advertisers definitely seems to be that their advertisements can seem more seamless and natural.
-Nabeel Bokhari
This is an interesting observation. I didn’t realize that Instagram had not officially begun to post ads for products. I believe that it all depends on who one follows on Instagram. For instance, I follow Nike and Finishline and both of these users post images in the subtle form of ads in an attempt to sell their products. What I am surprised by is the fact that it has taken Instagram this long to implement the ad feature into their platform. With an image based stage I would have thought that this would have been one of their features from the beginning, but as the saying goes, “better late than never!”
You brought up a good point in that the users posting ads will have to be strategic with their posts as not to deter users away from using Instagram. I believe that if the users are smart in their post they have to potential of being successful, as you mentioned, in the Instagram ad business!